Hi Alec,
 AC> On (17 Oct 96) Jim Mcandrew wrote to All...
 JM> Readers of this echo may be interested in how U.S. power rates
 JM> compare with those in other countries.
 JM> Rank    Country    Cents/Kwh      % change from '95
 JM> 8       U.S.A.        7.13             0.50
 JM> 12      Australia     4.89             0.00
 JM> Residential rates are normally (in the U.S. at least)
 JM> substantially higher than industrial rates, even though
Yes, though I'd be surprised if that figure for Australia is an average, even 
with industrial rates.  Residential users are paying 2-3 times that.
 JM> residential users are subsidised, as a class, buy the industrial
 JM> and commercial rate classes.
I'm not sure I'd quite put it that way.  Bulk users get discounts, incentives 
to consume, the largest here being the aluminium smelting mob, who reportedly 
pay as little as 3 or 4c (Aus) per Kwh, though many of these deals are 
secret, paid out by state govts as sweets to attract industries to their 
areas.
And of course these figures don't include, at all, the environmental costs of 
producing this power in the first place.  Whole huge valleys have gone under 
for the aluminium industry, and Australia's CO2 emissions from coal are among 
the world's worst, esp. per capita  .. but I guess that's another story, when 
most of these costs will only be payable by our children, and theirs ..
 AC> Very interesting. Here are figures from my latest power
 AC> bill: 3 bedroom house,
 AC> two occupants, 62 days to September 9th-
 AC> Lighting and other energy       1324 kWH        AU$142.28       
US112.40
 AC> ie US 11.8c a kWH
Sounds fairly typical for NSW.  For last year's Oct-Dec 2 months (no heating 
needed! :) the first 195Kwh cost me 16.04c plus another 363 at 12.06c.  Total 
558Kwh for $75.06 = 13.45c/Kwh (~10.6c US).  It was only a bit cheaper on the 
NSW central coast, not far at all from the big coal-fired power stations, 
where I lived for a few years not so long ago.
 AC> NSW city rates are probably cheaper- we live up a mountain
 AC> range in cattle country.
I'd say you're doing alright.  From memory it's around 25c/Kwh up in Darwin, 
and that's subsidised, turbines running on gas shipped 1000's of miles.
 AC> ... ........BUNDANOON, on a dirt track leading to the Info Superhighway
:)  Kali believes there are some breakthroughs brewing on cheap amorphous 
cell solar panel production .. have to see if we can get her to talk about 
that ..
Cheers, Ian
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