Category: Victorian Energy

The Essential Services Commission (Commission) has released its request for comment paper regarding the 2025-26 Victorian Default Offer (VDO), marking the commencement of stakeholder consultation for the forthcoming regulatory period. The paper outlines key areas for refinement while maintaining the established methodological framework for determining default offer prices in Victoria. You can read the Commission's paper here. Regulatory Context The VDO remains a critical consumer protection mechanism within Victoria's electricity retail framework, established under section 13 of the Electricity Industry Act 2000. The Commission's determination, due by 24 May 2025, will establish regulated standing offer prices for both domestic and small business customers for the period 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026. Key Consultation Areas The Commission has identified several crucial areas for stakeholder consideration. Notably, the paper explores…

Energy retailers in Victoria have specific obligations under the Energy Retail Code of Practice to provide clear information to customers about their 'best offer' - that is, the plan that would minimize the customer's energy costs based on their usage history. The objective is to ensure small customers can easily understand whether they are on the retailer's best plan for them and how to access the retailer's best offer if not. One of the significant challenges in the energy sector (as in banking and elsewhere) is that customers who sign up to offers do not necessarily shop around and end up paying more than they could pay elsewhere or even on a different product with the same provider. The 'best offer obligations' was an attempt to address this. This article is intended as a summary of the Victorian…

The Essential Services Commission's Guideline 4 on explicit informed consent requirements under the Energy Retail Code of Practice is a very useful resource for energy sellers in Victoria. This article summarises the key steps energy sellers must follow to comply with their obligations to obtain explicit informed consent from customers. What is Explicit Informed Consent? Explicit informed consent requires the customer to clearly understand the information relevant to the transaction and purpose of their consent. The retailer must: Disclose all relevant information to the customer clearly, fully and adequately in plain English Provide the information in a manner the customer can understand Give the customer the chance to ask questions and clarify any aspects they are unsure about Obtain the consent in writing, verbally or by electronic communication generated by…