More than 130,000 Victorian households on poor-value electricity contracts will be automatically switched to a cheaper deal that will save them between $310 and $450 a year.
Thirty-thousand small businesses on standing offers will also be switched over to the Andrews government's default offer from July 1, saving between $1380 and $2050 a year.
The Victorian default offer will override a series of standing offers that exist in the states privatised energy retail market.
The default offer is a no-frills energy contract that will be available to all Victorians who wish to sign up, not just those on standing offers.
Energy Minister Lily D'Ambrosio said that from July 1 consumers could ditch confusing and costly electricity offers in favour of a fair price that had been assessed by experts.
This is one of the biggest reforms to the energy sector in over a decade - and it's not just available to people currently on standing offers; anyone can ask for the Victorian default offer", Ms D'Ambrosio said.
"We went to the last election on a promise that we would hold power companies to account and that we would put back in the hands of Victorians, and that's exactly what we're delivering here today.
But the savings the government announced on Thursday morning are smaller that those calculated by the Essential Services Commission in March, when it put its draft advice to the government on what the default offer should be.
Adam Carey - The Age - May 30, 2019
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