Energy
Media and commentary related to our work to protect consumer rights and ensure everyone in our community can access the affordable, efficient and clean energy they need.
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2SER: Debt and Disconnection
Senior Policy Officer Thea Bray joined 2SER Breakfast to discuss the Energy and Water Justice Program’s new Powerless report.
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ABC News: Higher income households across NSW increasingly struggling to stay on top of their energy bills
Nearly every household is struggling to pay their energy bills, Senior Policy Officer Thea Bray told the ABC.
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Unaffordable energy leaves more working households facing disconnection
Our new research shows more working families, people with mid-range incomes and households with mortgages are facing disconnection because of unaffordable energy bills.
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Solar power tariff a fair cost for using the grid
Energy experts at the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) say new tariff arrangements that include a small charge for solar panel owners in NSW to sell energy during the middle of the day help make the cost of maintaining the energy grid fairer for everyone. After years of consultation with the community, electricity network businesses…
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The Daily Telegraph: Power Pain Amps Up
NSW households and small businesses struggling to pay soaring electricity bills face forking out more than $340m extra next financial year to cover administration and other costs for renewable energy zones. … In discussions with Macquarie Street, consumer advocacy groups have been arguing that the burden shouldn’t be entirely on the shoulders of householders and…
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Electricity price announcement signals a welcome shift in priorities
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) says today’s Default Market Offer (DMO) 2024–25 Draft Determination signals a welcome shift by the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). The DMO has been used to set a benchmark price for electricity across most of Australia since 2019. Previous DMO decisions have included a ‘competition allowance’ that set the DMO…
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SMH: After 17 days with no power, Richard wants better answers
… Public Interest Advocacy Centre consumer advocate Craig Memery said distribution companies should have more portable batteries and petrol generators they can drop off to households that are severed from the grid. ‘It is possible for network businesses to provide temporary battery and generator systems that can meet people’s basic needs of keeping their fridges…
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2SER: Tackling unfair embedded networks
With energy bills rising, most of us take it for granted that we can switch to a different supplier with a better deal if there’s one available. However, some people don’t have this option because they live in a home within an ‘embedded network’. Instead, they’re locked into a deal that’s often more expensive, with…
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Australia’s transmission task needs a new approach – let’s open it up to competition
In particular, the AEMC determined that TNSPs recovering their costs as incurred rather than as commissioned would mean that consumers were paying for transmission lines before they received the benefits of that new line in access to lower priced electricity. As PIAC identified, the rule change would increase intergenerational inequities, with today’s customers paying for the…
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Eraring extension unnecessary: Government has cheaper, cleaner options
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) has called on the NSW Government to adopt a program of reliable, sustainable energy solutions rather than extend the life of the Eraring coal-fired power station. There is growing speculation Eraring will be subsidised to operate beyond its planned 2025 closing date due to perceived risks to reliability of…