Has Your Gas Bill Gone up Like Crazy in Recent Times?

burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 16:09

Just got the obligatory letter from Tango saying my gas bill will increase at least $850 per annum.

Rates are doubled on some tiers and not even the ever super useful (/s) VIC Energy Compare website can give me a vendor that gives the same or lesser rates than my current rates. They are all have gone up substantially. Some more than the others with Origin took the cake as the most expensive ever (+$1000).

So I had to settle with a vendor that is going to cost me +$550 per annum. Spoke with my colleague and she said she got a letter saying her gas bill will go up by $1,150 per annum. Problem is, it takes time for the gas to switch over and I will be exposed to the new rates from Tango for at least 2 weeks if not a month.

Oh Victorian voters. What have you done to yourself? Cue the onslaught of sob stories forthcoming in the Murdoch and Fairfax Press.

So have you got that letter from your gas company and if so how much increase per annum?

Regards

Zz

Poll Options expired

  • 31
    No rise (Lucky you)
  • 9
    Under $100 pa
  • 18
    Between $100 to $500 pa
  • 11
    Between $500 to $1000 pa
  • 14
    > $1000 pa
Home & Garden Gas Supply

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Comments

  • JVHifi on 30/03/2023 - 16:33
    +1

    I got the same email with Tango too! Now I guess we wait for the electricity increases to come through too
    Curious to know which retailer comes out cheapest for you for gas now?

    • franco cozzo on 30/03/2023 - 16:42
      +3

      headlines: gas is going up and is bad for climate change and kills you in your own home!!
      also: electricity to rise in price due to increased demand!!!

      cw

    • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 17:28
      +4

      Globird

      • JVHifi on 30/03/2023 - 18:46

        cool, you must be in a similar area to me. I got Dodo and Globird as my cheapest but man, their rates are still pretty steep!

        • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 21:17
          +2

          Yea man. I have never seen the price goes up this steep in my whole life in Australia.

          If you are considering the gas to electricity applicance upgrade, vic govt is about to tightening up the green credits ($70 per certificate) soon so hurry up and upgrade before they wise up. I am thinking of changing from ducted gas heating to ducted air conditioning.

  • Drakesy on 30/03/2023 - 16:34
    +4

    With that sort of rise surely it would be cheaper to shift over to a heat pump and induction cooktop/fan forced oven?

    Unless its a rental.
    Then it gets a bit hard.

    • franco cozzo on 30/03/2023 - 16:45
      +1

      when you say 'shift' you mean find thousands of dollars to install new gear and rip out your perfectly good gear and trash it because ….why, exactly?
      and then shift to elec. and find theyre doing exactly the same…??

      • Drakesy on 30/03/2023 - 16:48
        +4

        Electric oven and cooktop - maybe $1200
        Heatpump - maybe $2400 and runs more efficiently than a gas powered hot water system
        Solar Panels would quickly negate any losses anyway.

        If you're paying that much for gas ($1000 in addition per year) then it'll pay for itself in what, 3 years?

    • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 17:36

      Do tell please. Does heat pump work ok in winter? And can it provide instant hot water for longer time? Reason is we are big family.

      • lgacb08 on 30/03/2023 - 18:14

        Plenty of people around Melbourne has switched to heat pump, you just need one with bigger tank because they're storage type not instantaneous. But if you're doing the switch just for hot water alone then it'll take a long long time to break even, even when gas price go triple. You probably save money better by switching to 9kg LPG for that and hunt for the $20 refill deal from bcf/anaconda /bbq galore.

        • dan2k on 31/03/2023 - 08:08

          Depends if you are switching from Gas to Electricity, or just inefficient to efficient!

          I switched from electric immersion HWS to heat pump and I save ~$900 per year in electricity costs.
          And it works fine in Melbourne winter. Air at 20deg is very similar to air at 10deg to a heat pump.

          • burningrage on 31/03/2023 - 11:18

            @dan2k: What you want is 100% savings in Gas for HWS and small incremental usage in electricity costs. So this heat pump would do the trick you reckon?

