Victoria Electricity Plans

It’s a race to the top in Victoria, with the cheapest electricity provider in constant variation, however, Simply Energy and GloBird Energy are often at the top of the tables.

About half of Victorians are still with the ‘big three’, Origin, AGL and EnergyAustralia, but it’s not often that these well-known power companies offer the best deal in the state. What’s more likely is that small-to-medium-sized challenger brands, such as Alinta, will reign supreme, making a more concerted effort to stay on top of the competition.

Generally, a good usage rate in Victoria is 20-21¢/kWh, with a reasonable supply charge sitting at about 113¢/day. Ultimately, however, the best rates for your household are going to be the ones that suit your energy needs. If you are part of a smaller, lower usage household,  a cheaper supply charge may be the way to go. For bigger households, however, this may be the plan with cheaper usage rates.

Financially vulnerable households in Victoria have options for support in paying their electricity bills. Here is a list of concessions provided by the state government to Victorians.

• Annual Electricity Concession: A payment for seniors and concession card holders to the amount of 17.5% of electricity usage and service costs. 
• Excess Electricity Concession: A payment for seniors and concession card holders who have unusually high power bills (exceeding $3,000/year). Payable on 17.5% of electricity usage and service costs.
• Winter Gas Concession: Available for winter gas bills to concession card holders. Payable on 17.5% of gas usage and service costs. 
• Excess Gas Concession: Available to concession card holders with unusually high winter gas bills (exceeding $1,734 throughout winter). Worth 17.5% of gas usage and service costs.
• Controlled Load Electricity Concession: A payment for concession card holders who use a controlled load tariff. Applicable on 13% of the controlled load electricity costs.
• Life Support Concession: Households with at least one member requiring life support equipment are entitled to a reduction on their power bills. This is applicable on 1,880 kilowatt hours of power a year.
• Medical Cooling: A concession with 17.5% of electricity usage and service costs for customers with medical conditions that inhibit them from self regulating their body temperature. This is available from November 1 to April 30.

Of all the energy jargon, tariffs have to be the one that confuses people the most. Tariffs are not how much you pay but how power companies charge you. Your electricity meter’s configuration and your location may determine the tariff you pay. The most common tariff structure in Victoria is known as ‘single rate’, which means you pay the same rate for electricity regardless of the time of day.

There may, however, be other Victorian electricity tariffs available to you, such as:

• Block rate tariff: One rate for the first electricity ‘block’ and another for the remainder.
• Flexible pricing tariff: Different rates in peak, off-peak and shoulder periods.
• Time of use tariff: Different rates in peak and off-peak periods.
• Demand tariff:  Electricity supply and usage charges plus a ‘demand’ charge.

Controlled load tariff: Separately metered appliances are charged at a lower rate.

Comparing electricity rates in Victoria is simple. With the help of the VDO and straightforward comparison tools like the one above, you’ll easily navigate dozens of options to decide which is best for you.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to using Canstar Blue’s energy comparison tool.

1. Enter your postcode into our comparison tool or upload a past bill and press the search icon on the right-hand side.
2. Filter results by provider, contract length, conditional discount, billing frequency, and plan features. If you have a controlled load, edit the blue text in the white box above the tool and change your tariff type in the ‘refine your search section’. 
3. Sort results by value rank, customer satisfaction or price. 
4. Find your perfect plan and click the green ‘See offer’ button to sign up on the provider’s page.

It’s that easy!