NEWS FROM SO CAL GAS
| NEWS FROM SO CAL GAS
Dear Community Partners & Colleagues, There’s no easy way to put this: January natural gas bills may be shockingly high for some customers. Natural gas prices in the Western United States have more than doubled over the last month, in part because of a cold snap across the nation in recent weeks. As a result, our customers can expect to see higher gas bills in the coming weeks. While we don’t set these prices (they’re set by regional and national markets), nor does SoCalGas profit from rising prices, we want our customers to know that we understand that this may be a hardship for some. “We understand that our customers are starting to feel the pain caused by large changes in the natural gas market,” said Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer Gillian Wright. “And we also recognize that we owe it to our customers to provide them with as many tools and tips as possible to help them find ways to prepare for colder weather and higher winter bills, including financial assistance in some cases.” We offer many accessible tools to help you cut down on energy usage and help lower your bills amidst the rising costs. We encourage customers to sign up for weekly Bill Tracker Alerts to monitor gas consumption, take steps to reduce usage, and avoid bill surprises. Alerts can be sent through email or text and include a bill-to-date and projected next bill amount to help you manage your energy bills as easily as possible. Eligible customers may also sign up for a Level Pay Plan (LPP), which averages their annual natural gas use and costs over 12 months. Several unprecedented events occurring simultaneously over the last few weeks have contributed to the rising price of natural gas:
For more information on natural gas prices and predictions, visit https://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/weekly/ Customers can expect to see changes in their natural gas bills this winter due to the rise in natural gas prices. If your residential peak winter bill was around $65 last winter, you can expect to see bills closer to $160 this year. Similarly, if it was around $130 last winter, customers can expect to see bills around $315 this year. These increases are primarily due to increases in the price of gas and to a much lesser extent increased transportation rates. Our rates for the transportation of natural gas are set by the California Public Utilities Commission, which reviews these rates yearly. We have been and will continue to be diligent in informing our customers about winter gas prices to keep them informed and help empower them with important information to assist them through this tough time. Here are some useful tips to help customers reduce natural gas usage, keeping in mind that not every one of these tips will work for everyone:
Our Ways to Save Energy-Saving Tool can provide you with a customized analysis of your energy usage that can help you track your energy efficiency progress and help lower bills. It’s a helpful tool that won the “Global Power and Energy Elites 2022 Award” for its innovative use of data and analysis. And we have a number of assistance programs that range from past due bill forgiveness, CARE program (bill discount), and free energy efficiency home improvements through the Energy Savings Assistance Program. For more information on bills and how to lower your costs, please visit socalgas.com/ManageHigherBills |
SoCalGas Triples Contribution to Gas Assistance Fund to Help Customers Impacted by Historically High Natural Gas Prices
Company encourages customers to take advantage of conservation tips and programs to help reduce their bills
LOS ANGELES – January 6, 2023 – Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) today announced a $1 million contribution to the Gas Assistance Fund, a program that helps income-qualified customers pay their natural gas bills. Customers will be facing bills that could be double or higher compared to last year’s winter bills.
The high bills are a result of historically high natural gas prices in the western United States. SoCalGas doesn’t set the price for natural gas. Instead, natural gas prices are determined by national and regional markets. SoCalGas buys natural gas in those markets on behalf of residential and small business customers, and the cost of buying that gas is billed to those customers with no markup, meaning SoCalGas does not profit from gas commodity prices going up.
According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), a number of factors are contributing to higher natural gas commodity prices.
- Widespread, below-normal temperatures on much of the West Coast, including Washington and Oregon;
- High natural gas demand for heating by customers in areas with below normal temperatures;
- Reduced natural gas supplies to the West Coast from Canada and the Rocky Mountains;
- Reduced interstate pipeline capacity to the West Coast because of pipeline maintenance activities in West Texas; and
- Low natural gas storage levels on the West Coast.
A detailed report about these market conditions can be found here: https://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/weekly/.
The Gas Assistance Fund is a joint effort between SoCalGas and United Way of Greater Los Angeles, working with non-profit organizations throughout our service territory, to help income-qualified customers pay their natural gas bill with a one-time grant of up to $100 per household. Full guidelines for qualification can be found at https://www.socalgas.com/gaf.
“We know that these higher prices have a real impact on our customers,” said Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer Gillian Wright. “But we want them to know that there is help. We have valuable information on how to conserve energy, programs to assist with managing your energy usage and an unprecedented contribution to our Gas Assistance Fund, which will help our most vulnerable customers pay their bills.”
To help customers manage energy usage and possibly save on bills, SoCalGas recommends the following tips:
- Lowering your thermostat three to five degrees – if health permits – can save up to 10 percent on heating costs.
- Installing proper caulking and weather-stripping can save roughly 10 to 15 percent on heating and cooling bills.
- Washing clothes in cold water to save up to 10 percent on water heating costs.
- Considering turning down the temperature on your water heater.
- Limiting use of non-essential natural gas appliances such as spas and fireplaces.
SoCalGas’ free Ways to Save tool may also help customers find ways to save on natural gas bills, with a personalized savings plan that offers a household energy analysis, customized energy-efficiency recommendations, bill comparisons and energy usage comparisons. Ways to Save can be found at www.socalgas.com/waystosave.
Customers can also sign up for weekly Bill Tracker Alerts to monitor gas consumption, take steps to reduce usage, and avoid bill surprises. Alerts are sent through email or text and include a bill-to-date and projected next bill amount to help manage energy bills as easily as possible. Eligible customers may also sign up for a Level Pay Plan (LPP), which averages their annual natural gas use and costs over 12 months.
SoCalGas also encourages individuals who are experiencing hardship to explore the many bill payment or assistance programs options it offers or to call 1-800-427-2200. Customers may be eligible for one of many assistance programs including:
- California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE): Eligible participants can save 20 percent on their natural gas bill. Socalgas.com/CARE
- Energy Savings Assistance Program (ESAP): Eligible customers can save energy and money through professional home improvements at no cost. Socalgas.com/Improvements
- Arrearage Management Plan (AMP): Eligible customers can apply to have their past due balance forgiven. Learn more at www.socalgas.com/forgiveness.
For more information on tips, programs and ways to save, visit https://newsroom.socalgas.com/stories/a-note-to-our-customers-high-bills-may-come-as-a-shock-in-january-but-we-have-some-tips-and.