      • A-mak on 31/03/2023 - 18:20
        +1

        A heat pump works by moving refrigerant/gas out for ambient temperature to heat it up and then an air compression to pump it back in. This compression helps heat it up and in colder climates, it will work harder and thus use more electricity.

        There is a list by postcode on categorizing heat pump efficiency (if memory serves right is like zone 1-5 with 1-3 being 'not recommended').
        https://www.cleanenergyregulator.gov.au/DocumentAssets/Pages…

        You would have to do the maths on efficiency but you may be better off with straight-up solar hot water or if you have solar pv and don't use it all it could be beneficial. You can also have solar hot water as well as a heat pump.

        And finally, if you are replacing a gas system or 3 years + old electric system, you could have access to multiple rebates if you are in Vic (Solar Victoria rebate and VEEC (victorian energy efficiency credits/certificates)/'Victorian Energy Upgrade' as well as federal level STC's.

        Personally have not heard of anyone complaining about their heat pump even if they're in that zone 1-3.

  • JimmyF on 30/03/2023 - 16:35
    +11

    Oh Victorian voters. What have you done to yourself?

    LOL Don't blame the VIC voters for the feds selling all our gas off to higher bidders.

    • franco cozzo on 30/03/2023 - 16:43

      mate….theyre ALL to blame.

    • Drakesy on 30/03/2023 - 16:46
      +5

      Marky Mcgowan sitting there gleefully because WA Labor had the foresight to not let the private sector govern prices on our own gas.

      • JimmyF on 30/03/2023 - 17:33

        WA Labor had the foresight to not let the private sector govern prices on our own gas

        Not so much not letting them govern the prices, but the fact they had to set aside a % for the WA state. So they want people to use it up so demand is more than the % supply, so they can ramp up prices!

    • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 17:30
      +4

      Daniel Andrews is getting rid of gas in the near future and refused to allow increased production.

      This is their last election policy.

      • JimmyF on 30/03/2023 - 17:39
        +2

        Daniel Andrews is getting rid of gas in the near future and refused to allow increased production.

        You know these two are directly related?

        Australia doesn't have a shortage of production, we export way more gas than the country uses localled. https://www.energynetworks.com.au/news/energy-insider/if-we-…

        Tell me again we need 'more' production to meet our local needs or do we need less exports?

        They didn't allow increased production as that wasn't going to go towards VIC people or decrease prices but instead be sold off overseas. Hence the no increase in production.

        Getting rid of gas is directly related to the gas prices and I'm 100% for it.

        • Ugly on 30/03/2023 - 18:14
          +1

          Getting rid of gas is directly related to the gas prices and I'm 100% for it.

          They’re banning it because it’s not zero-emission. Price is not the driving factor.
          https://www.energy.vic.gov.au/renewable-energy/victorias-gas…

          • JimmyF on 30/03/2023 - 20:56
            +1

            @Ugly:

            They’re banning it because it’s not zero-emission. Price is not the driving factor.

            and yet other states with cheap gas like WA have no plans to rid gas.

            Sure they say they are doing it as part of zero emission, I'm sure the private gas companies ripping customers off had nothing to do with bringing the plans forward.

      • lgacb08 on 30/03/2023 - 18:17
        +1

        Where did you get that from? Vic gas reserve in the Latrobe is almost empty so even the libs can't pump out anymore.

        • RMBC on 31/03/2023 - 09:19

          Thats on current wells, doesnt take into account the offshore depsotis that have been found and not tapped

  • 87percent on 30/03/2023 - 16:56

    My recent gas bill, which is with Globird, actually went down

    • CyberMurning on 30/03/2023 - 16:59

      same.. plus i got solar… and i got some credit from referring friends ! $50 for each…..
      so now my account (gas and elect together) is in credit of $300+
      thanks Glo~

  • CyberMurning on 30/03/2023 - 17:00
    -1

    install solar panels, and then join one provider with high feed in tariff.
    example: globird.

    but check their selling rate compare with others…
    sorry i was talking about electricity but you can bundle gas and elect with the same provider and one credit will offset the other

  • herecomestheoost on 30/03/2023 - 17:08

    :D

    • Bafranz on 30/03/2023 - 17:09
      +1

      :(

  • ForkSnorter on 30/03/2023 - 17:11

    Weird, I have gas hot water, and I cook with gas. The bill is only $20/month.

