CUSTOMERS in Ballarat and surrounds who make a passive decision about their electricity provider are paying the second most expensive electricity rates in Australia.A report released by price comparison service GoSwitch revealed those who chose the default provider under the Powercor distribution network were in the second most expensive distribution area in the country.As of the beginning of January, customers paid more than $700 annually for their electricity compared to those served by the least expensive network in Australia.The GoSwitch study also showed that annual electricity bills for central and western Victoria increased by 7.5 per cent from January 2010 to January 2011.GoSwitch chief executive officer Ben Freund said price rises throughout Victoria had been quite steep, with the state holding three of the top five most expensive distribution areas in the country."If you're looking across the country or more specifically the east coast, you're looking at a forecasted increase of 100 per cent over the next five years," Mr Freund said."If your quarterly bill is $500, you can assume it will go up to $1000 which is a very meaningful increase."That is a conservative estimate.""The forces pushing up the cost of power are quite complex."Ballarat East resident Gary Newton installed a solar system about three years ago. He said his electricity bill had halved since when he was without solar electricity."Our last electricity bill was $98 for the quarter and that was towards the end of winter," he said.Powercor spokesperson Drew Douglas said that customer electricity bills were made up of several components.He said infrastructure upgrades, an increase in customers and the use of energy-intensive appliances had contributed to higher prices."The price that Powercor charges to distribute electricity is only one part of the amount that appears on the electricity bill issued by retailers," Mr Douglas said."Costs are greater to distribute electricity to rural or regional areas as customers are spread over a much larger geographic area and have lower populations than urban areas."