Several Hunter councils have been left in limbo over electricity supply after a company that agreed to provide power for 10 years tried to pull the plug on its contract.
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Lake Macquarie, Cessnock, Central Coast, Muswellbrook, Upper Hunter and Maitland councils entered into a "long-term electricity procurement agreement" with Mojo Power in January which they said would be backed by new renewable electricity generation projects - including the NSW government approved Upper Hunter Energy Park.
The 10-year agreement would supply approximately 100GWh of electricity per year to power large council sites and street lighting.
But a Cessnock council spokesperson said last month it "received advice from its contract entity of its intentions to cease providing electricity supply under the contract".
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The contract was the result of a tender process in September with councils saying the winning bid provided the best value for money outcome and "stable pricing".
Mojo Power did not respond to numerous requests for comment, but a note on its website states: "Due to the energy wholesale market being unusually high we cannot offer the competitive rates we used to".
Muswellbrook council said it was "definitely expecting" its electricity costs to accelerate and that it had not finalised a new supply agreement, with Mojo still supplying their power.
Lake Macquarie council said it was "working hard" to ensure that there was no disruption to the power supply for street lighting, council facilities and other essential services across the city.
"The national energy market continues to function under pressure and Lake Macquarie City Council is not immune to that impact," a spokesperson said, which was echoed in a separate statement from Upper Hunter council.
"We continue to monitor the situation with the electricity markets and our current supplier, Mojo Power."
A Cessnock council spokesperson said they were "liaising with relevant energy regulators, other councils who participated in the tender process for energy retail and the retailer to protect council's position in regards [to] contract obligations and more importantly ensuring continuity of supply to the affected sites".
However Central Coast council said it "has an agreement for electricity supply with Mojo Power East Pty Limited" and "expects that contract to be honoured to full term".
Maitland council did not respond to requests for comment.
The Herald put questions to the Australian Energy Regulator, which said it does not comment on individual retailer discussions as "they are confidential".
A blog post from Mojo Power in May said they were waiting on three more solar farms to be developed which would help "control our wholesale prices better and offer renewable energy".
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Sage Swinton
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