    • herecomestheoost on 30/03/2023 - 17:15

      LIAR!

    • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 17:32

      No way man

      • ForkSnorter on 30/03/2023 - 17:40

        yep. Occasionally $25/month. I shower at the pool in the morning, so I only have 1 shower a day at home. Also I wash the dishes with cold water.

        • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 21:21

          Ahhh… good idea. Shower at the apartment pool which is already part of your body corp anyway. Very smart idea.

    • GordonD on 30/03/2023 - 17:45

      I'm the same as ForkSnorter. Gas hot water and stove. My bill for gas is only $10 per month, plus of course $23 per month supply charge. Even if the cost of gas goes up 20+%, that's only a little bit over $2 extra a month, about $25 extra a year.

      • The tiger on 09/06/2023 - 09:10

        Please tell me which gas provider you are with, thanks.

    • The tiger on 09/06/2023 - 09:22

      Hi, ForkSnorter, please tell me which gas retailer you are with, thanks.

    • ssmith3104 on 10/06/2023 - 13:00

      Rubbish. The connection fee is nearly $1.00 per day = $30 even before you start USING any gas! You don't know what you are talking about.

  • try2bhelpful on 30/03/2023 - 17:13
    +1

    We created a “snug” for our house using home made thermal curtains; a couple of queen size bed flat sheets with a king size doona between them. This allows us to cordon off an area of the house that gives us a lounge room and the kitchen. This dropped our gas bill to between 1/3 to 1/2 of what it had been when we tried to heat the whole house. We’ve just put in a reverse cycle air conditioner and installed solar panels on our roof. This will provide us a warm place in winter and a cool place in Summer. Next will be a heat pump hot water system and then an induction stove top.

    The joke is we received a gas bill saying we had used a lot less gas than usual and they could “help us with that”. I assume this wording is meant to accompany bills that had gone up but we thought it was hilarious.

  • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 17:32

    Whats your top 3 gas usage?

    From observation, gas ducted heating, hot water (mine is already solar gas hws), and cooktop (which isnt much).

    • lgacb08 on 30/03/2023 - 18:43

      What was the difference between summer and the winter bill? If you can't tell the difference then it's worth paying that $1000 extra and let them do the hard work for you. To give you reference points if I use gas for heating in winter the bill will be 4 times as high compared to summer with hot water storage and cooking (winter peak rates do count but it is only about 25% higher). You have solar gas so it's gas consumption is negligible anyway.

  • dogboy on 30/03/2023 - 17:41

    My gas bill is 5x my electricity bill on an annual basis and I only have gas hot water and stove top.

  • mini_wombat on 30/03/2023 - 17:41
    +6

    The gas bills get shockingly high

    High gas prices and electricity prices should be no problem. We just waste too much energy and have shitty houses (and too big!). But our climate is pretty mild in most of Australia and it's not that difficult to achieve a pretty efficient house.

    We had a very high gas bill in our 3 bedroom Melbourne home and an old Brivis Buffalo Gas ducted heater & instant gas hot water system. The heater was pretty powerful (guess around 25kw) and heated the house instantly but old and used a lot of gas - the annual gas bill nearly hit $1,100.

    The monthly electricity bill was always around $130 - some computers, TVs, NAS, XBox, fridge, …

    This was 2020 !!! Now fast forward to 2023 - my monthly electricity bill is $40 and the annual gas bill is $170 (this is after the increases).

    What did we do?

