Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan said his region in particular would face a "hiding", while Queenstown Lakes Mayor Jim Boult said many of his constituents would find the prospect of price hikes "inconceivable".
Across the board, Otago residents may face power bill increases of between $240 and $876 a year by 2026 according to draft decision on Aurora Energy’s plans to hike prices to fix its failing network, released on Thursday by the Commerce Commission.
The commission’s draft decision cut back on Aurora’s customised price-quality path (CPP) from the proposed $609million to $523million maximum over five years to fix its ailing network, saying Aurora had overestimated costs.
Both mayors are looking to the Energy Authority (EA) to potentially address inequitable lines charges but the authority is awaiting the finalised decision.
EA director of transmission pricing methodology Rob Bernau said the authority was taking a "deeper look" to determine if Aurora’s approach reflected network costs.
"The commission’s draft decision is another important input into that process."
Mr Cadogan said after decades of under-investment by Aurora, Central Otago consumers were on a "hiding to nothing" when it came to the cost of fixing the network and the draft increases in Central Otago remained significant.
A large part of that was based draft price rises in Central Otago being higher than Dunedin and Queenstown, he said.
He would continue to advocate price increases be equally distributed between all users instead of Central Otago being "grossly penalised".
"That advocacy won’t just be with the Electricity Authority but also with Aurora, Dunedin City Holdings and the Dunedin City Council."
Queenstown Lakes Mayor Jim Boult said households in the region would be looking at adding $3 to $13 to monthly power bills — by 2026 they would be paying $20-$73 more per month.
"For many that prospect will be inconceivable."
The draft included what appeared to be a nod to Queenstown Lakes District Council concerns that Dunedin City Holdings and its owner the Dunedin City Council (DCC) were not being held accountable for years of underinvestment.
He said the council would look at options outside the commission’s jurisdiction including discussions with the DCC around shareholder accountability, Aurora, and the EA to work towards cost parity across the region.
