AGL Energy customers will be hit with an average annual hike of $228 on their electricity bills.
The 12 per cent price hike has prompted urgent calls from welfare groups for householders to shop around for cheaper deals.
State Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis, himself an AGL customer, has also urged customers to shop around. He said the price rise was unjustified and “a dramatic increase for South Australian families’’.
In a statement AGL said the price rise was “mainly driven by the cost and availability of coal and gas supply for electricity generation as well as the changing mix of generation output’’.
It added that the closure of the coal fired Port Augusta power stations has contributed to the price changes.
