ElectraNet, SA Power Networks and Telstra have shared a range of commitments they will undertake to address significant power unreliability and storm damage in the Flinders Ranges region in South Australia.

The Network has responded to the Australian Energy Regulator's Retail Guidelines Review which directly affects every aspect of First Nations energy experience—from billing and concessions, to hardship pathways, to protections for prepayment customers, to conditions for meaningful participation in the energy transition.

The Network has responded with a submission to the Australian Energy Regulator’s 2026 Rate of Return Instrument (RORI) Review.

Hey you mob, here’s a short film with some tips to keep you cool this hot season and make energy more affordable.

Early stage energy planning to prevent blackouts in Nipapanha community near Leigh Creek in South Australia has begun.

Australian First Nations households and communities accessing electricity through prepayment arrangements experience extremely high levels of energy insecurity. In many cases, there is an absence of consumer protections, financial hardship assistance, or debt and disconnection relief. Until recently, these arrangements have largely avoided scrutiny.

While awareness of prepayment for electricity has improved, our research is the first national project to shine a spotlight on the previously hidden experiences of First Nations households using prepayment. The research incorporates household surveys and household-level energy use data to show that frequent disconnections are impacting food security, health, wellbeing and economic participation for First Nations prepayment customers.

Australia is entering a new era of energy-driven economic development, powered by the potential of lower cost renewables. The consent for access to First Nations’ extensive land and sea estates will be needed. It is incumbent on leaders and policymakers to recognise those same communities remain at risk of being left behind; underserved by policy and regulation to pursue opportunities that would secure their own energy futures.

To overcome these structural disadvantages Australian governments must be guided by existing frameworks, including the First Nations Clean Energy Strategy and Closing the Gap targets, and take action to ensure regulators and energy retailers work together to improve the experiences of First Nations people across all key reform areas.

There is considerable scope and opportunity for existing processes to include prepayment customers, and to bring regulation, reporting requirements and policy responses for prepayment customers in line with National Energy Market rules and regulatory standards.

Energy is an essential service that must be accessible by all, regardless of billing arrangements, location or income level. This can be achieved through the application of a nationally consistent consumer protection framework and guaranteed service levels for all customer groups.

The overarching goal of this research and associated proposals for prepayment reform is to keep First Nations people connected to power. This is consistent with wider recognition of energy as an essential service and that no- one should be disconnected due to inability to afford the energy they need.

Cite: Original Power and the prepay research team (2025) The Right to Power - Keeping First Nations communities on prepayment connected. Melbourne, Australia.

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Inequalities in income, housing, and health between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians are well documented, yet differences in energy outcomes remain understudied.

While prior research has largely focused on remote areas or specific aspects, this paper provides the first national-level analysis of Indigenous households’ experiences in the energy market, measuring the existence, scale, and structural drivers of energy inequality.

Two indicators are examined: difficulties in paying energy bills on time and self-reported inability to heat homes adequately.

Across two decades and independent datasets, Indigenous households are 9–10 percentage points more likely to experience energy stress, a difference that persists after accounting for income.

Wealth emerges as the strongest explanatory factor, with housing tenure, education, and financial resilience also contributing substantially.

Objective measures—arrears, disconnections, and hardship program participation—account for around 43% of the observed gap and provide practical means of identifying households at risk of energy stress.

Energy stress is highly persistent, with households that had prior bill payment difficulties 47 percentage points more likely to encounter similar challenges again in 2023.

These findings show that energy inequality is not merely a matter of short-term affordability but reflects deeper structural dimensions of economic inequality.

Policies centred on income support alone are unlikely to eliminate these disparities. Access to modest emergency funds of only a few thousand dollars reduces the observed gap by about 73%, highlighting the potential of targeted, government-backed assistance to strengthen household resilience and prevent disconnections.

Authors: Rohan Best & Duygu Yengin & Andrew Taylor & Maneka Jayasinghe & Ruth Wallace, 2025. "Energy Inequality for Indigenous Australians: Evidence on Structural Drivers Across Two Decades," School of Economics and Public Policy Working Papers 2025-06 Classification-., University of Adelaide, School of Economics and Public Policy.

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There are little things you can do now to keep your house cool or warm.

1. Use curtains or blinds on windows that are exposed to direct sunlight so that you lessen the amount of sun entering your home, keeping your home cooler.
2. Set your air-conditioner between 24–26°C in summer and 18–20°C in winter for the best balance between comfort and efficiency.
3. Close doors and turn off or adjust your air-conditioner when leaving home to save energy, and avoid cooling empty spaces.
4. Use natural light during the day instead of turning on lights.
5. Switch to LED lightbulbs – they use less power and last much longer than regular ones.
6. Wash clothes in cold water and wait until you have a full load before using the washing machine.
7. Dry clothes on the line instead of using the dryer, if possible
8. Check your fridge seals, if air is escaping, your fridge works harder and uses more power.
9. Turn off and unplug devices to save power when they’re not in use.
10. Use a power board with an on/off switch to make it easy to turn off multiple devices at once.

The posters below are from Race for 2030.

Community members and energy providers impacted by widespread electricity outages in the Flinders and Northern Flinders Ranges have come together for a special meeting.