AGL electricity tariff just increased by a third.

[InnerVoice]

I just received an email from AGL informing us that 'there have been major global energy challenges over the last year, and we’ve seen significant rises in wholesale energy costs in Australia', and some additional waffle to gloss over a 34% price increase. It seems we're not immune to the huge price increases they've experienced in the UK and Europe.

Edited June 9, 2023 by InnerVoice

[Parley]

In Victoria we got $250 from the Sate Government for comparing energy providers.

[InnerVoice]

9 hours ago, Parley said:

In Victoria we got $250 from the Sate Government for comparing energy providers.

You can get $500 rebate here if you're classed as a vulnerable household, but nothing for the rest of us.

[Ken]

Origin Tariffs increase from 1 July too:-

Charge description                 Charges as at 30 June 2023                     New Charges from 1 July 2023                      Difference
Controlled Load 2 Usage               19.777 cents per kWh                                23.122 cents per kWh                       3.345 cent increase     (+16.9%)
General Usage                                 25.559 cents per kWh                                31.724 cents per kWh                       6.165 cent increase     (+24.1%)
Daily Supply - Controlled                 3.017 cents per day                                     3.696 cents per day                        0.679 cent increase     (+22.5%)
Daily Supply                                    117.155 cents per day                                132.649 cents per day                      15.494 cent increase    (+13.2%)

[Parley]

Origin did come up cheapest when i did the compare.

Although i haven't switched from AGL as yet.

[Cheery Thistle]

What does it equate to in monthly costs? 
 

I am paying £350 gbp for gas and electricity. Some friends have bills in excess of £500 per month. UK govt were giving everyone £67 a month to help until recently. When you couple it with car fuel, food inflation, mortgage increases, public transport costs, plus stagnating wages it is crippling for many. As a family we are fortunate and we have mainly cut back a lot on going out for food and leisure activities. 
Friends of ours send their kids to private school and fees have increased 15% year on year and have been attributed to a 260% increase in energy costs. 

Where does it all end? 

[rammygirl]

Our total energy bill for the year is currently about $1000 . All electric with solar, reverse cycle, induction cook and two ovens (I cook a lot) electric hot water. AGL in SA

Most of the year zero monthly bill and build up credits, this year could well be less than $1000. My tariff hasn’t changed yet I pay higher rate for use but lower supply charge and controlled load for HW. The maths to work our taffifs isn’t straightforward! The lower supply charge would have been more expensive overall for me as we utilise solar as much as possible. Our bills before solar were around $5000 pa. 
we have extra insulation and double glazing too, 4 bed 2 living house.

Prices in the Uk are very high but less in summer I would hope.

Edited June 12, 2023 by rammygirl

[Parley]

1 hour ago, rammygirl said:

Our total energy bill for the year is currently about $1000 . All electric with solar, reverse cycle, induction cook and two ovens (I cook a lot) electric hot water. AGL in SA

Most of the year zero monthly bill and build up credits, this year could well be less than $1000. My tariff hasn’t changed yet I pay higher rate for use but lower supply charge and controlled load for HW. The maths to work our taffifs isn’t straightforward! The lower supply charge would have been more expensive overall for me as we utilise solar as much as possible. Our bills before solar were around $5000 pa. 
we have extra insulation and double glazing too, 4 bed 2 living house.

Prices in the Uk are very high but less in summer I would hope.

But how much did your solar system cost and how many years does it take to pay for itself in ongoing savings.

Most people still do not have solar. I doubt it is worthwhile in Melbourne (for me).

[Marisawright]

33 minutes ago, Parley said:

But how much did your solar system cost and how many years does it take to pay for itself in ongoing savings.

Most people still do not have solar. I doubt it is worthwhile in Melbourne (for me).

Solar can certainly be worthwhile even in Melbourne.   There are three things that hold people back. 

• One is the upfront cost, of course -- some people can't afford it and don't want to take out a loan. 
• You also need to be sure you're going to stay in your current home long enough to recoup the cost. Younger people are often looking to trade up and (until the current mortgage rate increases!) wouldn't be planning to stay that long.
• ....and of course the last reason is that many people simply assume it won't be worth it, and don't bother to do their research, so they miss out.

