Power up 20 per cent?

By JONATHON HOWARD

PEAK horticulture organisations, community groups and landholders have called on the State Government to make good its promise to support the agriculture sector and reject a recommended 20 per cent increase in electricity prices for farmers.
The Queensland Competition Authority (QCA) confirmed last week that the recommended price rises were even higher than the 17.5 per cent the government had previously indicated – which represents a doubling of electricity prices in the last seven years.
The electricity price hike will take effect from 1 July.
Growcom CEO Alex Livingstone said Queensland fruit and vegetable growers could easily spend up to $144,000 per year on electricity and these new tariffs would add at least $28,000 to these growers’ costs.
“We see this as an opportunity for the Newman Government to get behind one of its four pillars and see this rise in the context of how it may impact on the cost of living for all Queenslanders,” Mr Livingstone said.
“The agricultural sector is the economic pillar with the most direct flow through to consumer prices.
“If the government is serious about managing cost of living pressures for all Queenslanders, then hiking up one of the key input costs for food production is counter-productive.
“The determination of the QCA was made within a very narrow set of parameters and it is the government’s responsibility to look at the broader implications of this recommendation and the potential perverse outcomes.
“We ask the government to explore a financially viable tariff for irrigation industries that recognises the variable nature of electricity use and the need for very variable use patterns.
“We also need tariffs that have an adequate difference between off-peak and on-peak use, which makes both good economic and environmental sense.
“It is a time to show leadership on this issue and look at the impact on the economy as a whole rather than just having a narrow focus on cost recovery for the electricity retailers,” Mr Livingstone said.