{"id":38362,"date":"2023-09-28T10:21:51","date_gmt":"2023-09-28T15:21:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.citizensutilityboard.org\/?p=38362"},"modified":"2023-10-02T09:25:55","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T14:25:55","slug":"october-gas-prices-way-down-from-last-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.citizensutilityboard.org\/blog\/2023\/09\/28\/october-gas-prices-way-down-from-last-year\/","title":{"rendered":"October gas prices way down from last year–hoping for no prices spikes in the near future"},"content":{"rendered":"

As Illinois enters the first month of the winter heating season, October gas prices continue the trend of being significantly lower than the last two years, with some glaring examples of the volatility that makes consumers so uneasy.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Gas utilities file supply prices\u2013called the Purchased Gas Adjustment (PGA)\u2013each month with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC). In October, gas prices are anywhere from down 46 percent (Liberty Utilities) to up 61 percent (Illinois Gas) from the <\/span>prices last month<\/span><\/a>. Most of the largest utilities in the state show increases: Peoples Gas (6.8 percent), MidAmerican (1.8 percent) and Ameren Illinois (4.5 percent). The exception is Nicor Gas, which is charging the same price as the month before.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Below are the supply prices for October 2023, and how they compare with the prices from last October.<\/span><\/p>\n

October Gas Prices<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ameren Illinois<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>41.81 cents per therm (down about 53 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Consumers Gas<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>40.36 cents per therm (down about 59 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Illinois Gas<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>30.97 cents per therm (down about 66 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Liberty Utilities<\/strong>\u201349.61 cents per therm (down about 53 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>MidAmerican Energy<\/strong>\u201347.78 cents per therm (down about 50 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Mt. Carmel<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>53.07 cents per therm (down about 59 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Nicor Gas<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>42.00 cents per therm (down about 66 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>North Shore Gas<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>39.26 cents per therm (down about 54 percent from October 2022)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Peoples Gas<\/strong>\u2013<\/b>33.69 cents per therm (down about 69 percent from October 2022)\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Note:<\/strong> Your utility is determined by where you live, so you cannot switch from one utility to another.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Under Illinois law, gas utilities are not allowed to profit off supply prices\u2014they pass those costs from gas producers and marketers onto customers with no markup. State regulators annually review the utilities\u2019 gas-management procedures to ensure the companies did a reasonable job with their gas purchases, given market conditions, to hold down costs for consumers as much as possible.<\/span><\/p>\n

Gas prices: A recent (painful) history\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gas supply price spikes are a recurring theme in the fossil fuel industry\u2013there was a jump in prices in the winter of 2008-09, <\/span>and in 2014<\/a><\/strong> and through the winters of 2021 and 2022. The latest spike was first caused by extreme weather in February of 2021. Record cold in the southern United States for a time froze gas in wellheads and pipelines, limiting supply just as demand went up. The high prices were propped up by other developments, including Hurricane Ida in the summer of 2021 and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The elevated gas prices also caused electricity prices to skyrocket\u2013because gas is often used to generate electricity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But the gas utilities hide behind supply and demand excuses. There\u2019s more to this story in Illinois: Aggressive spending and rate hikes by Peoples Gas, North Shore Gas, Nicor Gas and Ameren Illinois also have contributed to skyrocketing gas bills. (<\/span>CUB is currently challenging $2.9 billion in rate hikes by all utilities (including the gas companies)\u2013please sign our petition against your utility\u2019s rate hike.<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n

The last few winters have just reinforced the need to move away from expensive, dirty natural gas as a heating source. CUB and other consumer and environmental advocates are urging the Chicago City Council to support an ordinance moving new buildings to cheaper and cleaner forms of heat than natural gas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe gas system is driving a large number of Chicagoans to energy bankruptcy, so it\u2019s urgent that we start planning this long transition now,\u201d CUB Executive Director Sarah Moskowitz said.<\/strong><\/a> \u201cWe want to do this right, we want to protect all consumers, and the first step is a clean, affordable buildings ordinance.\u201d (Please sign our petition for such an ordinance.)<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

While CUB works for long-term reform, here are some actions consumers can take to get through the winter:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n