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Price Change
Frequently asked questions
At ENGIE, we work hard to keep our prices low all year round. But like all energy retailers, sometimes we need to review our prices based on changes to things like wholesale energy prices and network charges.
Why do retailers change their prices?
All retailers update their rates to reflect the changes in the costs associated with providing customers energy. These costs include (but are not limited to):
- Network charges: Costs charged by distributors to manage and maintain the pipes, poles and wires that service your premises and your local area.
- Wholesale energy costs: the cost ENGIE incurs to purchase energy from generators and producers.
- Environmental Costs: these are costs incurred by us to comply with government schemes to support renewable energy generation and energy efficiency.
Why are my energy rates going up?
The gas and electricity we sell to our customers gets purchased from a wholesale market. We are also charged to use the transmission and distribution infrastructure (not owned by us) to get the energy to you. There are also additional costs to comply with various state and federal regulations and schemes. We set our market offer rates at the level needed to enable us to recover the costs we incur in providing energy to customers and to enable us to maintain a sustainable business.
We appreciate that price increases are not pleasant, and we don’t make these decisions lightly. If you’re experiencing difficulties paying your energy bills, you can also visit our support page to see how we may be able to assist you.
Depending on where you live, there may be a range of government support options available. As this support is specific to you and your personal circumstances, please click here or visit energy.gov.au/rebates to see what you may be entitled to, including the $300 Energy Bill Relief Fund rebate. Feel free to contact us to discuss the government support you may be eligible for and how you can apply.
How/when will I be notified about the price change?
We will always notify you in writing prior to any price change. You will receive a letter or an email at least five business days before the prices change, depending on the terms of your agreement with us.
How much will my electricity/gas rates change by?
This will depend on your usage, your energy plan and the distribution area you live in. Your price change letter will clearly provide your estimated annual increase or decrease.
With my gas prices going up, is there anything I could do to help reduce my energy bill?
Gas appliances in the home could contribute to the rising cost of your energy bills. By switching to energy efficient electric appliances, you could drive down the cost of your energy bill. Our installation partner Solarhub can help Victorian ENGIE customers electrify your household appliances today. If you’d like to know more, visit www.engie.com/electrification.
I’m in Victoria and my gas price has gone up, is there anything I could do to help reduce my energy bill?
Gas appliances in the home could contribute to the rising cost of your energy bills. By switching to energy efficient electric appliances, you could drive down the cost of your energy bill. Our installation partner Solarhub can help Victorian ENGIE customers electrify your household appliances today.
If you’d like to know more, click here.
Why are my new rates now higher than the electricity reference price/default market offer? What are my options?
We set our market offer rates at the level needed to enable us to recover the costs we incur in providing energy to customers and to enable us to maintain a sustainable business.
The reference price is set by a government regulator to give you a benchmark in order to compare prices and offers between different energy providers. Each year, the regulator updates the reference price based on their assessment of a reasonable price for electricity based on retail and energy market costs.
Each individual retailer has different costs and will individually set their prices for market offers at rates that may be below or above the reference price.
We encourage you to get in touch and we’d be happy to do a bill comparison for you.
If you’re experiencing difficulties paying your energy bills, you can also visit our support page to see how we may be able to assist you.
Depending on where you live, there may be a range of government support options available. As this support is specific to you and your personal circumstances, please click here or visit energy.gov.au/rebates to see what you may be entitled to, including the $300 Energy Bill Relief Fund rebate. Feel free to contact us to discuss the government support you may be eligible for and how you can apply.
I heard that energy prices were going down so why are mine going up?
We appreciate that price increases are not pleasant, and we don’t make these decisions lightly. While the cost of wholesale energy is a major factor impacting retail prices, there are other cost components that drive the final change to your prices. They are:
- Wholesale energy costs
- Transmission and distribution costs
- Environmental costs
- Retail costs
Our price change decision was made by taking the movements from all the cost components above into consideration to enable us to recover the costs we incur in providing energy to our customers and to enable us to maintain a sustainable business.
If you’re experiencing difficulties paying your energy bills, we have a range of options on our support page to assist you.
Depending on where you live, there may be a range of government support options available. As this support is specific to you and your personal circumstances, please click here or visit energy.gov.au/rebates to see what you may be entitled to, including the $300 Energy Bill Relief Fund rebate. Feel free to contact us to discuss the government support you may be eligible for and how you can apply.
What is the Reference Price indicated in the letter and what does the % above/below the reference price mean?
The reference price is set by a government regulator to give you a benchmark in order to compare prices and offers between different energy providers. Each year, the regulator updates the reference price based on their assessment of a reasonable price for electricity based on retail and energy market costs.
