Qld power prices to rise by 22.6 per cent THE average Queensland household will pay over $260 more a year for electricity from July 1. The higher than expected 22.6 per cent hike is among a number of price rises announced by the Queensland Competition Authority (QCA) on Friday. "It's a very significant rise and we do appreciate it's going to strain many family budgets," QCA chairman Malcolm Roberts told reporters. It'll also have an impact on businesses. The rise will see the typical household bill rocket from $1184 to $1451. Small businesses will face an increase of up to 17.4 per cent, and big businesses about 13 per cent. Mr Roberts said higher network costs, including the maintenance of poles and wires, were driving the increase. The network costs also include the solar subsidies and network costs deferred in 2012-13 because of the tariff freeze. "They (network costs) make up almost half of the bill and they have increased substantially," he said. The state government has already announced it will not introduce an electricity rebate in Tuesday's budget. Treasurer Tim Nicholls and Energy Minister Mark McArdle released a joint statement blaming the increase partly on the carbon tax and solar bonus scheme. Mr McArdle said Queenslanders would save about 15 per cent on their bills if the federal government axed the carbon tax.