70% of Victorians had prices hiked by their retailer this month, with one-in-three hit by increases above 25%
New data obtained from Victorian Powerpal users has determined that seven-in-10 Victorians could reduce their energy bills by switching from traditional suppliers to wholesale.
Analysing the rates and usage habits of 10,000 Victorians impacted by the recent price hikes, Powerpal was able to determine to what extent customers were being impacted by increases in cost – as well as how much they could reduce their bill by purchasing energy wholesale.
Increased prices were reported by more than 70% of Victorians, with one-in-three experiencing price hikes higher than 25%.
After receiving a notice from his energy provider in July 2023, 61-year-old doctor and father-of-two, Dr Jeremy Frank decided it was time to shop around and look at other options. After doing his research, Dr Frank made the switch to wholesale energy provider, Amber Electric.
Since switching, Jeremy has more control of his energy costs. He and his family ‘load-shift’ their energy consumption to the middle of the day and late at night when prices are lower, due to more renewable sources such as wind and solar being used to power energy grids. While the Powerpal app isn’t required to switch to wholesale, the real time electricity monitor has made it easy for Jeremy and his family to determine which appliances are using the most power – and load-shift accordingly.
“When my energy provider sent me a notice saying the bills were going up, I thought, ‘Let me experiment and see if I can make wholesale rates work for me’.
“I don’t have solar at home and I work at home, so I discovered I’m really well suited because I can shift my energy load a bit to the times when renewables are really high and the costs are really low – like 4c/kWh at times.”
“Having access to wholesale rates just makes so much sense and I’ve been really able to get my costs down. The average price I pay is less than 20c/kWh, which is just amazing. So when other energy providers’ rates went up on August 1, my costs went down.”
Load-shifting means being considerate about the time of day to use energy-hungry appliances such as washing machines, dishwashers, dryers, air conditioning or other high consumption appliances, and using them when the grid is “greenest” or most reliant on renewable sources..
When the grid is green, wholesale energy prices dip, meaning Victorians have the potential to reduce their bill further.
While the big three providers still hold the lion’s share of the market, the benefits of switching to wholesale are starting to cut through. In the lead up to and following the August 1 price hikes, wholesale energy provider Amber Electric recorded a bumper month with sign ups to their service increasing by 68%, as Victorians combatting the cost-of-living crisis sought out ways to save money.
Amber Electric Co-Founder, Dan Adams said despite the claims being made by traditional energy suppliers, consumers buying wholesale have the opportunity to see exactly what they are paying for electricity today, and by using forecasting technology they can make informed decisions on when to use energy-intensive appliances, saving them money on their energy bills.
“Wholesale prices are forecast to be considerably lower and more stable over the next 12-18 months, making it the opportune time to look at switching energy providers and buying wholesale,” Dan said.
According to the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), wholesale energy prices decreased by 59% in the 12-months between July 2022 and June 2023, and are continuing to decrease.