XCEL: ELECTRICITY CHEAPER, NATURAL GAS UP SLIGHTLY

Xcel Energy’s residential customers can expect lower electricity costs and only slightly higher natural gas costs in the fourth quarter, despite the blow Hurricane Harvey dealt to oil and gas production in Texas, according to a filing the state’s largest utility made with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission on Friday.

Though electricity costs on the typical residential bill are expected to go up 4.8 percent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter, customer bills will actually be lower on average by 3.7 percent, according to a Electric Commodity Adjustment filing made Friday with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission.

That’s because seasonal or tiered rates designed to cover increased electricity demand in the summer go away on Oct. 1.

The net effect, assuming a similar amount of electricity is consumed per month, is a drop in monthly residential power bills, Xcel said.

Natural gas commodity costs, which are compared year-overyear, are expected to be up 1.6 percent. That will translate into about 91 cents more a month in the typical residential heating bill.

Xcel Energy passes on the quarterly changes in its commodity costs for obtaining electricity and natural gas directly to customers. Commodity costs, especially for natural gas, tend to rise as temperatures drop.