According to the National Electricity Market, household energy bills in Australia increased 61% on average between 2008 and 2014. So, it’s not surprising that Energy prices are in the top 3 worries for Metro Australians and top 5 on the list for Regional Australians. With Australia being such a large country, expenses required to maintain power infrastructure are high.
Energy availability and pricing in South Australia and Queensland, impact worry the most; the two states are leading the way with solar installation, likely due to their higher electricity price. Not all bills are equal when it comes to energy prices. In fact, the gap between the lowest paying state (ACT) and the highest paying state (SA) was $1,100 in 2015. South Australians now pay about $2,500 per year for electricity, making them the state paying the largest energy bills
Almost universally, rising energy prices have had an impact on households in both metro and regional Australia. However, it’s the regional areas that seem to have been affected the most. In fact, 41% of Regional Australians say that the rising cost of energy prices have had a major impact on their household, compared with 31% of Metro households.
Australia has a Renewable Energy Target to ensure that at least 33,00 Gigawatt-hour (GWh) of Australia’s electricity comes from renewable sources by 2020. It is hoped that this will be achieved through large and small scale renewable energy systems. Consumer prices however, are expected to increase in most parts of the country over the next two years.
This will mean Australian households will continue to feel the pinch. In or order to avoid these price increases, you may have to take matters into your own hands. Retail solar energy is a possible solution to alleviate household energy costs. According to available data, Australia does likely have the highest proportion of households with PV systems on their roof of any country in the world, and installations are continuing to surge. In, fact March 2017 saw the largest numbers of installations in almost 5 years, as Australians recognise that installing home solar panels are a great way to beat rising energy prices.
With our Solar Flex service for residences and businesses, solar panels are installed for $0 upfront and the energy savings start right away.
Founder of Horan & Bird. Director of Master Electricians Australia and Board Member of Solar Accreditation Australia. John has played a key entrepreneurial role in the transformation of the Energy Landscape in Queensland.
