East coast gas prices: what actually happened since 2022
East-coast gas has not gone back to where it was before the 2022 crisis, and the ACCC's own reporting shows why: the government's "reasonable price" benchmark was already double the pre-crisis norm, and actual contract prices have since drifted above it.
Last updated 2026-08-24
The emergency measures, briefly
A $12/GJ gas price cap took effect on 23 December 2022 under the Competition and Consumer (Gas Market Emergency Price) Order 2022, made under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, as a 12-month emergency measure. It was followed by the Mandatory Gas Code from July 2023, which set $12/GJ as a "reasonable price" benchmark rather than a hard cap — a guide for what a reasonable price looks like, not an enforced ceiling.
That distinction matters for what came next. The cap was temporary and always going to expire; the Code's benchmark was never a legal maximum, and prices have moved well past it since.
Where contract prices actually sit now
The ACCC's own market reporting gives the clearest picture of what industrial gas buyers are actually paying. For the period June to December 2024, retailer-to-commercial-and-industrial contracts averaged $14.34/GJ. By the ACCC's most recent published data (reported April 2026, covering Q4 2025 pricing), long-term contracts for 2026 supply averaged $13.55/GJ at the producer level and $13.93/GJ at the retailer level — both up on the prior quarter. Contracts already being written for 2027 supply were trending higher again, to $13.93/GJ (producer) and $14.31/GJ (retailer).
The ACCC's own chair characterised the 2026 numbers as "steady at around $13–15 per gigajoule — well down from the very high levels seen during 2022–23", which is an honest way to read it: down from the worst of the crisis, but nowhere near the roughly $4–5/GJ pre-2022 norm. Australia's Energy Minister put the scale of the move plainly in December 2025, describing east-coast gas prices as having "tripled" since 2022.
Why this is a warehouse issue, not just a headline
Gas shows up in a warehouse or cold storage energy bill through space heating, dock-door air curtains, and — less commonly but not never — absorption-type industrial refrigeration. Where it does apply, the contract prices above are the actual cost base a gas retailer is buying from before it adds retail margin and delivery charges to your site's bill, and it is a genuinely separate line item from the electricity side covered in general warehouse energy cost management.
It is also the reason LPG forklift running costs move the way they do, covered separately in LPG forklift fuel cost exposure — LPG is drawn from the same east-coast gas market, so a move in wholesale gas prices is not a separate story from a move in bottled forklift gas prices, it is the same story reaching a different fuel form. A fleet weighing electric against LPG should read that price trend as background context, not a reason to switch on its own.
Supply, not just price, is the next question
Contract prices are only half of what determines a gas buyer's exposure — the other half is whether enough gas is actually available where it is needed, particularly in the southern states, which is covered in the AEMO supply outlook. The government's policy response to both issues, a Domestic Gas Reservation Scheme requiring LNG exporters to set aside 15–25% of production for the domestic market, was announced on 22 December 2025 and starts in 2027 — a forecast fix for a forecast problem, not something that has changed a bill yet.
None of this changes what a site should do about electricity demand charges or a rooftop solar decision — those are separate levers on the electricity side of the bill, not the gas side. Whether a gas connection is worth keeping at all is also a fair question to raise at the design stage of a new build or major fitout, rather than only once a facility is already running on it.
Common questions
- Is the $12/GJ gas price cap still in effect?
- No. It was a 12-month emergency measure from 23 December 2022. It was replaced by the Mandatory Gas Code from July 2023, which treats $12/GJ as a "reasonable price" benchmark rather than an enforced ceiling — and actual contract prices have since moved above it.
- What are industrial gas buyers actually paying now?
- Per the ACCC's most recent published data, long-term contracts for 2026 supply averaged $13.55/GJ (producer) and $13.93/GJ (retailer), with 2027 contracts trending to roughly $13.93–14.31/GJ. Retailer-to-commercial/industrial contracts averaged $14.34/GJ over June–December 2024.
- Have gas prices actually come down since the 2022 crisis?
- Down from the 2022–23 peak, yes — the ACCC describes current contract prices as "steady" — but they remain roughly two to three times the pre-2022 norm, not back to it.
- Will the Domestic Gas Reservation Scheme lower my gas price?
- It is designed to improve domestic supply, which could ease price pressure, but it starts in 2027, only applies to new LNG export contracts (existing contracts signed before 22 December 2025 are grandfathered), and its exact reservation percentage was still subject to consultation as of this page's figures.
Sources
- ACCC — Storage vital to meeting winter demand across east coast gas market in Q3 2026 — 2026 and 2027 contract prices, and the ACCC chair's "steady at $13–15/GJ" characterisation. Q4 2025 pricing data, published April 2026.
- ACCC — Deteriorating short-term outlook for east coast gas supply — June–December 2024 retailer-to-commercial/industrial contract average of $14.34/GJ.
- Allens — Government intervention in the domestic gas market — Legal mechanics and dates of the $12/GJ emergency price cap and the Mandatory Gas Code.
- ABC News — Government confirms gas reservation plans — Domestic Gas Reservation Scheme details, the 15–25% reservation range, and the Energy Minister's "tripled" characterisation.
Part of our guide to what a warehouse pays for power.