Whether you’re a Tasmanian household or business, you
should be paying Tasmanian prices for Tasmanian power.
Hundreds of businesses across the State are now in the
grips of re-contracting, or preparing to re-contract in an overheated National
Energy Market, even though they are based in Australia’s renewable energy
heartland. These contracted customers are paying or facing major increases in
their energy costs of 50 per cent or more.
This is entirely due to the fact the Liberals
abandoned their “Tasmania First” energy policy and exposed our state to the
chaos in the national market.
It is well past time for the Government to implement
an energy rebate scheme for large, contracted customers. We are the only
state in the position to do so, with publicly owned generation assets able to
protect customers from the impacts of inflated wholesale markets costs.
As it did in 2017, the Government should step in and
protect Tasmanian businesses from the massive cost increases being experienced.
Under the scheme rebates per megawatt hour would be made available to eligible
business customers. The rebates should also apply retrospectively to businesses
who have already had to re-contract so far this year during this period of
price volatility.
Already this year, Tasmanian Labor has tabled and
debated legislation that would have capped power prices for Tasmanian households
and saved them around $200 this year. This was based on the same price
cap Legislation the Government put in place in 2018.
Every day the government refuses to act, is another day of uncertainty and higher prices that Tasmanians can’t afford.
Dean Winter MP
Shadow Minister for Energy
