The cold snap, the drought and Russia’s war in Ukraine are fueling huge winter rate hikes
Posted BY: Tera | NwoReport
Southern California residents, get ready for a severe case of sticker shock as your natural gas bills across the region soar more than double this winter, according to the region’s two chief utility companies.
Southern California Gas Company — a subsidiary of Sempra Energy that serves more than 21.8 million customers in Central and Southern California — along with Long Beach Utilities, the city’s independent gas provider, recently warned customers to prepare for unavoidable increases in their gas bills this month.
“There’s no easy way to put this: January bills are likely to be shockingly high,” SoCalGas said in a Thursday, Dec. 29 announcement. “As a result, our customers can expect to see higher gas bills in the coming weeks.”
Long Beach Utilities put out a similar statement on Wednesday, Jan. 4.
Then on Jan. 6, SoCalGas announced a $1 million contribution to the Gas Assistance Fund, its program to help lower-income customers pay their natural gas bills. Gillian Wright, senior vice president and chief customer officer at the utility, said, “We know that these higher prices have a real impact on our customers.”
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SoCalGas rates are expected to more than double over the cost of last winter. If a customer’s natural gas bill totaled $130 last winter, for example, that household can expect a $315 bill this winter, according to the gas company. And the average Long Beach single-family residential customer should prepare for an increase of $200 or more on their bill, the city’s utility said.