    A) We sealed up the house - it's pretty airthight now (as good as it gets for a old 60s built housein Melbourne). Little gaps are everywhere! Services coming in the house - seal around it. Change the downlights to IC4. Window and door seals. Sealed up the gaps in the floorboards. Closed the chimney. Draft stoppers on exhaust vents! No more drafts and so much more efficient. The gas heating needs to run less! Cost: $400

    B) Ceiling INSULATION. DIY! Cost: $800 upgraded the ceiling to R6! What a difference in comfort and heating costs! The new downlights are now covered with insulation.

    C) Underfloor Insulation DIY! R2.5 No fun job … I met a lot of spiders! Cost: $600

    D). We just turned off the gas ducted heating and used our Aircon Split system to heat the house! I must admit it's not as powerful and the heat is not as nice as with the ducted system. But the more airtight your house is the less it needs to run! Cost:$0 This wiped out nearly the gas bill and the electricity bill did not get up that much (as the ducted heater used a big fan to blow the heated air in the ducts …). We installed a second efficient split system to be able to heat the whole house - Cost $1,500 - but a big benefit of the split system is that you don't have any losses in the ducts and only heat the room you need.

    E) Sealing up the ducts! Now as the heating system was changed to aircons we closed off the ducts and improved the airthightness even further. Cost: $50

    F) Kick out inefficient electric devices and try to reduce consumption - no more second fridge (they are usually old and use a lot), tun off the NAS overnight and avoid standby devices. Cost: $0

    So far all pretty cheap and made a massive difference (in comfort and cost!)

    G) We installed a solar system to offset a lot of the elelctricity! We are home during the day and self consumption is a key to make this work. We time the washing machine, heat pump dryer, don't cook at the same time to make most of the solar. Enough solar for an electric car in the future! Cost: $6,000
    Be aware that the monthly bill I mentioned above is before feed in - I really want to know what I still use from the grid. Feed in is a nice benefit …

    That is where we are at the moment … it's a journey and we still have to do a few more things to get it to the state where we want it.

    Next steps - go fully elelctric
    1. Change the cooktop to induction
    2. Look at wall insulation or maybe new window fittings with insulation qualities (such as honeycomb blinds).
    3. Change the instant hot water to heatpump electric to wipe out the gas bill completely (as this would be the last gas device in the house!)
    4. Look at double glazing (maybe secondary glazing) for the south facing windows (but that costs a bit much!)
    5. Elelctric car and no longer pay for petrol

    I am aware that some things are not possible when you rent your place or live in an apartment - but something is always possible to do!
    Don't complain … change things up!

    • dogboy on 30/03/2023 - 18:18
      +2

      Electric cooktops suck unfortunately. Gas is just far superior.

      • Protractor on 30/03/2023 - 18:38
        +2

        ….prepare to reprogrammed ….good luck
        (BTW you're right)

        • mini_wombat on 30/03/2023 - 22:04

          @protractor Each to their own! For me it will be a big improvement to go from a electric ceramic field to induction.

      • mini_wombat on 30/03/2023 - 22:01
        +1

        I have already ceramic cooktop (electric) which suck - fully agree here.

        Modern induction is a different game - fast switching heat on and off as gas - uses less energy and does not pollute my house inside with burned gas fumes. So disagree here.

        Did you actually try a modern induction cooktop?

    • ssmith3104 on 10/06/2023 - 13:04

      Ah yes, thank you greenies, lefties, climate-change religion subscribers, etc. Turn our world upside down, make us poorer individually and collectively, and then self-congradulate yourselves with virtue-signaling.

  • Protractor on 30/03/2023 - 18:37

    Welcome to the USA's gas reserves. Want to buy your own country's gas exports back? Boy have I got a DEAL for you>!

    This outcome was known 30 years ago, and people willing slept through it and kept voting for the same Nimrods who enable this sell out shite.
    Gas should have been (a) reserved per sovereignty (b) used to convert coal power stations as we transitioned, and priced at then, at what we pay NOW!.

    Cherbornek,come here.Smell this….

