Australians to save $230 on electricity bills next financial year as wholesale prices fall

According to Treasury analysis of ASX data in December, wholesale electricity prices for 2023 fell by 44% in Queensland compared with November.

Prices fell by 38% in New South Wales, 32% in South Australia and 29% in Victoria.

The government believes it will take time for price caps to flow through to retail prices, which can be kept high by supply locked in before the caps were in place.

But the futures market shows wholesale prices will be significantly lower than previously forecast, with electricity retailers purchasing supply at prices 30-40% lower than what was available in November before the intervention.

Wholesale prices for 2023 fell from $213 a megawatt hour in November to $133 in December in NSW, $220 to $124 in Queensland, $135 to $95 in Victoria and $202 to $137 in South Australia.