PolicyGuy:
Yes indeed.
I wonder what carbon price Fonterra is paying for these plants at the moment?
Are they paying the $25/tonne 'current market price', or are they on a 50% deal (many are) or are we taxpayers actually paying all their carbon fees? A full carbon price recovery regime would immediately change the fuel economics.
I think previous governments have not pushed too hard on that because it would put a major squeeze on Fonterra milk price and shareholder returns, and would put out of business a bunch of coal miners, truckies, maintenance service providers and other downstream businesses. Politically hard
Even $25/tonne is a pittance.
Abatement cost of lake onslow scheme is $250/tonne... (but we need roughly a decades warning to get it up an running)