Ergon Energy Network is a subsidiary company o
Energy Queensland Limited (EQL) a Government owned corporation owned by the
Government of Queensland
The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutional monarchy was form ...
. It distributes
electricity
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...
to around 763,000 customers across Queensland, excluding
South East Queensland
South East Queensland (SEQ) is a bio-geographical, metropolitan, political and administrative region of the state of Queensland in Australia, with a population of approximately 3.8 million people out of the state's population of 5.1 million. Th ...
through a distribution network regulated by the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) who set the prices that Ergon is allowed to charge for distribution.
Ergon Energy became a subsidiary of EQL on July 1, 2016. Ergon was formed in 1999 by the Queensland Government, from the then six regional Queensland electricity distributors and their subsidiary retailers. In 2007, the Queensland Government sold approximately 50,000 contestable electricity customers and retailer trading activities to
AGL. Smaller electricity customers which are not economic continue to be billed by Ergon Energy and the electricity distribution network remains in public ownership.
Today the principal operating companies are Ergon Energy Corporation Limited, as the electricity distributor, and its subsidiary Ergon Energy Queensland Pty Ltd, the electricity retailer. Ergon Energy’s retailer is only permitted, by legislation, to sell electricity at the Queensland Government’s Notified Prices (overseen by the
Queensland Competition Authority (QCA)), enabling Queenslanders to access the same uniform electricity tariffs.
The electricity generation and distribution network consists of approximately 178,000 kilometres of powerlines and one million power poles, along with associated infrastructure such as major substations and power transformers. Ergon Energy also owns and operates 33 stand-alone power stations that provide supply to communities across Queensland which are not connected to the main electricity grid. Since August 2007, Ergon Energy has owned and operated the gas-fired
Barcaldine Power Station along with its associated infrastructure, which supplies power to the main grid.
In regional Queensland, retail competition is limited and most customers continue to be supplied by Ergon Energy under a standard contract. While the company has been criticised in the past for not keeping up with innovations in electricity supply such as smart meters which the state of Victoria has been acknowledged as the national leader, it is catching up with consumer-based applications that can be used to monitor energy usage in real time. Ergon Energy Retail has been a principal partner of the
Royal Flying Doctor Service
The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), commonly known as the Flying Doctor, is an air medical service in Australia. It is a non-profit organisation that provides emergency and primary health care services for those living in rural, remote an ...
(Queensland Section) since 2000. Over 20 years, Ergon Energy employees and customers have donated more than $16 million towards improved emergency and routine medical care facilities throughout Queensland.
See also
*
National Electricity Market
References
External links
Ergon Energy
{{Authority control
Electric power distribution network operators in Australia
Government-owned companies of Queensland
Energy in Queensland
Government-owned energy companies
1999 establishments in Australia