The price for natural gas is changing again.
On Monday, officials with National Fuel Gas Corp., announced an
increase in rates for residential customers, effective today.
National Fuel’s Senior Manager of Corporate Communications Nancy
Taylor said the change is in response to the colder-than-normal
temperatures that infiltrated the region during the later part of
winter.
As it stands, a typical residential customer using 100,000 cubic
feet annually will see the price of a monthly bill increase from
$113.49 to $118.30, or by 4.3 percent. The utility can request a
rate change with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission on a
quarterly basis.
“This change is expected to have a minimal impact on customers’
upcoming bills as customer usage is typically lower in the spring
and summer months and follows a winter season when, overall,
customer’s bills were 21 percent lower than last year, primarily as
a result of lower gas costs,” Taylor said.
Taylor said the hike also takes into account projected gas costs
for the next four months.
In January, National Fuel officials announced the utility was
lowering prices by 5.74 percent due to a milder-than-normal early
portion of the winter. A stockpile of natural gas nationwide also
helped play a part.
Taylor said it’s not unusual to have such a fluctuation in
prices, mainly due to the unpredictability of the weather and
market costs.
“We are always looking backward and forward,” Taylor said. “This
time, the late winter storms helped lead to the increase. The best
we can do is look at the market at a particular point in time and
then make changes when possible.”
Taylor also believes the rate hike won’t have as much of an
impact on residential customers, in part, due to the upcoming
warmer months.
“I think our usage will go down,” Taylor said, adding it will
largely depend on how warm the summer months are. Events happening
nationwide can also impact the price.
“It used to be that gas use went down over the summer,” Taylor
said, “but with the building of more and more natural gas-fired
power plants, that is putting pressure, or demand, on the supply
even in the summer months. Those generation facilities tend to go
online more as the temperature goes up.”
Taylor reiterated that National Fuel or other utilities don’t
set the prices for natural gas, adding the cost is passed on to
customers on a dollar-for-dollar basis. This differs from the
delivery service charges, which represents National Fuel’s cost of
doing business and providing safe, reliable service to customers
throughout the state.
In February, National Fuel forecast an increase for purchased
gas costs in its annual state-required filing, effective Aug. 1.
The forecast remains on file with the PUC and may change before
that date in response to market trends.
The company’s “gas year” runs from Aug. 1 to July 31.
Customers having trouble paying their bills can contact National
Fuel at 1-800-365-3234 to inquire about payment options and
available services.
National Fuel serves approximately 214,000 customers in 14
counties across northcentral Pennsylvania, including McKean
County.
