Here in GA, or at least the Metro Atlanta area, we choose our Natural Gas Provider yearly. I've been with Scana for many years and last year my rate was a very sweet 0.369 per therm.

i just got the renewal notice. The lowest rate in the offer is 0.539 per therm FOR A THREE YEAR TERM!!!! A two year term is 0.599 and an 18 month term is 0.629. No one year term in sight which I've never seen before.

I am going to shop around and the last time I did 3 years ago Scana matched the best offer I found. But what say ye on the prospects of natural gas prices in the immediate future?

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If you want to fix our country, work with us in the states. statesproject.org

"Success isn't about how much money you make. It is about the difference you make in people's lives."--Michelle Obama

Our area is being told we can expect a 48% higher rate this year in Northern IL. Local paper is running this story today about it.

Gas bills will increase 48%

Suburban households could be facing a tough winter
According to Nicor’s estimates, the typical household will pay about $674 on heating bills from November through March.

Nicor customers should expect the cost of heating their homes this winter to put a significant dent in their wallets, consumer advocates warn.

According to Nicor’s estimates, the typical household will pay about $674 on heating bills from November through March. That’s an increase of 48% compared to the $455 paid by the same residential customer over the five-month season last year.

The Naperville-based utility giant supplies natural gas for more than 2.2 million residential and business customers across northern Illinois outside Chicago. Nicor passes market prices for gas directly to consumers without markup, charging separately for delivery on monthly bills.

“These are still projections, but given the Nicor gas rate increases of the last few years, plus higher natural gas prices for the commodity, it’s looking like it’s going to be a tough winter for consumers,” said David Kolata, executive director of the Citizens Utility Board, a Chicago-based consumer watchdog.

Historic cold weather that gripped Texas in February, freezing natural gas pipelines and pinching off supplies, sent natural gas prices “through the roof,” Kolata said. Those costs are still being passed on by utilities, he said.

In general, natural gas prices also have risen because of issues related to supply and demand as the economy has recovered from the pandemic, Kolata said.

“We’re still in the pandemic, but when things were really, really slow, a lot of production of gas kind of was scaled back,” he said. “And so when you put a growing, if not perfect, economy together with these supply constraints and then you have these exogenous shocks like the Texas extreme cold and Hurricane Ida, it can raise prices.”

Nicor spokeswoman Jennifer Golz also cited an “unforeseen increase” in gas costs due to the February winter storms for the company’s heating bill projections.

“Our estimate also accounts for increasing market prices of the commodity,” Golz said.

Nicor’s estimates do not yet account for a delivery rate increase request pending before the Illinois Commerce Commission. State regulators are expected to decide before the end of the year.

The Citizens Utility Board opposes the company’s request, the third rate hike sought by Nicor in four years.

“Underlying all of this is that the natural gas system is increasingly unaffordable for consumers,” Kolata said. “And it’s also in direct conflict with what we need to do to respond to our climate change challenges, because while we don’t have to do it overnight, we do need to transition to high-efficient electric heating by 2050 if we are going to meet our state and national goals.”

Nicor’s gas supply charge has averaged 53 cents per therm, a measurement of heat, from April through September, according to the Citizens Utility Board. Last year, the prices averaged about 25 cents a therm.

“We have to hope for a warm winter, because if there’s a really cold month, it’s just going to be a huge, huge, huge problem,” Kolata said. Customers are advised to weatherize their home, seal cracks and leaks, and invest in energy efficiency improvements to the extent that it’s feasible.

Nicor has provided $68.9 million through energy assistance programs for customers since January 2020, said Golz, the spokeswoman.

In the coming weeks, Nicor plans to announce a new partnership with the Salvation Army to provide additional assistance to customers. The company also continues to offer deferred payment arrangements and a budget plan to allow customers to manage costs.

“We know this continues to be a hard time for many in our communities,” Golz said. “Our goal since the beginning of the pandemic continues to be ensuring those customers most in need have options and support.”

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Good Luck!
Jamie Dresser
Other World Computing

Q: Why are prices going up for _____?
A: Because they can.

OWC Jamie - given that article would you lock in for 3 years?