  • Protractor on 30/03/2023 - 18:42

    OP what number are you calling a large family?
    I mean if there's six plus people having long luxuriant showers you should be forking out heaps.That's maths.
    Wait till water rates jump..

  • cookie2 on 30/03/2023 - 18:45
    +1

    Gas, water and electricity. I'm cold, stinky and hungry. Jokes but seriously, everything has gone up and considering here in Melbourne I struggle through what feels like about 10 months of winter weather, I'm not looking forward to the upcoming bills.

    • franco cozzo on 30/03/2023 - 19:17
      +1

      this year is shaping up to be the same as last, 3/4 winter weather…exactly as you described.

  • MeesusEff on 30/03/2023 - 18:50

    Why is gas over east so different than the west? Gas is the only utility that we can shop around for, it's my favourite bill to get as it's usually under $120 after 56% off. Meanwhile, electricity is at least 3x the amount.

    • netjock on 31/03/2023 - 06:25
      +2

      West has gas reservation policy.

      East has gas price cap which doesn't work because producers can still set it offshore. There is actually going to be a gas shortage.

      • MeesusEff on 31/03/2023 - 17:08

        Thanks, I can understsnd this a lot better than the ramble below lol

  • l005e on 30/03/2023 - 19:19
    +1

    time to create your own gas
    jump on those KFC and Red Rooster deals guys!

    • bdl on 30/03/2023 - 21:03

      extra coleslaw

      • Protractor on 30/03/2023 - 21:14
        +1

        Double strength stout and tasty cheddar cheese. (No naked flames!)

  • Protractor on 30/03/2023 - 19:21
    +1

    "Why is gas over east so different than the west?"

    3 main reasons> USA, LNP politicians,voter stupidity.

    You must remember that the Libs do not have any (not an ounce) of interest outside of self interests.
    If that means 'pleasing' OS interests, they lap it up with gusto.
    Just consider high ES gas prices a Liberal Party dividend . Barnett would have flogged all WAs gas in heartbeat. Labor adopted the local gas reservation policy (GRP) and I'll bet Chevron et al were spewing.
    However, recently Big energy is calling the shots in WA again. They had the EPA put back in their box when they wanted big energy to be accountable (properly) for their GHG. Basically the EPA won't go near gas giants again, because "scared off."
    So McGowans version of ALP is clearly more aligned with the Libs than not, when it comes to gas. He can't / won't overturn the GRP, but sooner or later the amount reserved won't suffice local demand. We all might be glowing in the dark by then.
    Quick read about Alinta> (or should I say Chow Tai Fook Enterprises)
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alinta_Energy

    and this. Japanese going all shrill about Australian gas>
    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-30/japan-warns-world-pea…

    So basically the USA and now Japan playing the bully ,if we DARE claim sovereignty and do what we want in our country.These are our allies. War because us ,because we exit gas? Nice slur & stretch of reality

    Not our fault Japan chose to plonk nuclear plants in a geologically unstable rattle zone. They are way smart enough to adopt and develop better tech for them and everyone else. Pull your finger out Ueda

  • bdl on 30/03/2023 - 21:01

    OP, did your 12 mth fixed rate from Tango just end?

    • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 21:39
      +1

      Yes. Thats why I immediately jumped ship the moment I saw that dreadful letter.

  • 0FoxGiven on 30/03/2023 - 21:13

    Not at all. All electric household

    • burningrage on 30/03/2023 - 21:40

      Big capital cost awaits. I would have to change my ducted heating, hws, and cooktop (unlikely, not a cost driver). Hws is thinking about heat pump but was told not effective in winter.

      • 0FoxGiven on 30/03/2023 - 21:49
        +1

        Worked perfectly fine for me in VIC winters for the past 4 years.

        • burningrage on 31/03/2023 - 11:14

          Thank you. I'll check what's around the corner.

      • Member 0230 on 31/03/2023 - 08:50
        +1

        I second what others have said: heat pump hot water works just fine in Melbourne, even in winter.

        Actually, even in Canberra when it’s below zero ℃.

