This is a question often asked amongst friends, and on socials. The answer unfortunately isn’t so simple.
The best solution takes some research, for every household.
The right plan for me, may not necessarily be the right plan for anyone else. How and when I use electricity in my home will determine the plan that will save me the most money.
Some households will be on a flat tariff. Some will be on a time of use tariff. Every plan will have a supply charge. Some will apply a discount. And they will all display their offering differently.
What is common across retailers is that every household needs to shop around, and frequently. There is definitely no reward for loyalty, in fact customers who remain with a retailer for years without reviewing their plan will most likely find that they are paying far more than they should be.
I (Sophie) am a bit of a nerd in this space. That’s lucky too because it’s kinda my job! I like to know about the different plans around and try them out for myself. It helps me of course to be able to provide recommendations to our Electrify Victoria customers, and it helps me to save money on my own electricity bill!
So here’s where I am at right now.
I switch to Amber about 18 months ago because it is fun for a nerd like me to ‘play the Amber game’. Amber offers customers the wholesale market rate, which can fluctuate dramatically in line with the amount of renewables and demand on the grid. Generally speaking, it can be a really rewarding ‘game’ to play, if you have an ample solar system and battery storage coupled with some automation and time to ensure you can benefit for high feed in times and shelter yourself from insanely high tariffs during high demand.
I have just switched to the OVO EV plan. That is actually pretty sensational IF YOU HAVE THE RIGHT PROFILE AND SET UP. I couldn’t actually access it myself without a referral code.
For me, I charge my Tesla model Y 99% at home, I have over 7kW of solar (fairly small but we are an energy efficient 100% electric home – as you would expect!), a Tesla Powerwall and I am in and out of the home office throughout the day.
The OVO EV plan offers me FREE electricity between 11am and 2pm. When I am home my EV is always charging at this time. I also set my dishwasher, washing machine and split systems to all run then, as well as my hot water heat pump. Free is a bit insane!
Overnight between midnight and 6am I can charge my Tesla for the bargain rate of 8c/kWh. Because I drive a lot during the day, this is a very sweet rate when I need to ensure I have a fully charged car in the morning. I also get paid 8c/kWh to feed in excess solar during the day!
The peak rate between 3pm and 9pm is horrendous. That’s the catch. However I have a Tesla Powerwall which can ‘shelter’ me during this time from a rate that’s less than desirable. Without a battery, I’d suggest you really look at how this may impact you if you are considering this plan.
The good news? Sophie loves this stuff, and will work with you to recommend a great plan AND review it again with you regularly.
If you want to check out the OVO EV plan, here’s Sophie’s referral code. And yep, to be transparent, we both get $120 credit from it:
