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So far as markets are concerned, a distinction needs to be made between markets as a generic concept and the actual "market" we have, the National Electricity Market, as distinct from the non-market approach of monopoly utilities which preceded it.

Suffice to say the NEM has a rather long list of omissions and flaws which run counter to technical, environmental and even economic objectives. Hence we've ended up with seriously expensive energy that really need not be.

I'll put these two charts up. One for NSW and one for Victoria. Both are for today:

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Now you don't need to be an engineer to spot that something happened today. At about midday there's a plunge in Victorian generation and a corresponding rise in generation in NSW.

Now you could be excused for assuming that something terrible had occurred in Victoria, some sort of major breakdown or incident but that, thankfully, supply from NSW as able to keep the lights on.

If only that were true......

What actually happened was this:

To explain that, it's nothing to do with electrical engineering and nor is it anything to do with problems with boilers, wind gusts or even something like maintaining flow in a river. In truth it's accounting, yes accounting of the financial kind.

So we fixed an accounting problem by turning off about 1500 MW of wind generation, mostly in Victoria with a bit in SA, and replacing the output by burning gas and running hydro generation in NSW then gradually ramping up coal. Running hydro generation that, I might add, is drawing on a water storage that's presently 45% full and with water being discharged into a catchment that's actually flooding downstream to the point of being a problem in itself.

You won't find an engineer who sees logic in this. Even those who are in the camp that isn't at all concerned about the use of fossil fuels will say that if we've already built wind farms then it's outright crazy to not use them.

Therein lies the reason mere mention of the word "market" tends to be met with rolling eyes and derision by those who see this stuff routinely. The actual market we have is shockingly inefficient, having been captured by an assortment of ideologues who've taken it a very long way from the fundamentals of both engineering and economics.

That wasn't an isolated incident and to be clear neither AEMO nor any of the affected companies have done anything wrong. Just enforcing the rules as drawn up by others....

Now please don't anyone tell me I should be shivering in the dark to save on emissions. Not whilst this nonsense goes on.