Electricity prices

[facthunter]

Of Course.  Farmers don't pay it either on farm use vehicles. Nev

[kgwilson]

If you are planning to install a battery to store your solar or a complete solar panels/battery system, consider  becoming a VPP (virtual power plant). I did & got an additional subsidy on my 18.4 kWh battery of $676.00. I joined Amber as the VPP Manager at a cost of $25.00 a month. Instead of getting just a few cents/kWh when the sun is shining & the rates are low, the system charges the battery till its full & sells the energy when the price is high. My average is 18.2c/kWh. All my costs are at wholesale rates so I pay the same to buy power as the Energy retailers. 

 

In Summer when there is too much solar in the grid the sale price goes negative. When that happens & my battery is full, the system curtails the solar production so none is exported. When there is a grid failure somewhere like a power station partial shutdown the spot price can go to $10.00/kWh or even more. When that happens the system will export energy at its maximum rate. In an hour I can be credited more than a couple of months electricity cost while helping to stabilise the grid.

[nomadpete]

Just to put the supply and demand influence on pricing, we should include data centres.

 

These things require grid reinforcement and generation increases far above population requirements. They now affect wholesale prices.

 

 

A single hyperscale data center can consume over 100 megawatts — comparable to the usage of tens of thousands of homes.

 

Australia already hosts 154 data centers across 77 cities, operated by 58 distinct operators. And plan for many more.

 

https://www.datacenters.world/countries/australia

[nomadpete]

Meanwhile, in USA, it is reported:

"Virginia hosts the world’s largest concentration of these facilities, and PJM’s independent market monitor found data centers drove 63% of last year’s capacity price increases across the regional grid. That cost doesn’t stay abstract. It lands on every ratepayer in the territory — a pattern familiar to those who’ve followed tech scandals where costs are quietly shifted onto ordinary people."

 

I suspect Australia will follow the American funding model.

[facthunter]

IF Hanson has anything to do with it, We will Ape Trump. Nev

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

I'm still waiting for my $275 reduction in my power bill, how many years has it been now? When's Albo going to make good his promise?, or was it Abbott?, someone said it, rotten major party politicians.

[Marty_d]

How many of Pauline's promises do you think she'd keep?

She's riding high on the (Gina) hog while laughing at people who vote for her. She's literally Australia's Trump.

[facthunter]

Worse that that, She is beholden to  Australia's RICHEST Person ($37 Billion asset value) who literally throws money at her and Rupee Merde-ock owner of Newscorpse whose words never cease to sing her Praises. She is a BOUGHT Puppet and Ultra Right, associating Racist Stirrer who trades on peoples Fears and runs down Australia when abroad and Obviously loves the high Life while pretending to have the Answers to help, or care about the Worse off among us. She thrives on creating controversy.  That she is Neither Intelligent OR educated is very obvious, and her Present AGE has missed the Boat if she  ever had a chance to be up to it..  Nev

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

Can you blokes afford your power bills, or do you sit in the dark well wrapped up in the Winter?

[octave]

1 hour ago, Grumpy Old Nasho said:

Can you blokes afford your power bills, or do you sit in the dark well wrapped up in the Winter?

Yes because I did the rational thing and installed solar. 

[Siso]

Do you guys really think the other partys are tied to billionaires?

[Grumpy Old Nasho]

16 hours ago, octave said:

Yes because I did the rational thing and installed solar. 

What sort of heater do you use, and how long can you run it for on a cold day?

[pmccarthy]

Here is what my energy costs have done over the last year:

 

		Gas	Elec	Total
2025	June	150.00	183.20	333.20
2025	Jul	155.00	155.45	310.45
2025	Aug	310.00	144.25	454.25
2025	Sep	155.00	165.03	320.03
2025	Oct	155.00	74.95	229.95
2025	Nov	155.00	211.58	366.58
2025	Dec		162.29	162.29
2026	Jan		181.61	181.61
2026	Feb	155.00	181.52	336.52
2026	Mar		160.17	160.17
2026	Apr		228.23	228.23
2026	May	180.00	199.61	379.61	Heat pump air conditioner installed
2026	June		339.32	339.32
2026	Jul		518.70	518.70	Electric Hot Water system installed

[octave]

Heat Pump.   The figures below are quite accurate.  The thing is, though the solar more than covers it. Here is today's input and out from my system. The orange stripes are power being use and the blue power being generated.  Note the very long orange 4 stripes is the hot water heater which has been off for a fortnight because we have been away. Normally, the hot water only requires about 30 minutes a day.  Today is a mostly cloudy day

 

 

Running a 2.5 kW split system air conditioner on heat costs about $0.25 to $0.40 per hour, or roughly $2.00 to $3.20 for an 8-hour day, based on an average electricity rate of $0.35 per kWh. [1, 2, 3]

 

Cost Breakdown

• Hourly Cost: $0.25 – $0.40 per hour

• Daily Cost (8 hours): $2.00 – $3.20 per day

• Electrical Draw: Uses about 0.6 kW to 0.8 kW of input power per hour (the 2.5 kW rating is the thermal heating output, not the electricity consumed). [1, 2, 3]

 

 

Edited 2 hours ago by octave

[octave]

My bills are pretty modest.

 

Here is a winter bill (also, we were down 1 panel for the first half of the year due to a faulty microinverter)

 

 

Here is a Feb bill (more solar)

[red750]

I haven't put in panels as it would bre like putting lipstick on a pig. The house really needs knocking down and rebuilding, but I don't have the money for that. 

 

I know I am still paying the high price, but I handle it by paying $50 or $100 each pension day to the electric company, and to gas, water rates, etc. That way I build up a credit at a rate I can deal with, and the bill usually comes out $0 to pay. My bank balance revolves in a standard pattern, with no sudden unexpected dives.

[pmccarthy]

My new air conditioner is ducted 18kW. Hence the big electric bill since we installed it and have it on heating all day! Previously had ducted bottle gas.