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If you want to fix our country, work with us in the states. statesproject.org

"Success isn't about how much money you make. It is about the difference you make in people's lives."--Michelle Obama

IMO this is trying to bet against the house. These companies have energy traders who gamble on this for a living. Shop around but don't lock yourself in.


...what does it take to break one of these agreements?

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mattkime
IMO this is trying to bet against the house.

I've never accepted an agreement for precisely this reason. I'm not going anywhere, I have no other choices for this utility, there is really no reason for them to offer any kind of deal that is to my benefit over theirs.

Natural gas prices have been at historic lows for a decade. I haven't looked, but I'll bet a 48% increase still keeps them well below inflation-adjusted prices at the peak the late 2000s.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/04/2021 05:23PM by Acer.

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Acer

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mattkime
IMO this is trying to bet against the house.

I've never accepted an agreement for precisely this reason. I'm not going anywhere, I have no other choices for this utility, there is really no reason for them to offer any kind of deal that is to my benefit over theirs.

Natural gas prices have been at historic lows for a decade. I haven't looked, but I'll bet a 48% increase still keeps them well below inflation-adjusted prices at the peak the late 2000s.

Yes, indeed. We were exploring geothermal heating to help with our house heating in the late 2000s, then the price for natural gas plummeted - making the geothermal option not economical.

We use natural gas to make anhydrous ammonia, our gas bill at work runs $600k/month +/-. This year we locked in our gas prices until July 2022. We buy our gas directly from the well-head, normally we pay less than half what consumers pays for natural gas, with the price locked in we are now 1/3 of of gas rates right now and are predicted to be at 1/10 of retail price by this spring.

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Golfer
We use natural gas to make anhydrous ammonia, our gas bill at work runs $600k/month +/-. This year we locked in our gas prices until July 2022. We buy our gas directly from the well-head, normally we pay less than half what consumers pays for natural gas, with the price locked in we are now 1/3 of of gas rates right now and are predicted to be at 1/10 of retail price by this spring.

Might want to start offering an employee perk to filling gas tanks.

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C(-)ris
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With distribution charge, we pay 68¢/therm. Half a buck of that is for the gas.

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/05/2021 03:28AM by Speedy.

In the far southwest corner, it's $1.88/therm. And that's only if you stay under baseline. The price per therm goes up from there… Welcome to your future…

Central Wisconsin:

NATURAL GAS CHARGES RATE: Residential Service
DESCRIPTION USAGE UNITS RATE CHARGE
Customer Charge $14.00
Distribution Charge 0 therms $0.297300 $0.00
Gas Supply Charge 0 therms $0.955100 $0.00

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C(-)ris
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At least one city nearby made it a city ordinance/building code that all new construction will be all electric. There are quite a few of these ordinances in NorCal, but this is a relatively new development for SoCal.

[www.encinitasadvocate.com]

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bfd
In the far southwest corner, it's $1.88/therm. And that's only if you stay under baseline. The price per therm goes up from there… Welcome to your future…

SoCal Gas has to finish buying up all of Porter Ranch and then there‘s the “shut up and go away” payments to former residents. Supposed to be born by shareholders but won’t be.

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bfd
At least one city nearby made it a city ordinance/building code that all new construction will be all electric. There are quite a few of these ordinances in NorCal, but this is a relatively new development for SoCal.

[www.encinitasadvocate.com]

Gas is supposed to be the cheaper cleaner choice...what happened?

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C(-)ris
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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C(-)ris

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bfd
At least one city nearby made it a city ordinance/building code that all new construction will be all electric. There are quite a few of these ordinances in NorCal, but this is a relatively new development for SoCal.

[www.encinitasadvocate.com]

Gas is supposed to be the cheaper cleaner choice...what happened?

It definitely seems weird considering given at least 40% of California's electricity is currently generated using natural gas. Perhaps it's a 60% reduction (from current natural gas use in homes) that policymakers are thinking about. But that would mean turning Cali into a 100% electric use state. Not sure how 50 or so random small cities are going to make much difference, but there will be a tip point. Someday…

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C(-)ris

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bfd
At least one city nearby made it a city ordinance/building code that all new construction will be all electric. There are quite a few of these ordinances in NorCal, but this is a relatively new development for SoCal.

