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The June quarter emissions figures showed the nation’s greenhouse emissions were down 2.1 per cent, or 10.8 million tonnes, compared to the same period in 2020. This drop was driven by renewables with emissions from the energy sector down 4.5 per cent, or 7.7 million tonnes, in the past 12 months.
Fugitive greenhouse gas emissions were down 8.7 per cent due to a drop in coal production, while emissions from agriculture were up 4.9 per cent as the sector recovers from drought.
Meanwhile, the Australian Energy Regulator annual retail report warned the average debt for households that are in arrears on their combined gas and electricity bills has risen 12 per cent, up from $897 in 2019 to $1000 in 2021.
There are 182,665 households currently paying off an energy debt, up 8444 on the previous year, which is a trend the regulator said reflected the impact of the COVID economic downturn.
On top of these households in energy debt, there are 65,855 customers on hardship programs with their retailers.
AER chair Clare Savage said that number had fallen, which was a concern given the ongoing economic stresses from COVID-19.
“Retailers need to identify and get customers onto hardship support programs earlier,” Ms Savage said.
“For families that could have just $10 to $20 a week to spare, an energy debt of more than $1000 is pretty hard to come back from.”
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Chief executive of representative group Energy Consumers Australia Lynne Gallagher said it was “incredibly disappointing” that more customers weren’t being offered hardship support.
“The way the energy system treats financially vulnerable people was a problem before COVID and we can now see it will remain a much larger problem after it, unless we do something different.
“There needs to be a full and serious attempt across the industry to create a new way of doing things that identifies much earlier when customers are beginning to hit financial trouble and offers flexible and creative ways to stop people running up energy debts.”
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