Transition Rebate/Electricity Tariff Adjustment Scheme

More on ETAS eligibility

ETAS eligibility does not affect:  

• Receiving other electricity rebates or concessions, such as the Drought Relief from Electricity Charges Scheme (DRECS). If your NMI/s are eligible for both DRECS and ETAS, you receive the full benefit of the DRECS waiver and if the ETAS transition rebate is greater than the DRECS waiver, the difference will be paid under ETAS. For example, if you are on quarterly billing, and your DRECS benefit for that quarter was $300, and your ETAS transition rebate payment for the same quarter was $600, you would receive $600 made up of $300 for DRECS and $300 for transition rebate.
• Participation in the Queensland Government Large Customer Adjustment Trial/Program (LCAT/LCAP).

What are the detailed eligibility criteria?

To be eligible for ETAS, a NMI must:

• Be held by a customer of Ergon Energy Retail and have one or more of the following obsolete retail tariffs – Tariff 20 (Large), 21, 22 (Large), 37, 62, 65 and 66 – as at 1 January 2021, AND
• Be assessed by Ergon Energy Retail as facing an increase in annual electricity charges of more than 5% and $500 (ex GST) for that NMI when transitioning from an obsolete retail tariff to a standard retail tariff. This assessment is based on your usage during 2020-2021
• Not be a federal or state government body customer
• Not switched to Tariffs 62A, 65A or 66A or a non-standard ICC tariff on that NMI as per Ergon Energy Network’s Tariff Structure Statement 2020-2025.

How many NMIs are eligible for ETAS in regional Queensland?  

There are approximately 1,000 NMIs assessed as eligible for ETAS by Ergon Energy Retail.

Around one third of those customers will likely be eligible for ETAS for only the first year of the nine-year Queensland Government scheme.

The majority of Ergon Energy Retail customers currently on obsolete tariffs won’t be eligible for ETAS as their bills will not increase at all, or their bills will increase only slightly (less than 5% and $500 difference annually).

More on the ETAS assessment process

Do Ergon Energy Retail customers need to apply for ETAS?

No, customers do not need to apply for ETAS – there are no forms to fill out. Ergon Energy Retail will assess your eligibility based on the Queensland Government criteria listed in the Gazette and notify you during July 2021. ETAS transition rebates will be automatically applied to your bill.

How will you notify me if I’m eligible?

Ergon Energy Retail sent emails and letters at the end of June 2021 to notify you of the changes to your tariffs. These emails and letters will also let customers know which of their NMIs are ETAS eligible.

If you have NMIs eligible for ETAS, you would have received a further letter or email during July 2021 with a statement of your NMIs, your Year 1 ETAS subsidy amount(s), and the scheme terms and conditions.

What do I do if I don’t get notified that I’m eligible?

The majority of Ergon Energy Retail customers currently on obsolete tariffs won’t be eligible for ETAS as their bills will not increase at all, or their bills will increase only slightly (less than 5% and $500 difference annually). So if you haven’t received eligibility notification you will most likely not be eligible for ETAS.

If you believe this assessment is in error, see how to get your circumstances reassessed below.

How can I get my circumstances reassessed?

If you have checked your accounts and believe there is an error or you had atypical levels of usage during 2020-2021 financial year, you can call our business support team to discuss your options.

Before calling us, check the previous three years’ usage on that NMI. If 2020-2021 usage was at least 15% lower than either of the other two years (2018-2019 or 2019-2020), then your NMI is eligible to be reassessed.

If you are unsure whether one or more of your NMIs are eligible, we highly recommend that you use My Account and Energy Analysis to check your predicted bills based on your new tariff/s. This will help you understand your eligibility and give you the opportunity to make sure your business is on the tariffs that are right for you.

If you'd like to talk to us about your previous three years’ usage, you can call our business support team on 1300 554 029, Monday – Friday 8.00am – 5.00pm. Press ‘2’ for business and then provide your ABN/ACN number if you have it handy.

Customers have until 31 December 2021 to request their reassessment. We will get back to you within 45 calendar days after your reassessment request is lodged.

Is there a cut-off date after which you can no longer begin getting the rebate?

By the end of July 2021, Ergon Energy Retail will have assessed and written to all eligible customers. If you have not received a letter from us by mid-August 2021, then you are ineligible for ETAS under the Queensland Government’s criteria.

Ergon Energy Retail must determine all customers’ eligibility, assess their electricity bill impacts and calculate their annual transition rebates by 31 December 2021.

