Electricity retailers will increase their standard pricing from 1 July 2017 for all states in the National Electricity Market (NEM), with South Australia (SA) tipped to have the largest increase.
As part of their annual review of energy tariffs, the three biggest retailers have cited increased wholesale energy costs as the main reason for the significant increases. The retailers say the increased wholesale costs have been caused by the closure of baseload coal-fired generation and the increased costs of gas.
Residential customers in SA will see an average increase of 19.9 per cent from EnergyAustralia, 18 per cent from AGL, and 16.1 per cent from Origin Energy. Experts are concerned that household prices in SA are set to be the highest in the world, putting immense pressure on the household budget.
In today’s ever-increasing energy market, it is important to get to know your energy usage. Edge’s tips for residential and small to medium business customers are:
- Understand your consumption. E.g. Do you need smart metering?
- Are you on the right tariff? Changing tariffs could save you hundreds of dollars per year.
- Shop around. There are a number of retailers offering discounts of varying levels. It’s important you are comparing apples with apples.
If you’re a small to medium business and want to take a proactive approach to your electricity contracts, contact Edge Utilities here.
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