Aurora Energy

Aurora Energy is a Tasmanian Government-owned electricity retailer based in Tasmania, Australia. Its principal business is selling electricity to residential, commercial and other customers in the state, together with related customer, billing and energy-management services. The company is distinct from other businesses using the Aurora Energy name and from electricity generators and network operators: within Tasmania's post-1990s electricity-industry structure, Aurora has primarily represented the retail-facing part of the state-owned electricity system. Aurora was established on 1 July 1998 under the Electricity Companies Act 1997 during the break-up of Tasmania's Hydro-Electric Commission. That restructuring divided the former vertically integrated electricity authority into three state-owned companies with different functions. Hydro Tasmania became the generation business, Transend Networks became responsible for electricity transmission, and Aurora Energy became the retail arm selling electricity to customers. The reorganisation was connected with Tasmania's preparation for participation in the National Electricity Market, which the state joined in May 2005. Aurora's historical activities were broader than conventional electricity billing. Through AETV Power, the business was associated with the Tamar Valley Power Station in northern Tasmania, a natural-gas-fired facility supplied by gas piped from Victoria. The power station, its customers and related contracts were transferred to Hydro Tasmania on 1 June 2013, leaving Aurora more clearly focused on retail operations. Aurora also experimented with alternative payment arrangements outside Tasmania. It began testing a prepaid electricity service in selected parts of Adelaide in late 2005. The service used Payguard smart meters and was formally launched in May 2007 after the trial, making Aurora the first electricity retailer to offer a prepayment option in South Australia according to the referenced account. The company operated through a period of increasing electricity-market competition. Large-customer retail contestability began in Tasmania in 2006, followed by the staged opening of progressively smaller customer groups in later years. In preparation for full retail contestability, Aurora and the Tasmanian Government considered separating the retail business and selling the customer base to private retailers. A proposed tender for the customer base was ultimately abandoned after a government-funded study concluded that the sale was not then expected to benefit consumers. Full retail contestability nevertheless commenced on 1 July 2014, allowing competing retailers to seek customers across the market. Aurora also faced regulatory and operational pressure during the 2010s. In 2012, the Australian Energy Regulator rejected an application for electricity price increases totalling 15.5 percent over five years, approving substantially lower annual increases of 1.4 percent through 2017. The regulatory outcome contributed to a review and restructuring of the business, with redundancies affecting employees from field operations through senior management. The restructuring was followed by a customer benefit described in the reference material as an average five percent reduction in electricity prices. On 1 July 2014, Aurora's non-retail activities were merged with Transend Networks to create TasNetworks. Aurora retained its name as the retail business and continued selling electricity and natural gas in Tasmania. Its present identity is therefore that of a state-owned energy retailer operating within a broader Tasmanian energy group, rather than an independent generator or transmission-network company.

Aurora Energy was created on 1 July 1998 under Tasmania's Electricity Companies Act 1997. Its formation was part of the break-up of the Hydro-Electric Commission, the former state electricity authority. The reform divided the sector into three government-owned businesses: Hydro Tasmania for generation, Transend Networks for transmission, and Aurora Energy for electricity retailing. The structure was designed in part to prepare Tasmania for integration into the National Electricity Market, which occurred in May 2005. Although Aurora became principally known as a retailer, its earlier structure included activities connected with generation. AETV Power owned and operated the Tamar Valley Power Station in northern Tasmania, a natural-gas-fired plant supplied through a pipeline from Victoria. On 1 June 2013, the facility, its customers and related contracts were transferred to Hydro Tasmania. This transaction reduced Aurora's direct involvement in generation and reinforced its role as the customer-facing retail company. Aurora also developed a prepaid electricity model. It began a trial in selected parts of Adelaide in late 2005 using Payguard smart meters. After the trial, the service was launched in May 2007. The offering gave customers the ability to pay for electricity in advance and was described in the source material as the first prepaid option offered by an electricity retailer in South Australia. Tasmania's retail market was opened progressively to competition. Very large customers gained retail contestability in 2006, and additional groups of smaller customers were made contestable in subsequent years. In 2013, Aurora prepared for full retail contestability and for a possible sale of its customer base to private retailers. The proposed tender was cancelled after a government-funded study concluded that the sale was not expected to benefit consumers at that time. The broader market-opening timetable continued, and full retail contestability began on 1 July 2014. Aurora's pricing and cost structure came under regulatory scrutiny in 2012. The company sought electricity price increases of 15.5 percent over five years, citing infrastructure investment and carbon-tax-related costs. The Australian Energy Regulator instead restricted the increases to 1.4 percent per year through 2017. The regulatory decision contributed to an examination of Aurora's structure and a major business reorganisation. The restructuring produced redundancies across field operations and management. The reference material also records a subsequent customer benefit amounting to an average five percent reduction in electricity prices. On 1 July 2014, Aurora's non-retail sections were combined with Transend Networks to create TasNetworks. Aurora's retail arm retained the Aurora Energy name and continued selling electricity and natural gas in Tasmania. The company remains owned by the Tasmanian Government and is positioned as a local state-owned retailer operating in a market where customers can choose among competing energy providers.

