Yahoo Finance Electricity prices to surge: 20% higher by Christmas
Aussies have been warned to brace for higher electricity prices, with Treasurer Jim Chalmers flagging prices are expected to surge 50 per cent by next year.
The Government modelling found that someone who’s electricity bill was around $500, would soon be paying $780.
Chalmers said the Government was focused on transitioning Australia to renewable energy which, in the long run, would lower prices.
More Budget news:
“Cost of living is going through the roof. And a bigger and bigger part of that, unfortunately, will be electricity price rises,” Chalmers told ABC News.
“We’ve been up front with people and said that there will be higher costs for electricity. They are unavoidable given the international conditions.
“But we’ve also said this: renewable energy is not just cleaner energy, it’s also cheaper. It’s also - in time - more reliable, particularly when you’ve got all this geopolitical uncertainty.”
No energy price relief in Budget
And while a switch to renewable energy is a noble goal, that doesn’t help Australians struggling to keep up with rising prices at the moment.
Shadow treasurer Angus Taylor branded the Budget a “vanity project”, saying it would leave Australian families $2,000 worse off by Christmas.
Taylor said spiking electricity prices and interest rates would hurt families, and the Government failed to deliver relief.
"This is incredibly disappointing. What was the point of this Budget?" Taylor said.
"Why did we have a budget now when we normally have a budget in May? Is this a vanity project for Jim Chalmers? Is this simply about him?"
Consider fixing your electricity rate
You’ve heard of fixing your mortgage rate, but did you know you can fix your electricity rate too?
“Fixed-rate energy plans are contracts that lock in a set price to be paid for electricity or gas usage and supply for the duration of the term, usually one or two years,” Canstar research said.
“The energy companies tend to review their prices every 12 months and fixed-rate products allow customers to effectively ‘beat’ the price hikes by locking in the rate they are charged.”
This is a great way to ensure you’re not consistently being hit with higher and higher energy prices.
But don’t wait. With prices expected to rise, the fixed rates will likely rise too.
You can compare fixed electricity rates here.
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