Cheap Gas And Electricity in New South Wales
Post on June 13th, 2015
Looking for cheap gas and electricity in New South Wales?
Well, in 2010, the NSW government sold a significant portion of the New South Wales electricity assets for $5.3 billion. Electricity retailers like Origin Energy took the opportunity to purchase Country Energy and Integral Energy for $3.25 billion. Leading electricity retailer TRUEnergy also purchased the retail portion of Energy Australia for $2 million.
While industry experts speculated that this shift in the market for electricity and gas in New South Wales could improve the financial health of the state, it didn’t result in a good outcome for gas and electricity customers hoping for cheaper prices. The sale of NSW electricity assets held back competition the marketplace and caused power prices to become even higher without any sign of relief in the future.
It’s no wonder that homeowners are scouring the market for cheaper gas and electricity prices in New South Wales. If you are looking for potentially lower rates on gas and electricity in NSW, you have come to the right place.
ElectricityWizard will simplify the process of electricity comparison for you. Our aim is to give you cheap rates on your annual power bill in just a few moments flat.
To get started and pursue savings on your annual power bills, simply call 1300 763 849 or fill in the form below to speak to one of our skilled customer service representatives today!
The gas and electricity market in New South Wales: how to reduce annual power prices
Although electricity prices continue to rise in NSW, the state is home to some of the most affordable power prices worldwide. Additionally, NSW currently has a power reliability rate of an impressive 99.97%, which the NSW State Plan hopes to increase to 99.98% by 2016.
For homeowners and businesses throughout the state, this will provide an average of only 105 minutes without power every year.
The NSW State Plan has also set a goal that 20% of the electricity used in the state will come from renewable resources by 2020. This is an important goal that will help to reduce the number of greenhouse emissions that are released into the environment by average household power consumption statewide.
But renewable energy doesn’t come without a price… Focusing on the use of renewable resources to generate power will only continue to increase electricity and gas prices in NSW even further. For all New South Wales homeowners, it’s more important than ever to take matters into your own hands by not only comparing and finding cheaper electricity prices but also doing what you can to reduce your energy use. Luckily, it’s not that hard—and you can start today.
Nine steps to achieve Cheap Gas And Electricity in New South Wales
Lowering your power bill can be achieved surprisingly easily; in fact, there are things you can do right this minute that are so simple you’ll kick yourself for not doing them sooner. Here are our top nine practical tips to help you start saving money on your utilities:
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- Turn the computer off when it’s not in use. A lost of computers run on a 300+ watt power supply and constantly use electricity. In fact, consider switching off any non-essential appliances at the wall, instead of leaving them on standby mode. Appliances like your computer, TV, dryer, washing machine, kettle, microwave, and your phone charger still suck power when they’re not turned on, so turning them off at the wall, or unplugging them all together, will save you quite a bit of energy.
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- Take advantage of our beautiful Australian weather and dry your clothes outside instead of in the dryer. Stick them on the clothesline, or on a clothes rack, and see the difference it makes. Drying four loads of laundry outside, instead of switching on the dryer, has the potential to reduce your electricity bill almost $150! So—why wouldn’t you?
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- The same goes for your home: give natural heating and cooling methods a go. Keep your blinds, windows and curtains closed during summer to stop the sun from getting in. This helps to keep your house cooler, and when the sun starts to go down, simply open up your windows and blinds to let in the cooler evening air.
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- You can also use a fan instead of the air conditioner. It uses much less energy, and you can pick them up pretty cheaply from any department store. A fan works out to be 80% cheaper to use and can help you save up to $200 a year on your power bill.
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- If you have an air conditioner, use it to cool one room only. After all, it’s much cheaper and more efficient to heat one room, instead of your entire house
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- When you do switch the air conditioner on, think about the temperature. It doesn’t need to be icy. Setting it to between 23°C and 26°C can save roughly $80 on your power bill. For every degree that you increase it you’ll save roughly 10% on the cost of electricity it uses. The same goes for winter but in reverse.
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- Get new light bulbs. The next time one of your bulbs burns out, replace it with an energy-efficient bulb, which expends around 25% less electricity than your standard light bulb. This means that in the course of a year you can automatically save 25% on the regular use of lighting in your home.
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- Running high-powered appliances like your dishwasher or your washing machine during off-peak times means you’ll be charged less for your use. To find out what hours your retailer considers to be off-peak, and do your washing or wash your dishes then.
