Why are my prices going?
Firstly, we get that nobody likes to hear their prices are changing – and we don’t make the decision to put our prices up lightly. In fact, we’ve not increased our standard prices in over a year and a half – unlike most of our competitors.
The price of electricity is made up of a few different components which include: the cost of providing the electricity, the cost of transporting it across NZ and to your address, as well as our business operating costs and government levies and taxes, such as GST. Many of these costs have changed since we last reviewed them.
For further information on how your bill works you can click here
Why is the Low-User Daily Charge changing?
With a view to making things fairer for all Kiwis, a Government review (visit the MBIE website for full details) of the electricity industry has meant changes to the plans power companies offer. As a result, the low-user fixed charge plan is being gradually phased out for all energy retailers and the low-user daily charge is stepping up each year until 2027.
You have been paying a daily fixed charge of 60c/day on your plan which is now changing to 90c/day from 1 July 2024. This plan is still the most economical plan for you if your usage is less than 8000kWh/year (or 9000 kWh for Lower South Island).
For further information on the low user fixed charge phase out you can click here
Why have I received a $110 Low User Transition Power Credit?
With Low User plans being phased out and Low User Daily Charges rising, a group of electricity retailers and networks have contributed to a fund, set up intending to help those where this change is significantly impactful. Frank Energy is one of the contributors to this fund. This means we have access to a limited number of credits to give to customers that are significantly impacted by this change.
If you have met the requirement to be a recipient of this credit at this time, this will show as the “Low User Transition Power Credit” under ‘Other Transactions’ on your next bill following this letter.
How do you calculate my rates?
Your electricity pricing is broken down into two components – a daily fixed charge and a variable charge.
Daily fixed charge: a set daily amount, shown on your bill as cents per day, that covers the fixed costs of supplying power to your property;
Variable charge: a per-kilowatt hour charge for the amount of electricity you use.
The level of these charges depends on your energy user profile, and for variable charges, on the type of meter you have.
In some areas the daily fixed charge is increasing but the variable charge is decreasing, what does this mean for my bill?
Due to your daily fixed and variable rates changing, you can review your bill after 15 August to see what the impact is, as this is based on your individual consumption habits.
Do you have any tips to help me reduce my power usage?
Why do the rates in the table in my email/letter exclude GST?
The prices you’ll see on your bill are all excluding GST. We’ve excluded GST in the price change communication we’ve sent you, so you can compare it with what appears on the back of your bill.