Searching for the Cheapest Power Company...

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wreck90

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#83402 16-May-2011 11:40

I'm fed up with Trustpower, they are expensive .

I've found this outfit....

http://www.justenergy.co.nz

They offer a significant discount over trustpower.

Anyone had experience with justenergy? I'm not sure, but I think they might be somehow related to pulseenergy.

I'm thinking it might be a bit risky though - i don't really want billing problems.

At this stage , i'm thinking Genesis is the cheapest 'proven' electricity supplier.

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Biddle Corp

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#469568 16-May-2011 11:55

Powershop are the cheapest. You will find that the big guys will however promise to undercut Powershop.

The electgricity market is exceptionally competitive, don't be afraid to tell your existing company where to go, you'll always find them offering you a better deal or somebody else willing to better your price.

codyc1515

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#469573 16-May-2011 12:00

+1 for powershop

wreck90

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#469575 16-May-2011 12:09

Powershop do not operate in my area.

Trustpower were unwilling to lower their price.

Genesis is looking the best option.

Behodar

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#469592 16-May-2011 12:35

Note that Just Energy's prices exclude GST; it looked cheaper than my current supplier (Bay of Plenty Electricity) at first, but after adding GST it ends up being sightly more expensive.

nickb800

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#469596 16-May-2011 12:43

Have you visited consumer powerswitch? They let you input your usage and find the price with different providers in your area. Theres a bit of guesswork around powershop but for traditional retailers its really useful.

http://www.consumer.org.nz/powerswitch/

Are you in the South Island? Genesis is working hard to gain customers in the SI since the govt forced them to buy Tekapo A & B power stations - so genesis is likely to be the cheapest atm

graemeh

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#469601 16-May-2011 12:46

sbiddle: Powershop are the cheapest.

No it is not. It depends on your usage.

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NonprayingMantis

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#469612 16-May-2011 13:05

nickb800: Have you visited consumer powerswitch? They let you input your usage and find the price with different providers in your area. Theres a bit of guesswork around powershop but for traditional retailers its really useful.

http://www.consumer.org.nz/powerswitch/

Are you in the South Island? Genesis is working hard to gain customers in the SI since the govt forced them to buy Tekapo A & B power stations - so genesis is likely to be the cheapest atm

I used that and it came back and said that Powershop and Genesis were the cheapest. I’m already with Genesis so no reason to switch.

richms

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#469705 16-May-2011 15:40

sbiddle: Powershop are the cheapest. You will find that the big guys will however promise to undercut Powershop.

The electgricity market is exceptionally competitive, don't be afraid to tell your existing company where to go, you'll always find them offering you a better deal or somebody else willing to better your price.

No they are not, if you do the figures on 2000+ kWH a month, they are one of the most expensive. Cheapest I have found is genesis on the day/night tarrif now that I have the meter that can do it.

I would love to have $2-3 a day line charge and a much lower unit charge. Powershop is going the wrong direction IMO.

Richard rich.ms

codyc1515

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#469708 16-May-2011 15:41

richms:
sbiddle: Powershop are the cheapest. You will find that the big guys will however promise to undercut Powershop.

The electgricity market is exceptionally competitive, don't be afraid to tell your existing company where to go, you'll always find them offering you a better deal or somebody else willing to better your price.

No they are not, if you do the figures on 2000+ kWH a month, they are one of the most expensive. Cheapest I have found is genesis on the day/night tarrif now that I have the meter that can do it.

I would love to have $2-3 a day line charge and a much lower unit charge. Powershop is going the wrong direction IMO.

Personally, Powershop is cheaper for us. It all depends on location, etc.

nickb800

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#469712 16-May-2011 15:49

richms:
I would love to have $2-3 a day line charge and a much lower unit charge. Powershop is going the wrong direction IMO.

I prefer the conventional fixed + variable billing too.
But powershop deserve credit for getting people thinking about the price they pay per unit. Ask most people with traditional power companies/traditional billing how much they pay per kwh/unit and most wont have a clue.

Bee

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#469747 16-May-2011 16:44

for the low volume (>8000 KWH per YEAR) Powershop is definitely cheapest for me...

In recent months Ive had Mercury and Contact Energy come to my door with some super duper special offer and when they ask - What power company are you with now?

I say powershop and they turn and walk away...

If only this worked with the religious ones as well!!! :)

Doing your best is much more important than being the best.

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nigelj

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#469763 16-May-2011 17:15

NonprayingMantis: I used that and it came back and said that Powershop and Genesis were the cheapest. I’m already with Genesis so no reason to switch.

We were in the same boat, Powershop was actually telling us that we'd be better off staying with Genesis, but since Genesis put their prices up, comparatively Powershop are a good 2c/unit cheaper (based on a composite of Genesis Day+Night+Line Charges over a month) at the moment, and look much cheaper for the rest of the year.

Personally I think the pricing in the electricity industry needs to much simpler. Technically the model is like the telco model were you pay a fixed fee plus tolls to use a phone, and Powershop is the pre-paid provider coming in saying "just pay slightly higher/minute for tolls".

Back to OP's original query, I've never heard of Just Energy, but looking at their 'About Us' profile, they are part of Pulse Energy, which didn't favour well (although didn't have many responses) in the Consumer PowerSwitch surveys http://www.consumer.org.nz/powerswitch/site-info/the-retailers/customer-service-ratings

If Powershop does sound interesting, you could always ring and ask them if they intend on moving into your area.

robbyp

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#469771 16-May-2011 17:28

graemeh:
sbiddle: Powershop are the cheapest.

No it is not. It depends on your usage.

Yes when I was investigating prices, they also weren't the cheapest, it totally depends on your usage. Genesis was the cheapest when I was last checking. As all power to a property is the same, and you are just paying a middleman reseller, it does make perfect sense to go for the cheapest.

Talkiet

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#469776 16-May-2011 17:31

I just plugged my situation into the powerswitch site and Genesis had the 2 cheapest plans, with my current provider (meridian) coming in with the 7th cheapest option.

Genesis, Just Energey and Mercury were cheaper - Genesis by a long way (10%)... I however at some stage negotiated a 15% prompt payment discount with Meridian - even with that though, Genesis is about 5% cheaper.

Powershop were estimated to be MORE expensive than my current plan, but only by a couple of percent.

Note, I'm chch, and use about 1000 units/month.

I can't really decide if it's worth switching over about $100/year

Cheers - N

Please note all comments are from my own brain and don't necessarily represent the position or opinions of my employer, previous employers, colleagues, friends or pets.

nickb800

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#469779 16-May-2011 17:36

Talkiet:

I can't really decide if it's worth switching over about $100/year

It doesnt cost you anything to change, theres no contract term & you dont lose power at any stage. About 10mins of filling in a form online and the rest is done for you. And you get 5000 brownie points which can buy you ~$40 of vouchers for various retailers

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