How your rates are determined
In NSW, retailers set their own prices for electricity - the price you will see on your bill. They calculate their prices to ensure that all the costs that go into providing electricity in your home are covered.
What is the relationship between Ausgrid and your retailer?
Ausgrid is an electricity distributor. We operate and maintain the electricity network (poles, wires, substations) that delivers electricity to homes, businesses, and essential services in our network area.
Retailers purchase electricity and sell it to customers. They are responsible for establishing and maintaining your electricity account and billing.
In NSW, retailers set their own prices for electricity - the price you will see on your bill. They calculate their prices to ensure that all the costs that go into providing electricity to your home are covered.
One of the costs incurred by retailers is distribution costs, which are charged to retailers by distributors like Ausgrid.
Distribution costs cover important construction and maintenance to ensure the network is safe and reliable. This includes assets like poles and wires, as well as expanding the current grid to accommodate a growing number of households or businesses and supporting their increased electricity needs. At Ausgrid, we also invest in new technologies to make neighbourhoods more energy efficient, with solutions like community batteries.
The amount charged by distributors like Ausgrid isn't just for the operation of the network. About a quarter of network revenue is for Transgrid, to cover the cost of transmission, and NSW Government environmental schemes.