I was reading about all the LNG exports in Oz, all the anti HC push … seems before there was a viable homegrown replacement … put in the wrong hands it can happen in a town near me …
It's barmy...2013-2014, I was the plant efficiency engineer, and had access to lots of data on the gas system, and who was using it. (Oz had carbon tax at that point).
Anyway, the combined cycle plants were doing very well on $4.50/GJ natural gas, and a burgeoning export market was just about to happen.
With the exports, the wholesale gas price is now $10.50/GJ...
Oz actually had gas plants close down (stanwell) , as they could sell their gas rights for more than their margin on electricity. Others started budgeting their consumption, and plant life consumption such that they saved their gas for high market days (and cycled their plant heavily).
In the meantime, the "green" states banned not only fracking, but conventional wells, driving up the prices, as the more expensive wells could never come on line...the greenest of the states nearly ran out of diesel as they fueled their peakers on THAT due to gas prices/shortages.
It's a debacle.