Stories Related to Midamerican, Alliant Anticipate Significant Increases In Gas Bills

Temperatures are rising after the February cold snap chilled most of the continental United States, but so is your natural gas bill.Starting next month, MidAmerican Energy and Alliant Energy both say they are expecting increases in gas bills following unusually high use amid limited supply.MidAmerican said it is expecting residential customers to see a $13 jump on average, and commercial customers to see a $95 jump on average, in March.The increases will continue throughout the year, the utility said in a news release.MidAmerican anticipates an average increase of $214 throughout the year for residential customers who pay $566 annually on average — a 38 percent jump.MidAmerican expects an average increase of $1,182 this year for commercial customers who pay $2,233 on average — a 53 percent jump.Alliant also anticipates a rise in gas prices, but it’s too soon to know how much, spokesman Mike Wagner said.MidAmerican has 602,000 gas customers and Alliant has 225,000 gas customers in Iowa.MidAmerican said its electric customers will see “minimal impact” on their bills.The Des Moines-based utility said the price jump in gas is a result of “unusually strong” demand for natural gas during February’s extreme cold and a lack of natural gas production in southern states.“We understand that many are worried about an upcoming sticker shock for February heating, so we’re doing everything we can to lessen the financial burden on our customers,” said a statement from Mike Gehringer, MidAmerican’s vice president of customer operations.Both Alliant and MidAmerican say they are hoping the Iowa Utilities Board suspends a rule at its March 12 meeting requiring the utilities to recoup the February costs by August.“What we’re working on is finding a way to spread that extra cost out over many more months,” Wagner said.