By H. JOSEF HEBERT
The Associated Press
Tuesday, October 6, 2009; 9:38 AM
WASHINGTON -- There's good news for people who heat their homes with natural gas.
This winter's heating bill should be about $105 less than last winter, the government said Tuesday. Households using fuel oil, electric heat or propane also will save money.
The Energy Information Administration said in its annual winter outlook Tuesday that lower fuel costs across the board and an expected milder winter will cut average heating costs for the upcoming season by 8 percent compared to last year - to about $960.
Households are expected to pay an average of $783, nearly 12 percent less than last winter, for natural gas, and $1,821 for heating oil, about 2 percent lower. People using electric heat will pay $933, a decline of 2 percent and those using propane $1,667, or 14 percent less than last winter, the agency said.
The report cautioned that the projections reflect average costs and that expenditures for individual households will vary depending on local weather conditions, the size and energy efficiency of homes and the efficiency of heating equipment.
About half of all households depend on natural gas for heating, especially in the Midwest where seven in 10 homes use the fuel. People in the Midwest also are expected to benefit from a milder winter, compared to last year, and see natural gas bills 15 percent lower than last year, the agency said.
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The report said natural gas inventories approaching the heating season are expected to be at a record high of more than 3.8 trillion cubic feet. Wholesale prices are well below last winter and the EIA said prices are expected to remain low through October and then increase slightly as demand picks up.
The nearly 58,000 households that use heating oil, primarily in the Northeast, can expect to save an average $40 to $60 compared to last winter. The agency said residential heating oil prices in the Northeast is expected to average $2.64 a gallon this winter, 2 cents less than last winter, but a significant drop from the average $3.31 a gallon that consumers paid two winters ago.
The biggest savings will be seen by users of propane where households are expected to save an average of $280 this winter, a decline of 14 percent. Propane users in the Midwest are expected to save as much as 21 percent compared to last winter because of a combination of lower fuel prices and milder weather, the agency said.
The report covers the winter period from October through March.
The EIA report also said:
- Gasoline prices are expected to decline for the remainder of the year to a national average of $2.44 a gallon, while increasing next year to an average of $2.62 a gallon.
- Crude oil prices are likely to average about $70 a barrel through the winter period and that global petroleum consumption is expected to increase by about 1.1 million barrels a day in 2010 as the economy strengthens.
- U.S. crude oil production is expected to increase slightly next year to 5.34 million barrels a day, mainly because of the declining economy, emissions are expected to increase by 1.1 percent next year, as the economy begins to recover resulting in greater energy use.
- While a 5.9 percent decline in carbon dioxide emissions is projected for this year compared to 2008, mainly because of the declining economy, carbon dioxide pollution will again be on the rise next year. The EIA projects an increase of 1.1 percent in 2010 as the economy slowly recovers leading the greater energy use.
Carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels is the leading greenhouse gas linked to climate change.
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
Gov't to consumers: break on winter heating costs
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