Victorians are set to pay the price for the Allan Labor Government’s mismanagement of Energy Safe Victoria (ESV), with industry levy increases to flow through to households.
A Ministerial brief obtained by the Liberals and Nationals under Freedom of Information, shows the Minister for Energy and Resources approved an increase to industry levies of 44.8 per cent, or $14.6 million, over 2023-24 and 2024-25 following a request from Energy Safe Victoria.
According to the brief, the levy increases would cause household energy bills to increase by an average of $5.30 over the same period, taking total household energy bill increases since 2017 to $9.98. This also represents an 84.3 per cent increase on industry levies since 2017.
The Nationals’ Member for Euroa, Annabelle Cleeland, said energy bill increases were being felt heavily in regional towns.
The default tariff for AusNet, which services mostly regional areas in the east of Victoria, was $1902 for residential households and $4388 for businesses. Meanwhile, the CitiPower tariff was just $1456 for residential customers and $3025 for businesses.
“Rising electricity bills are disproportionately impacting regional Victoria, despite regularly suffering with power outages and unreliable power,” Ms Cleeland said.
“My office is contacted every week by people concerned about the impact these rising taxes, rates, and bills will have on their ability to live their lives or continue operating their businesses.
“Our towns are crying out for some relief, but under this Allan Labor Government, the cost-of-living is only getting more expensive.”
Furthermore, the brief also warns “without increasing revenue or reducing costs, ESV will return deficits of over $6 million in 2023-24 and 2024-25” in yet another example of a Victorian Government body in financial difficulty.
“The Allan Labor Government has financially mismanaged Energy Safe Victoria, requiring a taxpayer-funded bailout via levies on households and businesses,” Ms Cleeland said.
“Labor cannot manage our energy system, and Victorians are paying the price.”