- Got two fridges? Why not try reducing to use one? The average-sized household really only needs one fridge. Older fridges use anywhere from two-to-three times more electricity than newer, energy-efficient models, and running on only one fridge has the potential to save you up to an estimated $200 a year on your bill.
Saving money on your utilities is as simple as that. But—that’s not all.
With the competition in the marketplace at the moment, why not look around and see what plans and rates are on offer from other electricity retailers.
How to compare Cheap Gas And Electricity in New South Wales
You have the opportunity to compare apples to apples to find lower prices from leading electricity retailers near you with ElectricityWizard!
In order to reduce your annual costs, you’ve got to find a retailer that suits you. Some companies are purely for business customers, and some specialize solely in residential. Some companies might be greener than others and can provide ways of reducing your environmental footprint. You might prefer your supplier to be solely Australian owned and operated, which makes it easier to contact their service center if anything goes wrong.
The choice of who you go with is up to you. There are currently over 30 electricity retailers operating within Sydney and NSW:
- 1st Energy
- ActewAGL
- AGL
- Alinta Energy
- Blue Energy
- Click Energy
- Commander Power and Gas
- CovaU
- Diamond Energy
- Dodo Power and Gas
- EnergyAustralia
- Enova Energy
- Energy Locals
- Enwave Mascot
- ERM Power Retail
- Living Utilities
- Lumo Energy NSW
- Mojo Power
- Momentum Energy
- Next Business Energy
- OC Energy
- Origin Energy
- People Energy
- Pooled Energy
- Power Direct
- Powershop
- QEnergy
- Red Energy
- Sanctuary Energy
- Simply Energy
- WINconnect
With so many retailers to consider it can seem like quick a daunting and time-consuming task, Choose the wrong supplier, and you can end up wasting hundreds of dollars every year on your energy bill.
But it doesn’t have to be that difficult. You just have to know what to look for when you’re shopping around for a new plan. There are a few things to consider when trying to see which electricity supplier will give you the cheapest electricity rates, and one is that cheapest isn’t always best.
So whether it’s for your home or your business, where’s what we recommend you look at when comparing plans:
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- Terms and conditions – As with anything, make sure you look closely at the fine print. Have a look to compare rates, caveats, tariffs, and terms and conditions from supplier to supplier, so you know what you’re getting into before switching.
- Not all plans are equal – The type of plan you choose to get will determine how much money you end up paying. There are two general types of plans available: fixed rate and variable rate. Fixed rate means your usage rate is locked in for a term of the contract, and variable rate means that the usage rate can be changed at your supplier’s discretion.
While most suppliers usually increase their rates once a year, some suppliers try and change their rates with only 28 days’ notice, which has the effect your bill jumping each month without warning. With this in mind, it’s imperative to look for a supplier that caps their rate increases, so you can sleep easy knowing your rate isn’t going to suddenly change.
- Match rates – Suppliers want to get you in as their customer, so if they seem like a good company, ask if they’re able to match or beat better guarantees from other suppliers. If they are, then fantastic—this enables you to get the best deal from the supplier that you want to go.
- Ask about discounts – With the level of competition these days, every supplier is trying to do something different, so be sure to ask what discount offers they have available. Some suppliers offer discounts for direct debit setup, others might give you a discount for opting into email correspondence. Others still might even give you a discount for paying your bill on time. It’s always worthwhile to ask around and see what they have—but be sure it’s not going to come back and bite you at a later date.Check to see that you won’t lose the discount for stepping a foot wrong, such as a late payment, and make sure it covers the full term of your plan. As with every discount, check sure to make sure it’s worth it in the long run—it might end up being too good to be true.
Whatever you choose, we always recommended that you look at switching up your supplier suppliers every 12 to 24 months, so you can take advantage of the market competition. You’ll be able to check for new rates and see what new technologies in the energy industry will make things work to your advantage.
No matter what you decide to do, we can help you get the plan that suits you, so you can reduce your annual power prices.
ElectricityWizard allows you to quickly and conveniently compare through a host of electricity providers and plans in your area. One of our trained specialists can help you find great available rates and options in your service region so that you can choose a plan that should better meet your needs and saves you money.
Try us today! Call Electricity Wizard now on 1300 359 779 or fill out your details below to have one of our comparison specialists help you get a better deal on your energy bills starting today!