• 2014

  TasNetworks is established

  [1]Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org

  Aurora's non-retail operations merge with Transend Networks, while Aurora continues as the retail brand.

• 2013

  Tamar Valley Power Station transferred to Hydro Tasmania

  [1]Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org

  The power station, associated customers and contracts move from AETV Power to Hydro Tasmania.

• 2007

  Pay As You Go service launches

  [1]Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org

  Aurora formally launches its prepaid electricity product in South Australia after the trial period.

• 2005

  Tasmania joins the National Electricity Market

  [1]Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org

  Tasmania enters the National Electricity Market, increasing the importance of national market rules and competition for Aurora's retail business.

• 2005

  Prepaid electricity trial begins

  [1]Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org

  Aurora starts testing its Pay As You Go electricity model in selected Adelaide areas with smart meters.

• 1998

  Aurora Energy is formed

  [1]Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org

  Aurora begins operating as the retail company created through the restructuring of Tasmania's Hydro-Electric Commission.

A state-owned Tasmanian energy retailer with a local-market focus, offering electricity and related services to households and businesses while operating within Australia's competitive electricity-market framework.

• Electricity retail · 1998

  Retail electricity

  Aurora's core offering is the retail supply of electricity to Tasmanian customers. The business manages customer accounts, billing and retail arrangements within Tasmania's competitive electricity market. Its customer base includes households and businesses, with service availability and pricing governed by applicable Tasmanian and national energy-market rules.

• Prepaid electricity · 2007

  Aurora Pay As You Go

  Aurora Pay As You Go was a prepaid electricity service built around Payguard smart meters. Customers paid for electricity in advance rather than relying solely on conventional post-use billing. The product was trialled in Adelaide from late 2005 and formally launched in May 2007. The referenced material identifies it as an early and distinctive retail innovation in the South Australian electricity market.

• Natural gas retail

  Natural gas retailing

  Aurora has also retailed natural gas in Tasmania alongside electricity. The referenced material confirms the activity but does not provide sufficient detail about specific tariffs, plans, customer numbers or product names.

• 2014

  Non-retail operations merge into TasNetworksM&A

  Background

  Tasmania reorganised its state-owned electricity businesses after the proposed customer-base sale was abandoned and as full retail contestability approached.

  Action taken

  Aurora's non-retail sections merged with Transend Networks on 1 July 2014 to form TasNetworks.

  Aftermath

  Aurora retained its name and continued as the retail arm, while TasNetworks took on the combined network-related business.

  Source

• 2013

  Proposed sale of the retail customer base is cancelledStrategy

  Background

  Aurora prepared for full retail contestability and a proposed tender in which its customer base would have been sold to two or three private operators.

  Action taken

  The Tasmanian Government abandoned the tender after a funded study concluded that selling the customer base would not then provide a consumer benefit.

  Aftermath

  The sale did not proceed, but full retail contestability still began on 1 July 2014, allowing other retailers to compete for Tasmanian customers.

  Source

• 2013

  Generation-related operations transfer to Hydro TasmaniaStrategy

  Background

  AETV Power's Tamar Valley Power Station and its associated customers and contracts were part of Aurora's broader historical operating structure.

  Action taken

  On 1 June 2013, the power station, customers and related contracts were transferred to Hydro Tasmania.

  Aftermath

  Aurora became more clearly focused on electricity and gas retailing rather than generation ownership and operation.

  Source

• 2012

  Aurora seeks higher regulated electricity pricesPrice change

  Background

  Aurora applied to the Australian Energy Regulator for electricity price increases totalling 15.5 percent over five years, citing infrastructure investment needs and carbon-tax-related costs.

  Action taken

  The regulator rejected the proposed increase and limited annual price rises to 1.4 percent through 2017.

  Aftermath

  The decision contributed to a review and restructuring of Aurora's business, followed by extensive redundancies. The reference material also reports an average five percent reduction in electricity prices delivered to customers after the restructuring.

  Source

1. 1Aurora Energy (Tasmania)en.wikipedia.org
2. 2Aurora Energy official websiteauroraenergy.com.au