Energy minister Guy Barnett confident hydro scheme will deliver low power prices

A Legana family of six said a rebate like the dividend would be "fantastic" for them.

Gerry Geskus said his family spent about $1800 on power each quarter.

"Hydro has been a part of Tasmania for a long time, it would be great to get a rebate off our bill and reduce the living cost everyone is going through at the moment," Mr Geskus said.

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Under the RED scheme, 50 per cent of any Hydro profit over $100 million will go directly to bill relief.

The rest will go to essential services like health, housing and education.

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Mr Barnett said they were confident in Hydro going forward.

"We've got a lot of confidence that Hydro will continue to deliver, five out of the last 10 years they've hit more than $100 million [in profit] and certainly going forward we have a lot of confidence that hydro will deliver for the Tasmanian people," Mr Barnett said.

"Hydro is playing in the market ... we don't support exiting the market as some political parties do.

"As Hydro plays in that market and delivers the benefits for Tasmania and Tasmanians, we want to deliver the Renewable Energy Dividend to every Tasmanian household."

He said $160 million profit for the Hydro would deliver a $100 reduction and rebate of the energy bill for over 250,000 households in Tasmania.

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Labor's energy and renewables spokesperson Dean Winter said Hydro Tasmania had been turned into a "cash cow", rather than a strategic asset to build Tasmania's economic future.

"Now they are changing policy again and it is a mess," Mr Winters said.

"The Tasmanian Liberal Government is a national laughing stock, having signed off a deal to build Marinus just nine months ago, and now walking away from its own deal."

"We will rebuild the Hydro into what it was and should always have been: a publicly owned, publicly operated economic engine for the state."

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