Each individual retailer has different costs and will individually set their prices (and any applicable discounts) for market offers at rates that may be below or above the reference price. This is what makes up the percentage above or below the reference price as outlined on your price change communication.
The Reference Price and Default Market Offer (DMO) information in our communication is something that we are required to include under the National Energy Consumer Framework (NECF) regulations. Click here to access a fact sheet from the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) that may help in providing more information.
Please note that any discount you receive off your energy rates as part of your offer is not linked to the percentage above or below the reference price as outlined on your price change communication. These are two unrelated percentages.
How is ENGIE allowed to change my rates?
Rates have changed in accordance with our contract terms and conditions. All customers agree to contract terms and conditions when signing up to our energy plans.
This is not what I agreed to in my contract.
How ENGIE can make changes to rates and charges are outlined in the contract terms and conditions that were sent to you in your Welcome Pack.
I recently switched to a new offer that said my prices were locked until 2025, but I have received a letter/email about my prices changing?
We are aware that some existing customers who recently switched to a new offer have received a price change letter/email. If you exercised your right to cancel the new offer during your 10-day cool-off period, the price change letter remains accurate and your prices will change accordingly.
If you did not cancel your new offer during your cool-off period, please ignore the price change communication sent to you. The information in the price change letter only applies if you cancelled your new offer.
Existing customers that switched to a new offer/energy plan on or after 15 April 2024 to 30 June 2024, have their rates locked until July 2025.
New customers that joined ENGIE on or after 15 April 2024 to 30 June 2024, have their rates locked until July 2025.
Why are my Friends/Family/neighbors rates not as expensive as mine?
Energy rates vary depending on a distributor’s (the company that owns and operates the poles, wires, and pipes in your area) network costs and the network tariff associated to your meter. Basically, where you live and what type of energy load you have at the property impacts your rates.
I’ve got solar. Will my feed-in tariff change?
If your feed-in tariff is going to change, it will be clearly outlined in your price change letter where we will advise you of your current rate, as well as the new rate. If your letter doesn’t mention a change to your feed-in tariffs, then your solar feed-in rates aren’t changing in this price change.
I'm a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) customer, what happens to my benefits?
Rest assured, there will be no change to your Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and you will continue to receive your VPP benefits.
Why is my FiT not increasing?
The value of the solar feed-in tariff is primarily influenced by the wholesale electricity prices during solar export into the grid. The solar feed-in tariff that we set is affected by the fluctuations in wholesale electricity prices and although average wholesale electricity prices have increased, the prices during daylight hours (when solar exports occur) have actually decreased.
The decrease in wholesale prices during daylight hours is primarily attributed to the growth of rooftop and utility-scale solar installations. This has led to a higher supply of electricity on the grid during the day, resulting in a surplus of electricity. In markets where supply exceeds demand, prices tend to drop, consequently leading to a lower solar feed-in tariff.
What is ENGIE doing to help?
We offer a range of solutions and payment options to our customers. If you’re currently experiencing financial difficulty, we may be able to offer support, such as one-off bill extensions and fixed instalment payment plans.
We’re also constantly looking for ways to help our customers take control of their energy usage. A few helpful solutions include:
Tracker: (only for customers with a smart meter)
Tracker works with your smart meter to monitor how much electricity your household uses daily. Then it sends you weekly usage updates - straight to your inbox. Tracker helps keep your spending on track, too. You can see your projected balance for the next billing period, set monthly budgets and receive alerts when you go over your limit. Click here or visit www.engie.com.au/help-centre/tracker to find out more.
Energy Saving Tips: View our energy saving tips on how to save energy, time and money. Click here or visit www.engie.com.au/blog/4-smart-ways-to-save-on-energy-bills-this-winter to find out more.
Low Carbon Living: At ENGIE, we want to empower our customers to live a low carbon lifestyle. That’s why we created our Low Carbon Living hub. It’s packed full of tips and tricks to help better our daily lives, and perhaps even save on energy costs along the way. Learn more about low carbon living by clicking here or visiting www.engie.com.au/low-carbon-living.
MyENGIE: Another great option for managing your energy account is MyENGIE. You can view your usage (if you have a smart meter), update your contact details, pay, or view your bills safely and securely. Access MyENGIE by clicking here, visiting www.engie.com.au/MyENGIE, or via the MyENGIE app.
Blog: The best place to get all your energy info, insights and advice. Click here or visit www.engie.com.au/blog.
Are you on our best generally available offer?
