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Category: Electricity Energy and Utilities / Welfare / Community and Society / States and Territories / Government and Politics

Power price hikes to lead to more disconnections: SACOSS

Tuesday, 19 Jul 2016 16:57:04

Utilities bills on a table. (AAP)

South Australia's social welfare sector has called for an independent investigation into electricity disconnections as winter and power price hikes begin to bite.

Statistics from the Australian Energy Regulator showed South Australia already had the highest proportion of disconnections in the nation.

From January to March, more than 0.30 per every 100 customers or more than 2,500 South Australian residential customers were disconnected.

The state also has the highest proportion of customers on hardship programs.

South Australian Council of Social Services (SACOSS) executive director Ross Womersley said there was no doubt some households were finding it tough.

"We have the highest electricity prices in the nation in South Australia. We have the highest unemployment in South Australia and that's no coincidence," he said.

The service fears with a cold winter and recent hikes to retail power prices even more households will be disconnected.

"We saw network prices drop as of July 1 but in fact we then saw the retailers increase their prices enormously.

"We can only expect the number of disconnections will increase."

SACOSS wants the Essential Services Commission to investigate which South Australians are being disconnected so the Government can better target its response.

Some of the state's big businesses want a separate independent review.

South Australian Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis said he would consider the issues raised but was more worried about gas distribution networks.

"The most important thing we can do for cost of living is grow the economy and grow jobs," he said.

"If we create jobs, people can much more easily afford to live in our economy."

AustraliaPlus


 

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