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Gas News Release
September 22, 2000
Dominion East Ohio Secures Sufficient Winter Fuel Supplies;
Rising National Prices Increase Customer Bills
CLEVELAND, OH -- Dominion East Ohio is ready to deliver sufficient
winter natural gas supplies, but company officials advise customers to expect
significantly higher heating bills, as national market prices have increased
sharply from the same period a year ago.
In late October, the company’s gas cost recovery (GCR) rate
will increase from $6.15 per thousand cubic feet (MCF) to $7.176/MCF, according
to a quarterly adjustment filed today with the Public Utilities Commission of
Ohio. Based on the new GCR, the average Dominion East Ohio residential customer
can expect to pay $70 more per month during the months of November and December
of this year, and January 2001, compared with a year ago.
Natural gas costs account for about three-fourths of customers’
total bills. Dominion East Ohio has no control over national prices. The company
does not earn a profit on the GCR, in which it recovers costs associated with
securing natural gas supplies for its customers. The company passes along any
gas cost increases, or savings, directly to customers. Actual bills will vary,
depending on weather, home energy efficiency, the number of natural gas appliances
and household usage patterns.
Company officials attributed the increase in the GCR to sharply
rising prices for natural gas on the national market, which have doubled since
the beginning of the year. Warmer-than-normal weather the past two winters depressed
market prices, prompting many producers to drill fewer new wells. Less exploration
and drilling activity eventually reduced the supply of natural gas on the market,
while demand remained high, thanks to a strong economy. This supply/demand imbalance
resulted in rising prices, which Dominion East Ohio and other distribution companies
are passing along to consumers.
“Despite significant national market price increases, our
company has continued purchasing and injecting natural gas into our storage
fields, as scheduled, to ensure that we’ll have sufficient supplies to serve
our customers this winter,” noted Edgar M. Roach Jr., Dominion East Ohio chief
executive officer.
Dominion East Ohio, the largest purchaser of Ohio natural
gas, obtains about 10 percent of its total system supply from in-state producers,
and also transports gas from out-of-state suppliers via several interstate pipelines,
Roach said. Dominion East Ohio’s storage facilities are part of the Dominion
system, North America’s largest natural gas storage network.
In the face of rising natural gas costs, Dominion East Ohio
encourages customers to check out the Energy Choice program, which the company
is expanding systemwide this fall. Under this program, residential and small
commercial customers will be able to buy natural gas commodities from a variety
of different suppliers, while relying on Dominion East Ohio to continue delivering
that gas to their homes or businesses.
Dominion East Ohio also offers payment plans and energy assistance
programs for customers, including the budget payment plan, Percentage of Income
Plan (PIP), Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) and the Housewarming Program.
To help customers reduce winter energy consumption -- and
maximize the value of their heating dollar -- Dominion East Ohio also recommends
customers arrange for an annual furnace inspection by a qualified, reputable
heating contractor.
Cleveland-based Dominion East Ohio, the largest natural gas
distribution company in the Dominion system, serves more than 1.2 million residential,
commercial and industrial customers in eastern and western Ohio. Dominion (NYSE:
D), headquartered in Richmond, Va., is the nation’s largest fully integrated
electric and natural gas company, serving a combined 4 million customers.
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Contact:
Neil Durbin, (216) 736-6239
Jeffrey Zidonis, (216) 736-6228
Tracy Oliver, (216) 736-6219
(Toll-free in Ohio, 1-800-556-4400)
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