SURREY, BC, March 17, 2023 /CNW/ - FortisBC Energy Inc. (FortisBC) has received approval from the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) to decrease the cost of gas rates for all of its customers until June 30, 2023. As of April 1, the cost of gas rate will decrease by $1.00 from $5.159 per gigajoule (GJ) to $4.159 for all customers.

"The cost of gas rate decrease will undoubtedly be welcomed and provide some relief to our customers on their gas bills especially at a time when other living expenses are high," said Joe Mazza, vice-president, energy supply and resource development at FortisBC. "Even with the cost of gas decreasing, we understand energy costs are an important consideration in household budgets and we are always here to support our customers if they need it."

For residential customers in Mainland and Vancouver Island (including North and South Interior, Whistler and Revelstoke), average monthly bills are expected to decrease by approximately $7.50 or seven per cent. This is based on an average household consumption of approximately 90 GJ per year.

For Fort Nelson customers, average monthly bills are expected to decrease by approximately $10.40 or nine per cent. This is based on an average household consumption of approximately 125 GJ per year.

FortisBC acquires natural gas at market-based prices and factors like supply and demand and economic conditions affect the price of natural gas in North America. FortisBC flows the cost of gas directly through to its customers, so customers pay what FortisBC pays for the natural gas itself.

For more information about rates and the components that make up a FortisBC gas bill, visit: fortisbc.com/rates. 

About FortisBC Energy Inc.

FortisBC Energy Inc. is a regulated utility focused on providing safe and reliable energy, including natural gas, Renewable Natural Gas and propane. FortisBC Energy Inc. employs around 2,096 British Columbians and serves approximately 1,075,595 customers across British Columbia. FortisBC Energy Inc. owns and operates approximately 51,174 kilometres of gas transmission and distribution pipelines. FortisBC Energy Inc. is a subsidiary of Fortis Inc., a leader in the North American regulated electric and gas utility industry. FortisBC Energy Inc. uses the FortisBC name and logo under license from Fortis Inc. For further information on FortisBC, visit www.fortisbc.com. For further information on Fortis Inc., visit www.fortisinc.com.

BACKGROUNDER

Rates at a glance

Items on a residential gas customer's bill

Daily or monthly basic charge

The basic charge is a flat fee that partially recovers the fixed costs of our system, whether or not you are using any natural gas, as long as you are connected to the system.

Delivery charge

The delivery charge is based on consumption and pays for the cost of safely and reliably delivering gas through our system to our customer's home or business. This helps cover the costs of maintaining our natural gas distribution system, provides a return to our investors and funds improvements to meet customers' needs. Delivery charges are reviewed by the BCUC annually.

Storage and transport

Storage and transport reflects the prices we pay to other companies to store and transport gas through their pipelines and infrastructure. We do not mark up these costs, and they are reviewed quarterly and set annually by the BCUC.

Cost of gas

Every three months, FortisBC reviews the cost of gas rates with the BCUC to make sure rates passed on to customers cover the cost of the commodity purchased on their behalf.  We do not mark up the cost of gas, so customers pay what we pay.

• Factors affecting the market price of natural gas in North America include weather, supply and demand and economic conditions.
• FortisBC does not mark up the cost of gas, customers pay what we pay.

Other charges and taxes

Other charges and taxes include the BC carbon tax, Clean Energy Levy, goods and services tax and, in some municipalities, a municipal operating fee. These charges are set by various levels of government and collected by FortisBC on their behalf. FortisBC does not gain revenue from these charges. On April 1, the provincial carbon tax will be increasing for all gas customers. 

SOURCE FortisBC