The Government has given a commitment to introduce competition within the Tasmanian electricity retail sector as part of its NEM entry arrangements.

On the completion of Basslink, Tasmania became a fully participating interconnected jurisdiction in the National Electricity Market (NEM). This introduced a contestable market in energy at the generation level, which will be progressively supported by the introduction of competition in the retail market.

Retail competition will be progressively introduced to customer classes commencing from 1 July 2006. Competition will be initially introduced for large electricity consumers and phased-in for other consumers over a five year period, as shown in the following table. This will ensure a smooth transition to a competitive retail market.

The Government has reserved a final decision as to whether retail contestability will be extended to households and small businesses (from 1 July 2010) until a public benefit test has been undertaken.

Once a customer becomes contestable, they have the ability to source electricity from a retailer of their choice enabling them to select the retailer that offers the best product (based on price and services offered) for their specific needs.

Non-contestable customers will remain on scheduled tariffs with Aurora Energy. Scheduled tariffs are set under a pricing determination issued by the Tasmanian Energy Regulator.
Details of the policy framework and structural arrangements which will support the introduction of retail competition in Tasmania are provided in the Information Paper - Retail Competition in the Tasmanian Electricity Supply Industry - March 2004.

Following the public consultation process, the Position Paper entitled, Retail Competition in the Tasmanian Electricity Supply Industry – Response to Submissions, was released in October 2004.

The legislative framework for retail competition in Tasmania is contained in the Electricity Supply Industry (Contestable Customer) Regulations 2005.

Further details covering specific topics are provided in the following series of Information Briefs:

Document available as:	Web Page	PDF
Information Briefs:
Info Brief No. 1 - Retail Contestability.
Info Brief No. 2 - Grace Period.
Info Brief No. 3 - Aggregation.
Info Brief No. 4 - The NEM.
Info Brief No. 5 - Metering.
Info Brief No. 6 - Choosing Retailer.
Papers:
Position Paper - Response to Submissions
Retail Competition in the Tasmanian Electricity Supply Industry - Information Paper, March 2004