ONE of Australia’s richest companies and the State Government will continue to enjoy cheap power while Tassie’s battlers pay full price.
Premier Lara Giddings said yesterday opening the state’s electricity market to competition like that enjoyed by customers interstate was not on the Government’s agenda.
“Our residential customers are protected from competition from interstate because we are not convinced at this point that that would be to the benefit of residential customers,” she said.
Her comments came after the Government signed a $16.4 million deal to buy bulk power from a Queensland company for less than half the retail rate and the sale of a quarter of the state’s power supply to Rio Tinto Alcan for a secret price believed to be below the cost of production by Hydro Tasmania.
Retail customers in other states are able to choose between competing electricity suppliers and to secure lower prices, loyalty discounts or cash rebates on their contracts.
In Victoria for example, people can choose from 500 electricity plans from 22 different suppliers.
Opposition energy spokesman Matthew Groom said Ms Giddings was out of touch with the needs of households struggling with soaring power costs.
“I think that’s an offensive comment for all the mums and dads and small businesses who are paying some of the highest power bills in the country,” he said.
“When the Government is getting bargain-basement electricity she says she’s going to deny others choice because she doesn’t think it’s to their benefit.
“I think that’s patronising, it’s paternalistic and it’s offensive, and frankly they are the comments of a premier who doesn’t get it – they just don’t get the pain people are feeling.”
Robert Mallett from the Tasmanian Small Business Council said Ms Giddings’ comments were a “huge slap in the face” for small business.
“It was particularly disappointing to hear the Premier say that she is not convinced it would be beneficial to open up the residential and small business market to competition when it is her own Government who is reaping the rewards of big business, and small businesses are forced to deal with what is a monopoly supplier of probably their most significant business input resource,” he said.
TCCI chief economist Mark Bowles said the Government must introduce full retail competition so all consumers can benefit from shopping around for the best deal.
However, Ms Giddings said: “It is simplistic and misleading to compare the electricity supply contracts of large businesses to household power bills.
“These high-volume users have much greater economies of scale and buying power than individual households and even small businesses.”
She said an expert panel was reviewing electricity supply in Tasmania and would examine retail contestability.
“We are yet to be convinced that the energy market is operating in such a way that the benefits of full retail contestability will outweigh the significant costs that will likely be incurred in moving to this level of competition,” she said.
(Scan only … Mercury Online, 9-5)
