The Hodgman Government is working hard to keep as much downward pressure on power prices as possible.
Since the election regulated power prices have fallen by 2.4 per cent. And we continue to work with our energy businesses to reduce network costs with last week's decision by the Regulator confirming a reduction on average of about $110 per customer.
However, given the significant volatility in the national market following the South Australian blackouts, issues in New South Wales and the closure of the Hazelwood power station in Victoria there is a looming price spike on the horizon and the Hodgman Government is acting to protect Tasmanians.
If we don’t step in, power prices for regulated customers, which includes households and most small businesses are expected to increase by about 15 per cent on 1 July this year – that’s an overnight increase of around $300 per year for every household and small business in Tasmania.
That’s completely unacceptable and this week in Parliament, the Government will act. We will introduce changes that will effectively cap power prices for the next 12 months and protect households and small businesses from a massive price spike.
Under the model established by Labor and the Greens, Tasmanian power prices are linked to mainland power prices. Even though we require very little power produced in the mainland, Tasmanian prices reflect the mainland price for wholesale power.
When it comes to power prices Labor and the Greens cannot be trusted. No-one will forget that electricity prices increased by 65 per cent over seven years under the previous Government.
Once again, the Hodgman Government is cleaning up the mess left behind by Labor and the Greens.