Search Results for: south australia

Electricity Price Rises Revealed: Here’s How To Avoid Being Hit

Electricity price increases - AustraliaElectricity bills are set to surge by up to 9.7% for some Australians from July, according to the latest reference price details released by the Australian Energy Regulator, although most households will see smaller increases.

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Sneaky Energy Bill Tactics Slammed In ‘Super’ Complaint

Energy bill confusion

Consumer group CHOICE has asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to look into what it says are whiffy energy bill tactics that could be costing many Australians a significant chunk of change. [Read more…]

Energy Bills: ‘Loyalty Tax’ Targeted In Victoria

Energy bill with loyalty tax

Victoria’s Essential Services Commission (ESC) has proposed new rules that would compel the state’s energy retailers to shift some customers onto cheaper electricity and gas plans. [Read more…]

Bound in Red Tape: NSW Tries to Fix Its Battery Rebate

The NSW Government has been seeking advice on improving the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme, as it works to harmonise the state battery incentive in anticipation of a federal rebate. Here’s how the bureaucrats are working to fix a myriad of problems, and what installers want to see changed.

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Do You Really Need To Bin Your Solar To Get The Battery Rebate?

Old solar panel test resultsMillions of solar panels are expected to be chucked out as a result of the federal government’s home battery rebate. But do you really need to throw your system in the bin, and if so, what should you replace it with?

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Explainer: Hot Water Heat Pumps In A Hurry

If you’re curious about heat pump hot water systems and want an introduction to the technology, here’s the perfect place to start. Discover how these systems work and the different types available, efficiency, costs, solar integration, and more. [Read more…]

We Can’t Let Labor’s Battery Cash Cause A Grid Crash

An average Australian suburban house belching black smoke from an industrial stack

There’s plenty of understandable excitement about Labor’s Cheaper Home Batteries Program election pitch. What I’m not so excited about is subsidising a wave of suburban survival-of-the-fittest types to disconnect from a grid that urgently needs more storage.

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Fact Check: No, Mum, Nuclear Won’t Reduce Costs By 25%

A dial pointing to the right above the word 'false'

A group called “Mums for Nuclear” has spent a lot of money on newspaper and online ads in the lead-up to the federal election, claiming that “Nuclear energy in the mix with renewables reduces cost by 25%“. I’ve investigated this claim and found it to be false.  Hopefully, this will prompt all groups that have made unrealistic claims about nuclear affordability to take them back and spark a chain retraction.

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Double-Dipping Labor’s Battery Incentive: Big Savings, Big Problems

A politician spruiks Labor's battery incentive scheme

Federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus spruiks Labor’s Cheaper Home Batteries Program.

Labor’s election promise of a federal battery incentive is eye-catching enough on its own, but especially lucrative is how it can potentially be combined with state-level schemes. We’ve run the numbers to calculate the savings from double-dipping, and they’re big — but so are the potential issues.

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Brand Name, Botched Game: Cheap Installs Of Quality Solar

Solar panel installers working at night

Solar panels don’t keep working into the night, and neither should solar installers.

Ever heard an installer promise a premium brand of solar panel, battery or inverter for an absolute bargain? As the old saying goes: if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Here’s why good quality gear doesn’t always mean a good quality job.

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