[rammygirl]

55 minutes ago, Parley said:

But how much did your solar system cost and how many years does it take to pay for itself in ongoing savings.

Most people still do not have solar. I doubt it is worthwhile in Melbourne (for me).

$7k about 5 years ago. Paid back in less than three years. A good investment for our retirement going forward. Even on dull days enough UV to make a difference. The best way to save is to use the energy as it is produced as feed in tariffs are pretty low now. Making even more savings since we replaced the aircon unit as the old one stopped working. This one is much more efficient and uses much less energy. 

Edited June 13, 2023 by rammygirl

[Toots]

4 hours ago, Parley said:

But how much did your solar system cost and how many years does it take to pay for itself in ongoing savings.

Most people still do not have solar. I doubt it is worthwhile in Melbourne (for me).

We have solar and it's worth it even here in Tassie.  Not a big set-up but it certainly keeps the leccy bill down.  We had one day last summer when it reached 28C and the rest of the summer hovered around 23C most days so no air-con necessary.  We have a log burner for the colder months.  

[Parley]

4 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Solar can certainly be worthwhile even in Melbourne.   There are three things that hold people back. 

• One is the upfront cost, of course -- some people can't afford it and don't want to take out a loan. 
• You also need to be sure you're going to stay in your current home long enough to recoup the cost. Younger people are often looking to trade up and (until the current mortgage rate increases!) wouldn't be planning to stay that long.
• ....and of course the last reason is that many people simply assume it won't be worth it, and don't bother to do their research, so they miss out.

If i get one i would want to get a battery to store the power collected.

[rammygirl]

42 minutes ago, Parley said:

If i get one i would want to get a battery to store the power collected.

We considered a battery but not yet cost effective for us.  They are getting better and cheaper though so we will invest in one soon.

[Cheery Thistle]

16 hours ago, rammygirl said:

Our total energy bill for the year is currently about $1000 . All electric with solar, reverse cycle, induction cook and two ovens (I cook a lot) electric hot water. AGL in SA

Most of the year zero monthly bill and build up credits, this year could well be less than $1000. My tariff hasn’t changed yet I pay higher rate for use but lower supply charge and controlled load for HW. The maths to work our taffifs isn’t straightforward! The lower supply charge would have been more expensive overall for me as we utilise solar as much as possible. Our bills before solar were around $5000 pa. 
we have extra insulation and double glazing too, 4 bed 2 living house.

Prices in the Uk are very high but less in summer I would hope.

Yes, usage is less in summer but my bill is averaged out and I actually pay £350 gbp every month (even June/July/Aug). I do work from home in Scotland where heating is not a luxury in winter lol. However, I’m in a modern reasonable well-insulated house of about 1300 square feet (about 120 square metres I think?). 

[InnerVoice]

I roll my eyes every time I scroll past an advert for solar on Facebook, and read the numerous comments from daft Aussies about how they claim to be have been ripped off because of the reduction of feed-in tariffs. Greedy folk who've cover their entire roofs with solar panels, endeavouring to turn their home into a mini power station, rather than taking proper advice and installing a system that meets their needs. The feed-in tariffs were always going to fall with more and more people installing solar – it's a simple case of supply and demand.

I obtained three separate quotes from reputable companies, all of whom said we should install a 6.7kW system and 5kW inverter. We paid $5,000 four years ago and our annual electricity bill was about $1,200/year before then, so it's pretty much paid itself. During the summer quarter we normally end up with a small credit, during the winter quarter a small bill (around $50), and break-even during spring and autumn.

The recent increase means will probably have to start paying a small bill every quarter with the exception of summer, but it isn't going to affect us much at all. Our energy bills are peanuts compared with those in the UK, as Cheery Thistle has pointed out. The thing that really irks me when Aussies start talking about solar is that they are only interested in the money they're saving. I appreciate that's always going to be the main incentive, but there's another reason, you know... that thing called 'the environment'. In my experience Australians are very backward in their attitude towards the environment compared to Europeans, and many will only be proactive if there's some kind of benefit for them personally.

