QLD Compare Electricity and Gas : How to Switch and Save

Residents of the Gold Coast and surrounding areas have access to a huge range of great plans. To find the best electricity deal, call CheapBills and we recommend a money-saving plan from our preferred providers.

The electricity you use to power your home passes through three industries before it reaches you – electricity generators, distributors and retailers. Each of these industries is explained below.

• Electricity Generation in Queensland:

Electricity generation in Queensland is a mix of privately owned and government-funded companies. The state’s power is mainly coal-fired, with plants near Brisbane and Rockhampton/Gladstone. There are also gas plants in more remote locations and biomass plants on the coast.

Today, fossil fuels still make up around  80% of Queensland’s power generation. This makes them more reliant on coal and gas than some other states.

Just over 20% of Queensland’s power is generated through renewable sources. This includes 18 solar farms, 2 wind farms, and 2 hydro stations. 

The Queensland Government is committed to renewable energy growth, with a $500 million renewable energy fund announced in 2020. This fund aims to create publicly owned wind and solar power plants, alongside the biomass plants which are currently the largest renewable generator in Queensland.

Queensland is mostly powered through the National Electricity Market (NEM). The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) manages the supply of electricity from the generators into the NEM grid. They control how much each generator can feed into the grid and when. 

In times of peak demand, such as summer days when the need for air conditioning is high, the AEMO can release more electricity into the grid to maintain the supply of QLD cheap electricity. In some instances, when the generators cannot keep up with demand, the electricity prices will spike. This is called a Demand Charge on your bill.

• Electricity Transmission and Distribution in Queensland:

To transport electricity to your home or business, it needs to pass through a complex network of transmission and distribution lines.

The transmission network in Queensland is called Powerlink Queensland. It is a government-owned corporation, overseeing 15,000 km of high-voltage transmission lines to transport electricity across the state.

The high voltage electricity is then passed to a lower voltage distribution network, ready to power your home. Three distributors in Queensland are responsible for the safe and consistent delivery of power for residential and commercial use. Their responsibilities include maintaining the poles and wires, trimming trees, emergency works, customer connections and meter readings. 

The three distribution networks each have different costs for supplying electricity to different areas. You cannot choose your distribution network, it is solely determined by where you live:

• Energex – South East Queensland.
• Ergon Energy – regional Queensland.
• Essential Energy – areas close to the Queensland – New South Wales border (this is a NSW distributor).

Each retailer passes on these distribution charges to customers. It is shown as a Supply Charge or Daily Charge on your bill.

• Wholesale prices

• Volatility in coal prices – 80% of Queensland’s power is generated using fossil fuels. This reliance on coal makes Queensland particularly susceptible to price hikes when the cost of coal goes up. Many factors contribute to the volatility of coal prices. In recent years there have been global distribution issues due to COVID-19 and local distribution issues due to flooding and bushfires. Sanctions on Russian coal following the invasion of Ukraine have also caused the global cost of coal to rise.
• Supply issues – when supply cannot meet demand, the wholesale price rises. Supply can suffer for a range of reasons. The most significant supply issue in Queensland was the explosion in the Callide C Unit 4 in Mount Murchison. This caused Queensland’s worst blackouts in decades, with long-term supply issues predicted until mid-way through 2023.
• Transition to renewables – although the Queensland Government’s $500 million renewable energy is designed to deliver cheap power in the long term, there are short-term impacts that do the opposite.Most notably, there are significant changes required to the NEM to accommodate the new, widely spread renewable energy generators. The NEM was designed to receive power from a few large scale generators, located around two hubs of Brisbane and Rockhampton. The introduction of renewables means the network now needs to receive power from many geographically dispersed smaller generators. Until the infrastructure has caught up, short-term network congestion is pushing up the cost of wholesale power.
• Increased demand for power – the hot Queensland summers cause a sharp increase in the demand for power. This adds to the supply issues and puts pressure on even the biggest and best electricity providers in QLD.

• South-East Queensland vs regional energy prices

• Peak demand

• Single rate. A single rate tariff charges you the same rate, regardless of the time of day.

• Time of Use. A time of use (ToU) tariff uses a smart meter to charge you a lower rate for off-peak usage.

• Controlled load. A controlled load tariff charges a lower rate for separately metered appliances such as hot water systems or swimming pool pumps. These appliances are then charged a lower, off-peak rate.

• The Default Market Offer (DMO)

A typical bill in Queensland is made up of 46% network charges. The rest is made up of 26% wholesale costs, 18% retail costs, 7% other charges, such as renewable energy or carbon offsets and 3% metering. (Source: QCA)

For transparency, the retailer will break down the charges on your bill. Each charge relates to the costs and variables discussed above. You will see some of the following charges on your bill.

• Consumption charge: The consumption charge on your bill will be shown as cents per kilowatt-hour (c/kWh). The amount is calculated by how much power you use, and the tariff applicable to your plan. 

  Your tariff could be one of the following. 1 – a Flat Rate, where you pay the same price all day. 2 – Time of Use (ToU), where you pay less for off-peak energy. 3 – Interruptible Supply, aka controlled load or economy tariffs, where power will be disconnected for several hours each day. Controlled loads can be metered separately to power specific appliances such as a swimming pool pump or hot water system.You might also see a Demand Tariff, shown as dollars per kilowatt ($/kW) per month. This is based on the rate that power is used. It is higher during peak times.

  The consumption charge is the element of your bill that you have the most control over. To maximise your savings, find a tariff that matches your energy usage habits and try to save electricity in your home.

• Supply Charge: The supply charge will be shown as cents per day. This is the amount that it costs to deliver power to your home. The charge includes maintenance of poles and wires and the retailer’s costs, such as account management. 

  When you compare electricity providers in QLD, you will see that each retailer passes on the supply charge from the distributor. However, the best electricity provider QLD can subsidise this rate to save you money on your bill. 

• Distributor Charge: This charge is added to your bill when the distributor is required to perform actions beyond the regular supply of energy. This charge might relate to additional services such as same-day connections or emergency works.

With an abundance of sunshine, there’s an opportunity for Queenslanders to make some big savings by going solar. Compare energy plans with competitive solar feed-in tariffs here: The best solar feed-in tariff for your home.

Brisbanites are spoiled for choice when it comes to energy suppliers. Finding the best plan for you means comparing rates, offers and bundles to maximise your savings. Call a CheapBills expert to help you compare Brisbane electricity prices, or read more here: Why is it important to compare energy plans?