Consumers Energy: Customers Should Expect a 7 Percent Increase in Winter Heating Bills, Down Sharply from Earlier Projections
JACKSON, Mich., Oct. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Consumers Energy customers should
expect to see their natural gas bills go up about 7 percent this winter, down
sharply from the double-digit increases projected earlier this year.
Consumers Energy estimated today that the typical residential customer
will see an average bill of about $160 a month this winter compared to about
$150 a month last winter. That estimate is based on normal temperatures for
the five-month heating season, which runs from Nov. 1 through March 31.
Soft demand for natural gas and a modest increase in production have
helped push down prices nationally from their levels in the spring and early
summer, which were dominated by double-digit increases.
Consumers Energy's natural gas prices last winter were 25 percent less
than the national average, according to statistics compiled by the U.S. Energy
Information Administration. A typical Consumers Energy residential customer
uses about 73,000 cubic feet of natural gas during the heating season.
The utility has energy conservation information on its website,
www.consumersenergy.com/energyanswers, to help customers manage their energy
bills. There also is information on the website about assistance programs.
All residential customers will receive a brochure in their November bills
describing the various assistance programs available.
Under state law, Consumers Energy doesn't make any profit on natural gas.
It buys the gas, delivers it to customers, and then recovers the cost under
prices authorized by the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Consumers Energy, the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS),
provides natural gas and electricity to nearly 6.5 million of Michigan's 10
million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.
