UGI cutting gas prices

Quick: Name a product or service in recent months with a price drop.

A haircut? Doubtful. Groceries? Yeah right. Gasoline prices have fallen in recent weeks, but consumers have been spoiled with cheap fuel, sending everyone fretting at the signs of $4- or $5-a-gallon gas.

Here is one cut announced Tuesday, and effective Wednesday: UGI Utilities customers will begin paying slightly lower bills..

The natural gas utility said it is lowering its gas cost rate about 8% for the typical residential heating customer.

That translates to a drop of nearly $10 a month, from about $124.50 to around $114.50, at a time when energy prices during the heating season in particular have not fallen much.

It marks the first time since December 2020 that UGI has cut that portion of customers’ bills, according to spokesperson Joseph Swope. The reduction then came in at 1.1%.

In the last nine months, UGI, which can raise or lower the gas price four times per year by law, has increased customer bills nearly $24 a month, according to Swope. The rate did not change in March 2022.

“As we now see lower wholesale prices for our gas purchase activity following the increases leading into the winter period, UGI is pleased to pass along these lower costs to our customers,” Paul Szykman, UGI chief regulatory officer, said in a news release.

Electric and natural gas utilities are required to pass the cost of the fuel directly to customers without any markup. But in the last two years, as customers served by PPL Electric have seen, the energy part of bills has increased by double digits.

For anyone who is struggling under the weight of higher bills, UGI and other utilities offer services such as budget billing and counseling toward getting low-income energy assistance. Customers can learn more at ugi.com/customerassistance, or call 800-844-0276. UGI sells natural gas in Lehigh, Northampton and adjacent Pennsylvania counties.