[www.encinitasadvocate.com]

Gas is supposed to be the cheaper cleaner choice...what happened?

A perfect storm...

[www.economist.com]

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C(-)ris
Central Wisconsin:

NATURAL GAS CHARGES RATE: Residential Service
DESCRIPTION USAGE UNITS RATE CHARGE
Customer Charge $14.00
Distribution Charge 0 therms $0.297300 $0.00
Gas Supply Charge 0 therms $0.955100 $0.00

That’s quite a difference when you’re just across the Mississippi River from my gas utility.

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.

my latest bill

Does anyone else know why the hell they all bill separately for gas and delivery?

Its not like you're going to switch carriers or get faster shipping.

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Does anyone else know why the hell they all bill separately for gas and delivery?

Its not like you're going to switch carriers or get faster shipping.

Some places have natural gas choice programs. But if my experience with electric choice is a guide, it's mostly just rent-seekers, um, I mean resellers who purchase wholesale off the few real generators.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/05/2021 09:40AM by Acer.

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Does anyone else know why the hell they all bill separately for gas and delivery?

This has become common in industry regulation, and is happening for power as well. The key thing is that the regulators focus on distribution as the monopoly part of the equation, and allow profit on the investment there.

On the supply side, they allow the utilities to charge what it costs them. For both generation and for gas supply. This puts consumers on the roller coaster of supply issues (see also, Texas), but it prevents utilities from making profits on price changes. And it is much easier for the regulators than doing battle with armies of utility lawyers about whether they got a good price for the gas/kilowatt hours.

In places like Cali where solar is a thing, it also allows for some charges for connection to the grid. Without a battery, you still need connection and night time service. They need to charge for the infrastructure attachment (lines, transformers, substations, service, er...tree trimming)

This is one year I'm glad we don't have natural gas or propane. Sadly I'm not prepared for Winter at all as far as firewood, guess the heat pump and oil furnace, secondary heat, will be running more. Should've filled my oil tank when it was below $2/gallon. Haven't been well enough to cut wood at all this year.

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Grateful11

Quote
graylocks
Here in GA, or at least the Metro Atlanta area, we choose our Natural Gas Provider yearly. I've been with Scana for many years and last year my rate was a very sweet 0.369 per therm.

i just got the renewal notice. The lowest rate in the offer is 0.539 per therm FOR A THREE YEAR TERM!!!! A two year term is 0.599 and an 18 month term is 0.629. No one year term in sight which I've never seen before.

I am going to shop around and the last time I did 3 years ago Scana matched the best offer I found. But what say ye on the prospects of natural gas prices in the immediate future?

Huh.

I locked in in August (best month to do so) for a year, with Xoom. No issues. The state publishes a monthly rundown of all the providers and their rates with an "apples to apples" comparison that normalizes out all the marketing trickery:

[psc.ga.gov]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/05/2021 01:37PM by Will Collier.

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mattkime
Does anyone else know why the hell they all bill separately for gas and delivery?

Its not like you're going to switch carriers or get faster shipping.

Atlanta Gas Light (IIRC) owns the infrastructure and does all the meter reading. I think they get the delivery money.

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Will Collier
I locked in in August (best month to do so) for a year, with Xoom. No issues. The state publishes a monthly rundown of all the providers and their rates with an "apples to apples" comparison that normalizes out all the marketing trickery:

[psc.ga.gov]

Thanks. I do intend to shop around. Even a quick look at Georgia Natural Gas shows me they are offering one year plans. Scana's 3 year promo really annoyed me to no end. they'll have to match whatever is the best 1 year plan i find or i'm walking.

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If you want to fix our country, work with us in the states. statesproject.org

"Success isn't about how much money you make. It is about the difference you make in people's lives."--Michelle Obama

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graylocks

Quote
Will Collier
I locked in in August (best month to do so) for a year, with Xoom. No issues. The state publishes a monthly rundown of all the providers and their rates with an "apples to apples" comparison that normalizes out all the marketing trickery:

[psc.ga.gov]

Thanks. I do intend to shop around. Even a quick look at Georgia Natural Gas shows me they are offering one year plans. Scana's 3 year promo really annoyed me to no end. they'll have to match whatever is the best 1 year plan i find or i'm walking.

