Natural Gas NOW readers pass along a lot of stuff every week about natural gas, fractivist antics, emissions, renewables, and other news relating to energy. As usual, emphasis is added.

Shale Revolution Continues to Put More Money in the Hands of Pennsylvanians

The shale revolution has dramatically increased the availability and lowered the price of natural gas used by Pennsylvanians, while also making the Commonwealth the second largest producer of the stuff (after Texas). This has put ever more money in the hands of everyday consumers:

UGI Utilities Gas Division announced today that the average customer’s bill will decrease by about 2.8 percent beginning June 1.

The rate reduction results from a reduced purchased gas cost to the company.

Officials said that, pending approval from the Public Utility Commission, they also project rates in December will decrease by an additional 9.5 percent based on the lower June rate…

UGI said it is required to file its gas cost rates annually for review with the PUC and may adjust these rates quarterly to reflect changes in wholesale natural gas prices. By law, utilities cannot earn a profit on the natural gas commodity portion of a customer’s bill. Utilities are required to pass the cost of the natural gas they purchase directly through to customers without any markup.

Beginning June 1, UGI said, the monthly bill for a typical residential heating customer will decrease from $71.38 to $69.36. If the proposed rates for Dec. 1 are approved, that bill will decrease to $62.76.

Since the beginning of the shale revolution in 2007, when UGI had to raise rates that took the typical monthly cost for ..., consumers will, by December, have seen their bills decrease by $68.06 or approximately 50%. Add in inflation and it’s more like 60% at a minimum. Overall, the savings for the typical Reading area residential gas consumer is $800-900 per year and that’s before considering inflation or the reduced costs of electricity wrought by the shale revolution.

http://naturalgasnow.org/natural-gas-now-picks-week-may-19-2018/