If the population increases, then naturally we are going to require more infrastructure to house those people.
Now the main reason our energy prices are increasing is because of an overbuilt network.
The following graph gives a nice visual representation -
Now the main reason for all this extra infrastructure is that energy companies are allowed a return on their debt! They take government loans at 3%, but they are charging us at a rate of 9-10%. This is equating to around an extra 10-25% increase on power prices.
The figures show that if they were not allowed to gain a return on their debt, for the year 2010/2011 the cost of power would have reduced by around $1.2 billion.