Customers have until 31 December 2021 to request their reassessment. We will get back to you within 45 calendar days after your reassessment request is lodged.

If you'd like to talk to us, you can call our business support team on 1300 554 029, Monday – Friday 8.00am – 5.00pm. Press ‘2’ for business and then provide your ABN/ACN number if you have it handy.

More on how ETAS is calculated and paid

Is ETAS calculated on my whole bills, across all my sites?

ETAS transition rebates are individually calculated for each customer NMI and the rebate is automatically applied to your bills.

What is the calculation method?  

A customer’s NMI will be eligible for the rebate if there is a minimum increase in your ‘baseline’ electricity costs of 5% AND $500 ex GST per annum based on the same usage levels.

Your ‘baseline’ electricity cost is calculated on your 2020-2021 financial year electricity usage under the pricing structure of that NMI’s obsolete tariff.

This baseline amount is then indexed by 5% and compared to the forecast cost for that NMI under a new standard tariff charged at the relevant 2021-2022 Gazetted rates.

Can you give an example of a customer ETAS calculation?  

Step 1 - Ergon Energy Retail will assess eligibility of a customer and their NMI/s –

1. In the 2020-2021 financial year, the total obsolete tariff charges for your NMI were $10,000 (your Obsolete tariff baseline cost ex GST)
2. Based on exactly the same usage levels from the 2020-2021 financial year, your 2021-2022 tariff charges are calculated at $15,000 (ex GST) based on the appropriate standard tariff
3. This means the charges for that NMI are forecast to be $5,000 (and 50%) higher under the standard and that NMI would be eligible for ETAS
4. Ergon Energy Retail will write to you in June and July 2021 to advise that you are eligible.

Step 2 – Ergon Energy Retail will calculate an eligible customer’s ETAS transition rebate payments (all figures are GST exclusive) -

1. The 2020-2021 Obsolete tariff cost ($10,000) is multiplied by 1.05 (or increased by 5%) to get your Year 1 Obsolete tariff baseline: $10,000 x 1.05 = $10,500
2. The Year 1 transition rebate amount is the difference between your standard tariff cost based on 2021-2022 usage ($15,000) and the Year 1 Obsolete tariff baseline cost ($10,500): $15,000 - $10,500 = $4,500
3. In Year 2 of the scheme, the Year 1 Obsolete baseline cost ($10,500) is multiplied by 1.05, giving you a new Year 2 Obsolete tariff baseline of $11,025
4. Your Year 2 transition rebate is the difference between the 2021-2022 equivalent standard tariff cost ($15,000) and the Year 2 Obsolete tariff baseline: 15,000 - $11,025 = $3,975
5. This same method is applied for the nine years of the scheme, so your annual ETAS subsidy decreases over time as shown in the table below
6. Once the rebate amount gets below $500, that NMI will no longer be eligible for ETAS.

Example ETAS transition rebate payment schedule for a customer -

*No longer eligible for ETAS, this amount will not be applied to your bill.

How is ETAS paid to my account?  

Your specific transition rebate has been calculated for you and is being automatically applied across the financial year to your bills. For example, if you receive monthly bills, your total transition rebate payment for that financial year will be paid across the 12 months. You can identify your rebate on the back of your bill as the “Transition Rebate”.

The amount of your annual transition rebate is divided into daily amounts and multiplied by the number of days in your billing cycle, and then paid to your account. For example.

1. If your annual ETAS payment is $730,
2. That is divided by 365 days,
3. To give $2 per day.
4. That is then multiplied by the number of days in the billing cycle,
5. Meaning a 90-day billing cycle equals 90 days multiplied by $2,
6. Giving $180 paid as the transition rebate for that 90-day billing cycle.

If there is a delay in providing you with your transition rebates after 1 July 2021, or your transition rebate amount is revised, the full amount of transition rebate not paid to you during the delay is paid as credit on the next electricity bill we send to you.

How long does ETAS run for?  

The scheme runs for nine years until (whichever comes first):

• the nine years ends
• your rebate drops below $500 ex GST, except in the first year of the scheme
• you are no longer the account holder
• you move to T62A, 65A,66A or a non-standard ICC tariff on that NMI as per Ergon Energy Network’s Tariff Structure Statement 2020-2025.

Note that your ETAS payment schedule is set at 1 July 2021. It will not change over the nine years of the scheme (assuming you remain eligible for the entire nine years). So, if your usage on that NMI changes, or you change tariffs (excluding 62A, 65A, 66A and non-standard ICC network tariffs), the ETAS payment schedule will not change.