[Toots]

3 hours ago, InnerVoice said:

I roll my eyes every time I scroll past an advert for solar on Facebook, and read the numerous comments from daft Aussies about how they claim to be have been ripped off because of the reduction of feed-in tariffs. Greedy folk who've cover their entire roofs with solar panels, endeavouring to turn their home into a mini power station, rather than taking proper advice and installing a system that meets their needs. The feed-in tariffs were always going to fall with more and more people installing solar – it's a simple case of supply and demand.

I obtained three separate quotes from reputable companies, all of whom said we should install a 6.7kW system and 5kW inverter. We paid $5,000 four years ago and our annual electricity bill was about $1,200/year before then, so it's pretty much paid itself. During the summer quarter we normally end up with a small credit, during the winter quarter a small bill (around $50), and break-even during spring and autumn.

The recent increase means will probably have to start paying a small bill every quarter with the exception of summer, but it isn't going to affect us much at all. Our energy bills are peanuts compared with those in the UK, as Cheery Thistle has pointed out. The thing that really irks me when Aussies start talking about solar is that they are only interested in the money they're saving. I appreciate that's always going to be the main incentive, but there's another reason, you know... that thing called 'the environment'. In my experience Australians are very backward in their attitude towards the environment compared to Europeans, and many will only be proactive if there's some kind of benefit for them personally.

Tasmania's electricity is produced by hydro power and wind farms and solar on houses is becoming more popular BUT many of us heat our homes with log burners which isn't exactly environmentally friendly.  

[InnerVoice]

2 hours ago, Toots said:

Tasmania's electricity is produced by hydro power and wind farms and solar on houses is becoming more popular BUT many of us heat our homes with log burners which isn't exactly environmentally friendly.  

Well it isn't that bad if the logs come from a sustainable source and although log burners do cause pollution, it's hardly an issue with the population density of Tassie.

[Skani]

36 minutes ago, InnerVoice said:

Well it isn't that bad if the logs come from a sustainable source and although log burners do cause pollution, it's hardly an issue with the population density of Tassie.

It is an issue in certain areas because of the topography, older style heaters or open fires which don't comply with modern emission standards and/or people burning unsuitable wood or not using the burner correctly.  Launceston can be particularly bad in still weather because of its position in a valley,  also areas of the Huon Valley and even Hobart in certain weather conditions.  Launceston had a wood heater buy back scheme about 20 years ago and the air pollution did improve in winter but then electricity prices increased and wood heaters started making a comeback.

[Toots]

4 hours ago, Skani said:

It is an issue in certain areas because of the topography, older style heaters or open fires which don't comply with modern emission standards and/or people burning unsuitable wood or not using the burner correctly.  Launceston can be particularly bad in still weather because of its position in a valley,  also areas of the Huon Valley and even Hobart in certain weather conditions.  Launceston had a wood heater buy back scheme about 20 years ago and the air pollution did improve in winter but then electricity prices increased and wood heaters started making a comeback.

We get all of our wood from dead trees.  The farmers spend a bit of time chopping them up and selling them.  They also replant new trees.  I had never seen standing dead trees before.  They burn well.  We don't notice smoke here as the wind takes it away but I know what you mean about Launceston.  We drove there yesterday and the fog in all the low lying areas was really thick.  No wind there either so you could smell the smoke from wood heaters.  Not too bad though.  You couldn't really call it pollution. 

[Skani]

11 hours ago, Toots said:

  We don't notice smoke here as the wind takes it away but I know what you mean about Launceston.  We drove there yesterday and the fog in all the low lying areas was really thick.  No wind there either so you could smell the smoke from wood heaters.  Not too bad though.  You couldn't really call it pollution. 

Yes, I imagine that Devonport being right on the coast would have good air flow to move smoke away. Asthma Australia wanted to ban wood heaters completely in Launceston (and everywhere, really) but they'd have a battle on their hands here - Tasmanians really love them.

[Toots]

43 minutes ago, Skani said:

Yes, I imagine that Devonport being right on the coast would have good air flow to move smoke away. Asthma Australia wanted to ban wood heaters completely in Launceston (and everywhere, really) but they'd have a battle on their hands here - Tasmanians really love them.

A couple who live nearby are from Norway.  They say that every man and his dog has a wood heater there.  Norway doesn't strike me as being polluted by all the smoke.