Lower natural gas prices could mean lower heating bills for Lincoln ... - Lincoln Journal Star

Lower natural gas prices could mean lower heating bills for Lincoln residents

Good news for Nebraska customers of Black Hills Energy: Natural gas prices are forecast to be much lower this winter.

The company said in a news release Monday that national spot prices in September averaged $2.55 per million British thermal units, nearly four times lower than at the same time last year.

“Historic production and above-average storage have provided a stable market to power this winter’s heating and electric generation needs,” Quintin Gaddis, Black Hills Energy's general manager of Nebraska operations, said in a news release.

Gaddis said natural gas production is up 2.5% from this time last year, while gas in storage is 16% higher than last year and 7% higher than the five-year average.

He said natural gas prices are forecast to be in a range of $3-$6 per million btu over the winter months, which means bills will likely be much lower than they were last winter, although that is dependent to some degree on what the weather does.

People are also reading…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's three-month forecast for November, December and January has Nebraska in an area with an equal chance of below-normal or above-normal temperatures.

Black Hills has seen strong demand for its annual price option, although not as strong as last year.

Black Hills spokeswoman Brandy Johnson said that as of Monday morning, slightly more than 12,000 people had signed up for the program that locks in a predetermined price starting Nov. 1. That's about 86% of the 14,000-customer capacity. Monday at the end of the day was the deadline to sign up. Last year, more than 13,500 people signed up.

The lock-in price this year is 64 cents per therm, down from 88 cents last year. A therm is about 100,000 btus.

Photos: Record cold in Lincoln

Frost
Frost coats a window as the sun rises on Tuesday.

Frigid Temperatures, 2.16
LINCOLN, NEB. - 02/16/2021 - A firefighter exists a hazmat truck as he responds to a chlorine gas leak due to a broken pipe at the ADM plant at 540 South St., Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star

Frigid Temperatures, 2.16
LINCOLN, NEB. - 02/16/2021 - Lincoln Fire & Rescue responds to a chlorine gas leak due to a broken pipe at the ADM plant at 540 South St., Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star

Cold weather
Smoke curls from a chimney in central Lincoln on Feb. 15.

Frigid Temperatures, 2.16
Lincoln Fire & Rescue responds to a chlorine gas leak due to a broken pipe at the ADM plant at 540 South St., Tuesday.

Frigid Temperatures, 2.16
Lincoln Fire & Rescue responds to a chlorine gas leak due to a broken pipe at the ADM plant at 540 South St. on Tuesday.

Frigid Temperatures, 2.16
Henry Reimer helps his girlfriend Brenna Grochala jump-start her car in the frigid cold Tuesday.

Frigid Temperatures, 2.16
Brenna Grochala walks next to a cloud of exhaust after her boyfriend was able to start her car Tuesday.

Top Journal Star photos for February
With below-zero wind chills in the air, a squirrel leaps from one snow bank to another on Tuesday at Holmes Lake Park.

Holmes Lake Feature, 2.9
With below-zero wind chills in the air, a lone bluejay perches on a branch on Tuesday at Holmes Lake Park.

Reach the writer at 402-473-2647 or molberding@journalstar.com.

On Twitter @LincolnBizBuzz.