Household standing offer prices could fall by 10.1 per cent, while small business standing offer prices are set to fall by 12.8 per cent across South East Queensland.
This year’s draft decision from the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) is the first under the Albanese Government’s reformed DMO framework, which is designed to better protect consumers by setting a reference price for a reasonable market offer.
The reforms also pave the way for the new Solar Sharer Offer, which will be an option from 1 July 2026 for households in DMO regions.
The changes mean the DMO is being rebalanced so households on standing offers pay a price that better reflects the actual costs of supplying electricity, making sure people on default plans are not paying for unnecessary retailer overheads.
Federal Member for Blair Shayne Neumann said that local families deserved a fairer deal on energy and a system that worked for them, not just for energy companies.
“Our Default Market Offer shows why reform matters, making sure standing offer prices better reflect supply costs, as well as introducing free daytime power so households can use more of the cheap solar Australia is already generating.
“Solar Sharer is about sharing the benefits of Australia’s solar success. If the grid has abundant cheap power in the middle of the day, more households should be able to benefit from it and see real savings on their power bills.”
These reforms come as local families are also taking up cheaper home batteries in record numbers, with new postcode-level data showing high uptake in growth areas, like Ripley, Redbank Plains and Springfield, as well as country towns like Fernvale.
“In Blair, more than 2,500 families and local businesses are embracing energy upgrades that save them money and make their homes and businesses more energy efficient, and put more solar into the grid,” Mr Neumann said.
“We know the war in the Middle East and higher fuel prices are putting pressure on household and business budgets, so we’re doing everything we can to boost fuel supplies and reduce prices, but also help when it comes to power bills as well.
“We’re making progress on energy prices. We now have more renewable energy than ever before and that’s already reducing wholesale electricity prices. And reforms like the Default Market Offer and Solar Sharer Offer will help ensure that flows through to lower retail energy prices for consumers as well.”
The AER will consult with industry on the draft DMO before publishing a final DMO in May. The draft decision and associated materials can be found at: https://www.aer.gov.au/industry/registers/resources/reviews/default-market-offer-2026-27/draft-determination
