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Fact Sheets

Download the Saving Energy Fact Sheet (PDF - 359KB)

Download the electricity pricing in Queensland fact sheet (PDF - 61KB)

Download the energy rebates and concessions brochure (PDF - 110KB)

Download Consumer protection for energy customers
(PDF - 65KB)


Retail Market

Retail competition has been progressively introduced into the Queensland electricity market since 1998.  Large electricity users have been able to choose their electricity retailer for some time, and many customers have entered into negotiated contracts with their retailer of choice.

Competition has been introduced in a number of stages, or 'tranches', as follows:

  • Tranche 1 - 29 March 1998
    Electricity usage of more than 40 gigawatt hours (GWh) per annum, including summation of sites where prior agreement existed
  • Tranche 2 - 1 October 1998
    Electricity usage of more than 4 GWh per annum (large factories, office buildings, shopping centres etc)
  • Tranche 3 - 1 July 1999
    Electricity usage of more than 200 megawatt hours (MWh) per annum (medium retail and commercial outlets)
  • Tranche 4A - 1 July 2004
    Electricity usage of more than 100 MWh per annum (small retail and commercial outlets)
  • Tranche 4B - 1 July 2007
    Full Retail Competition - all customers including households and small business (other than excluded customers or receivers) can choose their electricity retailer

The last stage in this process was the introduction of Full Retail Competition on 1 July 2007, which enabled some 1.8 million household and small business electricity consumers in South East Queensland to choose their electricity retailer for the first time.

With the introduction of Full Retail Competition, a new distinction between "large" and "small" electricity customers has been made.

Large customers are those that consume more than 100 MWh of electricity per annum (i.e. tranches 1 to 4A).

Small customers are those that consume up to 100 MWh of electricity per annum, which includes households and many small businesses (i.e. tranche 4B).

To find out more about the introduction of full retail competition, including the choices now available for small customers, visit www.thepowertochoose.qld.gov.au.

There are some important differences in the rights and obligations that apply to large and small electricity customers in Queensland.  Find out more about:

Last Updated 01 July 2009