Published: October 30, 2009 11:31 pm      

PSC predicts lower natural gas prices

FRANKFORT — The Public Service Commission has some welcome news for natural gas consumers this year — prices are likely to be “sharply lower” this winter.

“Natural gas prices have come down considerably from the artificially high levels of last year,” PSC Chairman David Armstrong said. “Furthermore, there is reason to think that we may see relatively stable prices for the next several years.”

The PSC said wholesale prices are lower than they’ve been in at least six years, less than half the peak price of last winter. Since wholesale costs make up the biggest part of retail bills during the heating season, they are passed on to customers on a dollar-for-dollar basis by distributors.

Individual price levels will vary according to distributor and customer use, but the PSC is predicting on average consumers can expect to pay around 39 percent less than they paid last winter for 10,000 cubic feet of natural gas.

Electricity consumers, Armstrong said, aren’t likely to see much change in prices this year which should be stable.

Gas prices spiked in each of the past two years because of speculators in commodity markets but those markets are more stable than in recent years, Armstrong said. About 50 percent of natural gas used in winter months is put into storage in warmer summer months and the price at which distributors purchased the gas is the price passed on to consumers.

Kentucky’s five major natural gas distribution companies expect their adjusted wholesale cost this November to be, on average, $5.61 per 1,000 cubic feet. That is down $6.09 (52 percent) from an average of $11.70 per metric cubic foot a year ago.

The PSC recommends several ways consumers can hold down what they pay for energy. Those are to use budget billing to average annual costs out over a set monthly price, energy conservation and weatherization and conducting an energy audit of homes.

Advice on conserving energy is available on the Web at www.energy.ky.gov/dre3/.