  • xuqi on 31/03/2023 - 00:32
    +1

    No idea what all the fuss is about. No issues in WA.

    https://www.hawkerbritton.com/archive/western-australia-dome…

  • netjock on 31/03/2023 - 06:33

    Natural gas global prices have come back down. Only a matter of time before it is reflected here.

    About upgrades you need to know what is driving YOUR costs not the cost increases. In Vic electricity is going up 30% but I only use 5kwh a day. So 20c to 26c per kwh. I am not racing out to replace all my appliances.

    I have gas storage hot water. I'd change that to instant gas if it blows up.
    I have gas cook top.

    $35 a month for the above (probably half is supply charge). I suspect the guzzler would be hot water.

    Used gas central central heating last winter. Bills shot up for 3 months. Have installed two small 2.5kw reverse cycle air cons. They use say 1kwh combined when on. Solar sorts that out during the day. Night time it uses 0.5kw per hour. Lucky small house 8sq to use it heat bedroom end. Gas will be for when we wake up will use as booster only.

    3BR plus lounge and dinning using the central heating is a big waste of energy. Using reverse cycle for my comfort instead of feeding it back into the grid is a no brainer.

  • DazMon on 31/03/2023 - 08:06

    Mine has been in credit for months and will be for months because they were OVERCHARGING me with estimated readings, I kept warning them, they kept charging me unreasonably, last bill was -$534.

  • saltypete on 31/03/2023 - 09:28
    +1

    Gas price -a bit but the bl@@dy ‘Service fee’. Bunch of thieves.
    And watch as we all start disconnecting from them. The ‘Service fee’ will just keep rising as they have less mugs to share it across.
    I’m jumping ship as soon as some decent rebates show up.

  • payless69 on 31/03/2023 - 09:44

    Been 20 years on induction.
    Best move ever!

  • eckorock on 31/03/2023 - 09:46
    +2

    My price per MJ went up 81% , service charge went up about 30%.
    (Momentum Energy)

    • burningrage on 31/03/2023 - 11:15

      That's criminal!

      • eckorock on 31/03/2023 - 11:57

        Yeah I emailed them about it, checked the energy compare sites and wasn't many better offers

        • xuqi on 01/04/2023 - 13:28

          Cartel members.

  • 2esc on 31/03/2023 - 09:56

    No gas in our town.

  • burningrage on 31/03/2023 - 11:14

    Aw man. Can't do ducted air conditioning because of smaller existing vent and they need bigger vents. I am stuck with split systems.

  • lostgoat on 31/03/2023 - 12:01

    Seriously Dude your poll should be Up Same Down .
    If you did a common sense poll Up would win .

    • CyberMurning on 31/03/2023 - 13:15

      and must have the default option: bikies

  • ssmith3104 on 31/03/2023 - 14:13

    Tango just increased my rates by not only some 60% for gas (double the average Vic increases), but also put up my daily network supply charge by over 50%. Neither of these can be justified to these levels.

    • eckorock on 31/03/2023 - 14:33

      Yep and Momentum Energy by 81%
      It's awful

    • bdl on 31/03/2023 - 16:08
      +1

      Thanks for the update, going to go to Globird when my 12 months fixed rate is finished…

      • CyberMurning on 31/03/2023 - 16:23
        +1

        dont forget to get referral

        it is good government doesnt allow energy provider to have fixed contract
        the provider says fixed price for a year but you can change anytime so do your own research

  • mini_wombat on 03/04/2023 - 18:07

    It's amazing that 31 people voted they got no rise yet.

    Would be great to hear some explanations. Are all on fixed rates? Did people use less? Did some electrify and got rid of gas? Are people unaware of the changes as they still have not turned on the heaters? Do they know a special deal which we don't?

    • burningrage on 07/04/2023 - 00:08

      More likely not yet. My friend who lives nearby on the same Multinet area is yet to receive the letter because she hasn't done 6 bi-monthly billing as yet (ie: She hasn't done 12 months yet).

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