Scana rarely has the best rate. I don't think they've ever had it when I've renewed since I've lived here (20 years). I used True for the last several years, but Xoom beat them out this year. I just pick whoever has the lowest annual rate in August and go with that. October will be a little more, but not a giant difference.

I got burned bad by electric choice, when I missed the expiration of my initial one-year contract. The contractless rate was triple the contract rate. I was several months into it before I realized what had happened, thanks to automatic debit. I offer this as a cautionary tale.

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Will Collier
Scana rarely has the best rate. I don't think they've ever had it when I've renewed since I've lived here (20 years). I used True for the last several years, but Xoom beat them out this year. I just pick whoever has the lowest annual rate in August and go with that. October will be a little more, but not a giant difference.

i look around yearly and Scana has usually been competitive. last year's .37 was pretty sweet. it was the 3 year contract and no one year option on the info they sent me that ticked me off. so much so that Xoom looks like the best deal in town and I'm not going to give Scana the opportunity to kiss and make up.

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If you want to fix our country, work with us in the states. statesproject.org

"Success isn't about how much money you make. It is about the difference you make in people's lives."--Michelle Obama

Quote
graylocks

Quote
Will Collier
Scana rarely has the best rate. I don't think they've ever had it when I've renewed since I've lived here (20 years). I used True for the last several years, but Xoom beat them out this year. I just pick whoever has the lowest annual rate in August and go with that. October will be a little more, but not a giant difference.

i look around yearly and Scana has usually been competitive. last year's .37 was pretty sweet. it was the 3 year contract and no one year option on the info they sent me that ticked me off. so much so that Xoom looks like the best deal in town and I'm not going to give Scana the opportunity to kiss and make up.

Always check the monthly PSA table. There's a lot of monkeying around that happens with fees and such to "make up" for an allegedly low per-therms rate. And thank you, Clark Howard.

it this price in crease local to GA or is it nationwide?

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space-time
it this price in crease local to GA or is it nationwide?

that's what i'm trying to discern. are natural gas prices on the rise in general? the article freeradical links analyzes why they have in Europe but does that predict an upward arc for the rest of the world?

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If you want to fix our country, work with us in the states. statesproject.org

"Success isn't about how much money you make. It is about the difference you make in people's lives."--Michelle Obama

No choice here...you pay what the local gas utility says you pay.

Over a decade ago when gas prices had literally doubled one month to the next the previous winter I replaced my dead central A/C with gas furnace with a heat pump with gas furnace as backup.

But since prices crashed right after that I ended up locking out the heat pump to save wear & tear on the compressor for the last several years & now just use the gas furnace for heat.

At least there are choices where you are. Seattle has 1 supplier for electric, and one for nat gas.

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********************************************
“A sword never kills anybody; it is a tool in the killer's hand.” Seneca the Younger

The police have no duty to respond. See Castle Rock v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748 (2005) or Warren v. District of Columbia[1] (444 A.2d. 1, D.C. Ct. of Ap. 1981)

Judge Lee wrote that “we cannot jettison our constitutional rights, even if the goal behind a law is laudable." 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

[www.youtube.com]

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Racer X
At least there are choices where you are. Seattle has 1 supplier for electric, and one for nat gas.

Where we live there's no sewer system, natural gas or water system. The county I came from had an extensive water system and limited natural gas. No choice in electricity where we are except Duke Energy. Also no choice except Spectrum internet, one road over has AT&T and Spectrum.

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Grateful11

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graylocks

Quote
space-time
it this price in crease local to GA or is it nationwide?

that's what i'm trying to discern. are natural gas prices on the rise in general? the article freeradical links analyzes why they have in Europe but does that predict an upward arc for the rest of the world?

Energy prices in general have been going up for a while now. Lot of recent volatility in natural gas.

So yes, I guess...

[www.msn.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/06/2021 12:32PM by Will Collier.