Western Australian’s bracing for 50% Energy Bills from next month
Over the past two years, residential customers have been largely shielded from the true cost of electricity thanks to generous government energy credits. These one-off bill reductions – introduced to offset cost-of-living pressures – effectively masked the underlying increases in the wholesale and network costs for many households.
However, business customers have not received the same level of support.
Small and medium-sized businesses have continued to bear the full brunt of rising electricity costs – without access to the same energy offsets. This has left many businesses exposed to the compounding impact of volatile wholesale prices, increased capacity payments and rising network charges.
As the residential credits come to an end in July, households will not start to feel what businesses have been dealing with for some time – a reality where energy prices are climbing due to structural changes in the WA electricity market.
For business owners, this highlights the importance of reviewing energy plans, improving efficiency and considering alternative supply strategies like solar and battery storage to regain control over electricity expenses.
So what’s driving the increases in costs?
Phase‑out of Pre-election Credits
The government’s generous electricity credits are expiring, with households now shifting from subsidised rates back to full-cost tariffsWA’s Unique Electricity Landscape
Western Australia features a small, state‑regulated grid with limited competition—suppliers are few, and wholesale costs can’t be easily absorbed
Dependence on gas‑fired and aging coal generators—both expensive and prone to outages—further pushes prices up
Cost of Serving Remote Communities
Unlike the more populous eastern states, WA carries higher distribution costs due to its vast geography and remote grid servicing
Customers need to be aware that as we build the transmission to deliver the renewable generation, costs are expected to continue to rise. Already transmission projects over east are experiencing increases of greater than 50% and there is no indicators that things will be any different in WA, as we experience trade shortages and material volitility.