A business customer who was told it could take two months and $7500 to decommission gas is one of a number who complained to complaint resolution provider Utilities Disputes (UDL) about gas disconnection issues.
UDL said most of the complaints it received related to disconnections were due to payment arrears, when a disconnection and reconnection fee could apply.
But fees that were sometimes substantial were also charged when a gas supply was permanently stopped, it said.
UDL received 35 complaints in the past six months about gas disconnection, compared to 11 in the previous six.
The number of complaints about decommissioning had been increasing steadily over the years, from one in 2021 to seven so far this year.
When UDL looked into the complaint about the $7500 charge, the company reduced lines charges by 30% while waiting for the decommissioning. UDL did not identify the companies involved.
Auckland gas lines owner Vector told RNZ that from next month it was changing its pricing for permanent gas disconnections “to enable full cost recovery” when someone wanted the gas infrastructure taken off their property.
The cost ranges from $750 to $2500.
In Wellington it costs $1500 for a disconnection, while in Wairarapa it is about $700.
If gas is disconnected at the house but not fully decommissioned, some retailers can continue to charge a daily fee for the gas supply.
Paul Fuge, Powerswitch general manager, earlier said gas supply to residential homes was in a “death spiral”, with prices rising quickly.
A reducing number of customers were having to pay increasing network costs. Those who could not afford to leave – or were not able to – were left with the bills, he said.
Gas NZ chief executive Jeffrey Clarke told Nine to Noon people who were thinking about disconnecting should talk to their retailer, who could explain the charges involved.
He said residential customers did not need to worry about the future availability of gas and there was an increasing supply of biomethane coming into the system.
But Andrew Eagles, chief executive at Green Building Council, said the “death spiral” claim was accurate.
He said the decommission and disconnection situation was a “shambles” and people did not have enough information at a time when it would benefit the country to have them move away from gas.
He said it did not make sense that at the same time that industrial customers were struggling for gas, more homes were connecting.
He said it seemed unlikely that biogas would be the saviour of the system.
“It’s many times more expensive… we’ve already seen gas prices rise 18% year-on-year.”
rnz.co.nz
