Will cold temps mean high gas prices again?

If you’ve pulled out the summer wardrobe because of the pleasant temperatures over the weekend, it might be a little too soon.

In the coming days, the coldest storm of the winter is expected to hit Southern California, bringing with it the chance of snow and rain.

Meteorologists say there is even potential for snowfall in places such as La Crescenta and the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys. What does that mean for us in the Antelope Valley? Temperatures in the 40s are expected on Wednesday, lasting throughout the weekend. There’s also a very good chance for precipitation on Friday and Saturday, according to a weather report. However, it’s not clear whether it’ll be snow or rain.

Wind gusts in the mountains and foothills could reach as high as 80 miles per hour, a news report said. The storm is also expected to pack a one-two punch with cold air accompanying the wind.

While we enjoyed temps in the 60s over the weekend, we are now preparing for much colder weather. What will that mean for our natural gas bills?

Hopefully they will not spike like they did last month, when nearly all bills went up by 50% from the previous month. We suppose it’ll depend on whether there are issues with the pipelines and supply this time around and whether there’s a very high demand.

Meanwhile, we can take solace knowing that we did (or soon will) receive climate credits on our gas bill to help offset the exorbitant cost.

Considering some credits were about $50, it hardly made a difference in those bills that were $400 and more.

The utility companies really do have an advantage over customers. We deal with rolling blackouts during the summer and are asked to conserve energy, even in the sweltering heat, while paying a hefty amount for running the AC and trying to keep cool.

So far this winter, we experienced sky-high costs for natural gas because of the pipeline issues and demand for the commodity.

We likely will see an increase again, depending on how long the cold temps hang around.

Soon enough we’ll be facing water restrictions as well and will be asked to cut back on water usage in the home in a conservation effort.

It seems like there is always something that we need to cut back on. Will it ever end?

Some would say no, as long as we continue to use the same types of energy we’re currently using. But is the alternative any better?

It depends who you ask.