Butler residents may see higher utility bills in 2022, because as the weather gets colder, some utilities will increase prices due to supply changes and national price trends.

The Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission said in a statement that changes in utility rates starting in December could lead to "a substantial increase in winter energy costs in certain areas."

"In order to avoid the possibility of a'sticker shock' due to high bills in the upcoming cold months, the City Council reminds residential and commercial customers that the beginning of winter is to compare power generation prices, evaluate the selection of competitive suppliers, and explore how to reduce Cost is important time. Save and save," the statement read.

According to the statement, starting on December 1, West Penn Power’s rate has been increased from 5.447 cents per kilowatt hour to 5.698 cents (4.6%). The statement stated that the rate has been increased from 6.5234 cents per kWh to 9.796 cents (50.2%).

West Penn Power representative Todd Meyers said that the increase was small. For a typical West Penn Power customer who uses 1,000 kWh per month, “the monthly bill will increase from US$110.37 to US$112.88, an increase of approximately 2%.” He said, Increased usage in winter weather also increases costs.

"A modest price just for comparison should have no effect on the bill; on the contrary, use will result in a higher winter bill, and customers usually use more electricity for heating to stay comfortable," Meyers wrote. "Our customers spend more time at home in winter than outdoors, which means that TVs, appliances and lights also consume more electricity."

Not all utilities are expected to increase costs. Lisa Hoover, director of member services for the Central Power Cooperative, said the non-profit utility company has no budget for any price increases.

"We have noticed that this is a trend, but as far as our budget is concerned, it will be approved within a few weeks, and we have not raised interest rates for the 2022 budget plan," she said. "We are really happy that this is the case because we know that many other places are raising energy prices this year." Lucas LeFevre was working on ductless heating and air conditioning inverters on Friday. SEB FOLTZ/Butler Eagle

Hoover attributed Central Electric’s status as a non-profit organization to the “key” to help avoid price increases, but said members were already asking whether prices would rise.

"The members are asking us," she said. "There are not many at the moment, but some people have reached out and asked if we plan to raise interest rates. Unless there are any unusual circumstances that are justifiable, we don't plan to do this in 2022."

Joe Greco, owner of Greco Propane, which serves customers in counties in western Pennsylvania, including Butler, said propane prices are also rising.

"The price increase relative to last year has had an impact," Greco said. "The cost of propane has increased significantly. Propane is made from natural gas, and the price of natural gas has risen. It is a by-product of natural gas. If natural gas rises, propane will rise with it."

Greco said that in recent years, the price of natural gas has been low due to the large amount of natural gas produced in the United States. He said that due to demand, prices usually increase in winter, but this increase is higher than usual.

"Prices have gone up in the last month," he said. "Because of the warm weather, it has now stabilized a bit. If we have cold weather for a long period of time, there will be problems. Prices will rise."

He said that predicting the price of propane is a tricky job.

"There are too many factors involved in making a prediction," Greco said. "The weather, the availability of tankers, trucking, the source of propane, if any facility is closed, many factors will affect it. This is not (easy to predict)."

He explained that lower natural gas prices benefit the propane business.

"We want the price of Yuanqi to be as low as possible," he said. "This helps our customers and makes propane a viable heat source."

People's Gas Company spokesperson Barry Kukovic said that this situation is not yet a crisis.

"Natural gas prices have been rising recently," he said. "I can't say that we are overly worried now because we do have these quarterly adjustments."

He explained that the commodity rate of natural gas is adjusted every three months and will be adjusted next time at the end of December.

"The important thing is that from the overall trend, natural gas has been falling," he said. "Our customers are now paying about half of what they were 10 to 15 years ago."

Kukovic said that during the hot summer of this year, a large amount of natural gas was used to power air conditioners, which reduced the supply.

"Now if the weather gets colder and November is cooler than usual, demand will really rise," he said. "So you have a lot of people buying, but hope it will be balanced, so we will continue this trend."

Kukovich suggested that Peoples natural gas customers consider using a "budget plan" that allows them to pay the same commodity rate for natural gas throughout the year.

"If you don't have that, and you pay a very low cost for goods in the summer, then in the winter when it is below 20 (degrees) for a few weeks, people will see the cost," he said. Say.

Jerry Kennihan of Kennihan Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning said that the cost of oil and propane has had an impact on his customers.

"The price of oil has risen sharply, and so has propane. Many people are a little shocked when they go to fill up these tanks," he said.

Kenny Han said that switching to a more efficient heating system, such as adding a variable frequency heat pump to the top of the oil furnace to create a hybrid system, will help save costs.

"When there is a need to upgrade equipment to lower prices, people can now do a lot of things," he said. "When energy costs are not high, people are not worried-when they spend $80 a month...people will say,'What do I care?' But when the price rises to $200, they may Consider (upgrade)."

As prices are expected to rise, the impact on low-income people and those who are unemployed during the pandemic may be the most severe.

Hayley Merchant, director of utilities at the Butler County Community Resource Center, said: “We are looking for people who have no income for 18 months and cannot pay any income.” “They (usually) are just beginning to rely on Assistance, so I’m sure they don’t know where to ask for help."

The businessman said that during the pandemic, the center’s assistance request was actually lower than the average of the 4,000 households that received assistance during the regular year due to the extended utility shutdown period. However, entering 2022, she expects that more people than ever will eventually reach out.

"I think this is unique in the COVID era," she said. "We always see an increase in demand around winter, but this time it's even bigger. It will be bigger than last year and may be one of the largest to date. Compared to this month three years ago, it may be 25% higher. To 30%."

Merchants suggest that those who need assistance in dealing with utility bills should contact the center as soon as possible if they find a problem.

"I would say that the moment they can't pay the bill, they need to call us," she said. "We can allow them to join customer assistance programs or budget plans. It is easier to work before the blackout notice. We can take some measures before issuing the blackout notice so that they don't have to spend too much money to maintain their stuff."

Beth Herold of the Regional Aging Agency said the rising cost of living in other areas made the situation of elderly residents in Butler County even more worrying.

"I think this may be more serious because there are other things that are rising in cost, not just utilities," she said. "The gasoline in their cars is going up, the food is going up, everything is going up. It's not just an aspect of your budget. When you have a regular income, it's very difficult."

Herold said that requests for help related to utility costs have not increased, but the agency expects requests to increase as the winter continues.

"Due to the recent increase in utility costs, we have not received many calls, but we expect that in the next few months, we may receive more calls," she said.

"We work closely with the Butler Emergency Relief Initiative, where we help them pay for utility bills, or find ways we can help them reduce their utility bills, such as getting them SNAP benefits or reducing costs. If one area rises, another area ."

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