Pricing
The Regulator is charged with conducting price investigations under the Electricity Supply Industry Act 1995 (ESI Act). Obligations in relation to the conduct of a pricing investigation are laid out principally in the Electricity Supply Industry (Price Control) Regulations 2003 . These Regulations also require the Regulator to take account of the Tasmanian Electricity Code (TEC). The Regulator is currently responsible for undertaking investigations into both Distribution and Retail costs. While retail contestability is being gradually introduced there are still franchise customers, and as a result retail prices remain regulated. Responsibility for electricity distribution Investigations undertaken after 1 July 2007 will be transferred to the AER. Consequently the 2007 Tasmanian electricity distribution investigation will be the last investigation undertaken by the Tasmanian Energy Regulator. The AER is already responsible for electricity transmission regulation.
Under the Electricity Supply Industry (Tariff Customers) Regulations 1998, the Regulator is required to approve any changes to Tariffs, including any alterations to the terms and conditions.
The Regulator, in his Declaration of Retail Services for the Regulation of Maximum Prices for Retail Tariffs and Terms of Reference for the Investigation, Issues Paper, December 2006 did not propose to include prices charged for APAYG customers in the current investigation of maximum prices. Rather he decided to monitor and report on price movements and in doing so make comparisons of APAYG costs with standard tariff costs to aid customers in making an informed choice as to which service offers more value to them.
As part of the obligation to promote competition in the electricity supply industry and protect the interests of competition the Regulator is monitoring the wholesale electricity price in Tasmania. Retail prices are also compared with those on the mainland for benchmark purposes and the results of these comparisons are provided here. The page also provides information on how to estimate and minimise your home bill. |