What Is the Current SP Electricity Tariff and Where to Find It

If you are wondering what SP electricity tariff, there is an easy way to find out. The cost per kWh is changing constantly and it is updated every quarter. This means that for the same quantity of electricity, you may have a higher or a larger bill depending on the newly updated price.

Why are prices changing?

Multiple factors need to be accounted for that drive the price of electricity. Regardless if you consider the price high or low, you need to first get a general idea of what that SP electricity tariff is meant to cover.

The price per kWh or the tariff is meant to cover all the costs regarding production, transportation, and retailing services such as billing, reading meters, etc. For production, prices can fluctuate. They are reliant on gas prices since 95% of electricity for domestic consumption is made using natural gas.

The transportation costs fluctuate but not considerable. They are influenced by the costs to expand and maintain the network. It can be considered a fixed cost. What is important to note that this cost can vary from one electricity retailer to another and it is influenced by the contract negotiated with the transport network owner.

The last portion of the bill is the costs imposed by the company billing the consumer. Each company that sells electricity to consumers needs to charge their customers to cover their costs by reading the meters, billing services, invoicing, etc. When you combine this fee with all the previously mentioned costs, you get to understand what is SP electricity tariff composed of and why it can fluctuate.

How are tariffs adjusted?

SP adjusts the tariffs quarterly. Each quarter they publish a press release that dives deeper into the new pricing for the following 3 months. Most of the time, when the tariff goes up or down, SP provides a brief explanation of what led to the price adjustment. It is not always the natural gas price as there are many factors at play.

When the tariffs for the quarter are released, they can be downloaded in PDF format from their website. The document can be downloaded and viewed by anyone, regardless if they are an SP customer or not. The new tariffs are published on the last day of the quarter, announcing the tariff applicable from the first day of the next quarter.

The tariff for Q2 2021 was published on the 31st of March. It announced an increase in tariff that was in effect from April 1st to June 30th. Compared to the previous quarter, the tariff increased by 8.7% before GST. Consumers would pay 22.55 cents per kWh, an increase from 20.76 cents per kWh as it was the previous quarter. 

The increase in price per kWh has been justified by an increase in fuel costs. The new tariff was calculated based on the guidelines established by the Energy Market Authority. If you are wondering what SP electricity tariff is, you should always consult their official page. All tariff-related announcements are published in their News & Media Releases section.