The Liberal Government is committed to delivering power prices for Tasmanians which are fair, sustainable and as low as possible.

So far this year we have seen significant downward pressure on power bills through the abolition of the Carbon Tax, while TasNetworks has also proposed a lowering of transmission charges for the next financial year.

Under Labor, power prices in Tasmania rose 65 per cent in six years. After years of facing skyrocketing power prices, there has been welcome price relief for Tasmanian consumers this year with the repeal of the Carbon Tax reducing bills by an average of $164 for residential customers.

The Liberal Government wants to again make energy a competitive advantage for Tasmania, and this means continuing to work with our Government-owned Energy Businesses to deliver sustainably low power prices for both households and businesses.

However, we know that there will always be customers who, for a range of reasons, will have difficulty paying their power bill. That is why today Aurora Energy has announced the YES (Your Energy Support) Program, to build on their existing Hardship Program. The launch of the YES Program will mean greater support for Tasmanians struggling with power bills.

Aurora Energy CEO Rebecca Kardos said that this new approach will see Aurora Energy identifying and helping customers before their power bill becomes unmanageable.

“The YES program will see Aurora Energy actively identifying vulnerable customers to help them manage their energy usage and put in place flexibility around payments. The program also has a range of tools to directly assist with payments where necessary,” Ms Kardos said.

“Last year Aurora’s Hardship Program provided $351,380 in short-term relief payments. With the new, proactive approach of the YES program, these payments will help more customers and be just one of the tools available to avoid people getting into financial difficulty. It will also help Aurora Energy to avoid bad debt.”

The Liberal Government is now working on Tasmania’s first whole-of-state, comprehensive Energy Strategy.

This will set a long-term plan to again make energy a competitive advantage for Tasmania. As part of this we will be working closely with the Government Energy Businesses to ensure Tasmanians have the lowest possible, fair and sustainable power prices.
Matthew Groom, Minister for Energy