Natural gas rates holding steady

Natural gas rates for the next quarter are holding steady or dropping, the region's three natural gas utilities announced.

Customers of Columbia Gas should expect the biggest drop in prices, with average monthly bills hitting $90.54, down 7 percent from this quarter last year. The average Columbia Gas customer uses 72 thousand cubic feet (mcf) of natural gas per year and Columbia will charge $12.57 per mcf in the coming quarter.

The area's other two suppliers, EQT Corp. and People's Gas, announced rates that keep monthly rates about the same. EQT's average customer, calculated as using 90 mcf per year, will pay $99.20 per month in the next quarter. That's the same rate seen this quarter last year, as is the company per mcf rate of $7.35.

The average bill of a People's Gas customer can expect a slight increase of 1 percent to $73 per month. The company's per mcf rate rose a dime to $5.76.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11091/1136261-100.stm#ixzz1ILgDGeGC