State’s largest gas company asking for substantial rate hike

In the midst of the coldest winter in decades, National Grid is asking state regulators for a substantial gas rate increase. If approved by the Department of Public Utilities, it would take effect next winter and could raise gas bills by nearly 10%.The move comes amid growing public outcry over skyrocketing utility costs in Massachusetts and as Governor Maura Healey — who’s in the midst of a reelection campaign — has instructed regulators at DPU to scrutinize all charges on the state’s gas bills.National Grid says the rate increase totals $342 million and will raise bills by 8.4% for legacy Boston Gas customers — those in Greater Boston and Central Massachusetts — and 9.4% for legacy Colonial Gas customers — which serves some communities on Cape Cod and in the Merrimack Valley. If approved, the new rates would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.More than half of the money from the rate hike is going to pay for new gas pipes National Grid has put in the ground over the last several years. Spending on that type of work has exploded under a state program called GSEP — Gas System Enhancement Plan — since gas companies are allowed to recover the cost from customers with guaranteed profit.Statewide spending on new gas pipes is now nearly $1 billion per year despite the state’s goal to phase out natural gas for home heating by 2050. National Grid — the state’s largest gas company — charges top dollar for the work, saying it costs $4.6 million this year to replace a single mile of pipe. That is a threefold increase from a statewide average of $1.32 million per mile of pipe replaced in 2015.Critics of GSEP have said gas companies are spending too much on pipes the state intends to abandon and gas customers are unfairly being asked to pay for both new gas infrastructure while also paying to subsidize the switch to electric heat through expensive Mass Save rebates. Funding for Mass Save is collected through a surcharge on both gas and electric bills, and the program can add $80 to a $500 winter gas bill.Last year, Governor Healey asked state lawmakers to take action on lowering utility bills but nothing has moved on Beacon Hill.As part of its rate increase, National Grid is also asking to recover $14 million in charges it was forced to waive last winter after the company failed to bill thousands of gas customers for months. At the time, DPU commissioners said they “cannot tolerate such a systemic and uncorrected failure” and ordered the company not to collect charges older than 60 days if bills were not issued to a customer in a timely manner.In its filing with DPU requesting the higher rates, National Grid said it knows affordability is an issue. The company is proposing to increase the monthly fixed customer charge so it can reduce the amount of money collected based strictly on how much gas a customer uses. For residential gas heating customers, that charge is now $12 per month but would increase by 50% to $18. The company is also offering to expand discounts for low income customers.”The Company recognizes the cost pressures affecting its customers and communities and is committed to using every tool at its disposal to ease short-term pressures and manage long-term costs within its control,” National Grid’s New England President Lisa Wieland said in testimony filed with DPU.National Grid’s rate hike must be approved by the DPU’s three commissioners, who are also under pressure to rein in runaway utility bills. Massachusetts already has some of the highest energy costs in the nation. DPU has scheduled a series of public hearings and is accepting public comment by email through April 30 at DPU2650.GridRateCase@mass.govThe first public hearing is March 18 at 7:00 p.m. at the Lowell Senior Center on Broadway Street. Additional hearings include:March 23 at 7:00 p.m. at North Quincy High SchoolMarch 26 at 7:00 p.m. at Dennis-Yarmouth Intermediate Middle SchoolMarch 31 at 7:00 p.m. at Haverhill High SchoolApril 6 at 7:00 p.m. at Breed Middle School in LynnApril 9 at 7:00 p.m. at Acton Town HallApril 15 at 7:00 p.m. at Massachusetts DPU Offices, One South Station, Third FloorA detailed list of the public hearings with addresses can be found here.