We regularly compare your current offer against other offers that are generally available to you. If we have a more competitive offer available, we will let you know on your energy bills. For electricity we do this every 3 months, and every 2 months for your gas bills.
Do you know if there is any government support available?
Depending on where you live, there may be a range of government support options available. As this support is specific to you and your personal circumstances, please visit energy.gov.au/rebates to see what you may be entitled to, including the $300 Energy Bill Relief Fund rebate.. Feel free to contact us to discuss the government support you may be eligible for and how you can apply.
I have a basic meter; how do you know how much energy I used before and after the price change?
There are a number of different meter types and associated tariff types out there.
Current/old rates and new rates get pro-rated by the number of days that each applies in the relevant billing period. This is done by using a daily average, and you can see your daily average usage on each energy bill you receive. For example, if rates change 10 days into a billing period then the first 10 days are charged at the current/old rates and the remainder of days in that billing period are charged at the new rates.
With my gas prices going up, is there anything more I could be doing to reduce my energy use?
The short answer is yes. There are a variety of ways to reduce energy use and our Low Carbon Living webpage contains handy information on what extra steps you could take to reduce the amount of money you spend on energy and also reduce the amount of carbon your actions produce.
To go to this webpage, click here.
Why is my paper bill fee going up? (not applicable if you’re on a Standing Offer or a NSW customer)
Sending paper bills involves many steps and each one has a cost associated to it. This includes the cost to print them, the cost of the paper, the envelope, and the postage.
If you’d like to get your bills by email and not have to pay this fee, please update your bill preference to email by contacting us through MyENGIE or via the MyENGIE app.
Why is Ausgrid changing their times?
The times that gas and electricity distribution businesses (the companies that own the poles, wires, pipes, and meters) charge their different tariffs is not managed by us. Ausgrid has made changes to some of their times, affecting how they bill retailers for network costs. Subsequently, we’ve modified the times in our retail rates to better reflect how Ausgrid network costs will be incurred.
I have a sentence about my rates now including carbon neutral, what does this mean?
When you signed up, the agreement terms and conditions for your energy plan outlined that there was no additional cost for maintaining carbon neutrality of your energy plan. We have now included the low cost of your energy-based CO2 emissions being abated, this is now included in your base rates.
Is there anything I could do to reduce my carbon footprint?
There are a variety of ways to reduce your carbon footprint. Our Low carbon living webpage has some handy tips to help you decarbonise your household which could also help reduce your energy bill.
If you’d like to know more, click here.
My letter/email includes something about GreenPower for $1/week, why did I receive this?
We’ve recently launched an offer where you can get 100% GreenPower for just an extra charge of $1/week. You received this information because you’re not currently on GreenPower and we wanted to let you know about this great offer. It's a great first-step in how you can start to reduce your carbon footprint. If you’d like to know more about your carbon footprint and the other ways that you can reduce your energy costs and carbon footprint, click here or visit engie.com.au/low-carbon-living.
I heard that energy prices were going down so why are mine going up?
We appreciate that price increases are not pleasant, and we don’t make these decisions lightly. While the cost of wholesale energy is a major factor impacting retail prices, there are other cost components that drive the final change to your prices. They are:
- Wholesale energy costs
- Transmission and distribution costs
- Environmental costs
- Retail costs
Our price change decision was made by taking the movements from all the cost components above into consideration to enable us to recover the costs we incur in providing energy to our customers and to enable us to maintain a sustainable business.
If you’re experiencing difficulties paying your energy bills, we have a range of options on our support page to assist you.
Depending on where you live, there may be a range of government support options available. As this support is specific to you and your personal circumstances, please click here or visit energy.gov.au/rebates to see what you may be entitled to, including the $300 Energy Bill Relief Fund rebate. Feel free to contact us to discuss the government support you may be eligible for and how you can apply.
Will I still get my discount?
The short answer is yes. We are not changing any discounts that apply to your energy plan. If you had a discount on the old rates, that same discount applies on the new rates.
We’re here to help
If you’d like to know more about how we can help, please visit our Here to help page. Or to chat to us about any of this, you can:
- Reach us through MyENGIE,
- Chat to us online by clicking here (Monday to Friday 8am-8pm, weekends 8am-5pm), or
- Call us on 13 88 08 (Monday to Friday 8am-7pm). All times are AEST.
Financial difficulty
If you’re currently experiencing financial difficulty, or think you might as a result of these price changes, visit our financial support page or give us a call on 13 88 08 and we’ll let you know how we can help you.
Other resources
Log in to MyENGIE
Need to request a payment extension or a payment plan, pay a bill or set up direct debit? These are just some of the things you can do though MyENGIE.