Gas rate increase will cause big bill rise for Victorians

Customers of a major energy providers have been shocked by a message stating their bills will increase by hundreds of dollars over the next year.

Millions of Victorian customers of the major Australian energy providers have been hit with a warning their energy bills are set to skyrocket in the coming months.

Two of the country’s biggest energy providers, AGL and Origin, announced on January 9 they would increase gas prices from February 1 for household customers, which could cause double or triple-digit jumps in what they would pay for gas.

According to AGL, the bill jump has been caused by the rising price of wholesale gas, with the average residential customer set to pay a 21.4 per cent increase over the next year, adding up to more than $300 extra on average.

Many AGL customers received an email detailing the bill increase that would hit over the next 12 months.

The spike in cost even impacted customers on the provider’s “low cost” energy plans.

A spokesperson for AGL said the rising energy prices would place additional pressure on households and businesses across the country.

“Any decision to change prices is based on a detailed consideration of a range of factors including wholesale prices, network charges and market conditions when determining a and the value we offer to customers,” the spokesperson said.

According to AGL, it is the country’s largest electricity generation portfolio, accounting for approximately 20% of the total generation capacity within Australia’s National Electricity Market.

The cost increase notice follows the provider’s decision to close Victoria’s largest power station 10 years ahead of schedule in September 2022.

A spokesperson for Origin said the price increase was a difficult decision for the company to make.

“Increasing prices is never a decision we take lightly, especially at the moment when we know some people are struggling with higher costs of living,” they said.

“Like all retailers, we have been facing materially high gas costs over recent months, caused by the war in Ukraine which has put pressure on global gas supplies [and a tightening of gas supplies here in Australia], which means it costs us more to supply gas to our customers.”

The price spike is the second major increase in the Australian energy industry over the past couple of months, after prices rose at the beginning of December.