Energy Australia customers use less electricity

Energy Australia (formerly Tru Energy) customers used 5-10% less electricity in 2012 than 2011. The decreased usage was caused by a combination of factors including higher electricity prices, weather, energy efficiency measures and more customers using solar panels. These findings were released by Energy Australia’s parent company, Hong Kong owned, China Light and Power, as part of their 2012 annual results.

Electricity demand affects Energy Australia’s earnings

The 5-10% decrease in demand per electricity account was partly responsible for Energy Australia’s reduced earnings of $HK 1.68 billion in 2012, down from $HK 2.911 billion in 2011. Other challenges cited for the poor earnings include the introduction of the carbon tax, decreased wholesale prices and high competition from other electricity suppliers.

Defends retail position

Despite high competition and potential disruption caused by the rebranding to Energy Australia, the number of customers lost (or churned) was said to be below market average in the fought after NSW and VIC markets. Energy Australia had a total of 2,767,000 customer accounts for 2012 (1,921,000 electricity and 846,000 gas) down slightly from 2,807,000 in 2011 (1,967,000 electricity and 840,000 gas). The decrease was mainly caused by the loss of 71,000 electricity customers in NSW, and offset by a gain of 25,000 electricity customers in VIC.

Electricity tariff graphs

The China Light and Power 2012 Annual Results included a couple of interesting electricity tariff graphs. Their inclusion was to illustrate how their Hong Kong tariffs stacked up against the rest of the world, but Australian customers can still compare where our own electricity tariffs sit.