ROCKFORD — Mild weather in many parts of the nation
has lowered demand for natural gas and will mean your heating bill
will cost you less in December.
Nicor Gas has filed with state regulators a preliminary natural gas
rate of $1.13 per therm for December, slightly less than the amount
that the largest natural gas provider in the Rock River Valley
charged during October and November.
The company has until Thursday to change that rate.
“The decrease is mainly due to the mild weather decreasing demand,”
Nicor spokeswoman Annette Martinez said. “Storage facilities are
full. And although there have been a few cold days, for the most
part the weather has been warmer than usual and therefore demand is
down, causing a decrease in natural gas prices.”
Martinez said prices have also been affected by Nicor’s use of less
costly natural gas in its storage. That helps to lower prices from
the record-setting rates seen during the two previous months. Those
rates were as much as double what the company charged you for gas
during the same period last year.
But December’s preliminary rate is still one of the highest ever. In
fact, the rate will be the highest ever for December and is 61
percent higher than the 70 cents per therm charged in December 2004.
December’s rate trails only October’s $1.17 per therm and November’s
$1.19 per therm as the highest-ever rate charged to consumers by
Nicor.
The average consumer, which is estimated to use 1,200 therms per
year or about 100 each month, will see a bill of $113 for the cost
of gas in December.
The average bill cost $119 in November and was $117 in October. The
cost of natural gas is passed along to the consumer by Nicor, but
does not include additional charges for delivery of natural gas and
taxes.
Expect natural gas prices to remain high as we move into winter and
plan to spend significantly more than you did last year, national
forecasters have said.
The federal government’s Energy Information Administration estimates
that consumers in the Midwest should expect to spend nearly 50
percent more than we did during the heating season last year. On
average, the EIA’s forecast shows you are expected to spend almost
$1,300 this heating season, which runs from October through March.
That is more than the national average of about $1,050 during the
same period.
Some consumers in the Rock River Valley have already taken steps to
either minimize their natural gas use this winter or completely end
their reliance on the energy source to heat their homes.
In rural Winnebago County near Durand, Lisa Youngblood and her
family have completely stopped using natural gas. The Youngbloods
built a 4,800-square-foot home about three years ago and invested in
an outside wood-burning stove. The stove is large enough to heat the
whole home and also was installed to allow for radiant floor heat.
She said although there are upfront costs for such a unit, it does
not require constant attending or splintering small pieces of wood
because it is big enough to burn large logs that are nearly
equivalent in size and weight to the limit that a person can carry.
Youngblood said the savings from not having a natural gas bill allow
for more money to spend on other items such as entertainment.
“We are wonderfully satisfied (with the unit),” she said. “Love the
product and how it works.”
Roscoe-resident Art Goldsworthy has not gone quite to those lengths,
but he plans to use his fireplace more often this winter to help
limit his use of natural gas.
“It used to be just to take the chill off and just relax by the
fire,” said Goldsworthy, who has been using firewood for 15 years to
help heat his home. “With the heating costs going up, we are just
concentrating on (using the fireplace) more and trying to save some
money.”
Contact: hhixson@rrstar.com;
815-987-1343
Copyright © 2005 Rockford Register Star
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