Southern California Gas Company Admits Natural Gas Prices Are High, Blames Freeze in the Eastern United States

Southern California Gas Company has put out an explanation for why Gas is so damned expensive: It's mostly the one month freeze in the Eastern part of the United States.

Gas prices to consumers are believed to have doubled in the last sixty days.

"There's no easy way to put this: January bills are likely to be shockingly high. An unprecedented cold snap across the nation in part has caused natural gas market prices in the West to more than double between December and January – to the tune of 128% since December," explains the Gas company.

"As a result, our customers can expect to see higher gas bills in the coming weeks.  

"While we don't set these prices (they're set by regional and national markets), nor does SoCalGas actually profit from rising prices, we want our customers to know that we understand that this may be a shock and a hardship for some."

"We understand that our customers are starting to feel the pain caused by large changes in the natural gas market," said Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer Gillian Wright. "And we also recognize that we owe it to our customers to provide them with as many tools and tips as possible to help them find ways to prepare for colder weather and higher winter bills, including financial assistance in some cases."  

"We offer many accessible tools to help you cut down on energy usage and help lower your bills amidst the rising costs. We encourage customers to sign up for weekly Bill Tracker Alerts to monitor gas consumption, take steps to reduce usage, and avoid bill surprises. Alerts will be sent through email or text and include a bill-to-date and projected next bill amount to help you manage your energy bills as easily as possible. Eligible customers may also sign up for a Level Pay Plan (LPP),  which averages their annual natural gas use and costs over 12 months.

https://www.socalgas.com/pay-bill/understanding-your-bill/high-bills