The electricity industry has called on households to start cutting their power use now to get ready for emissions trading.
Emissions trading is forecast to add just over $3 a week to household power bills when it starts in two years' time.
It was sensible to start preparing for higher prices in advance, Brad Page, chief executive of industry body the Energy Supply Association of Australia, said.
There was a "huge amount" people could do now to slash their power bills, he said.
"Because you're using less, you're offsetting some of the increased cost (under emissions trading)," Mr Page said.
He recommended switching to energy efficient lights, installing insulation, and sealing around doors.
When a new appliance was needed, households should choose an energy efficient model.
The average household power bill is presently $1,020 a year. The federal government forecasts emissions trading will push up the cost of electricity by about 16 per cent, or an increase of $163 a year, in 2010.
The industry is calling for a fundamental change in the way power prices are set, to allow the full cost of emissions trading to flow through to households.
State governments presently set power prices, which tends to keep them low.
The association wants that regulation scrapped and the market to set prices.
"I think we have to change the system, we've got to go and rely on competition and stop trying to regulate a price," Mr Page said.
"You have to allow for the ... cost of carbon."
State governments have agreed to stop setting prices when there is effective competition in the market, but there are concerns deregulation is progressing too slowly.
The industry should to be able to pass on higher costs under emissions trading, Mr Page said.
If not, there would be no price signal to households to use less electricity, which is the point of emissions trading.
Forcing the industry to bear higher costs would discourage investment in new generation capacity, which could lead to a crisis in supply, Mr Page said.
By world standards Australia had very low electricity prices, which meant people had taken electricity for granted, and been less conscious of the need to use it wisely, he said.
