Cost of gas rates remain steady for majority of FortisBC customers

Sep 16, 2022

SURREY, B.C.,—September 16, 2022: FortisBC Energy Inc. (FortisBC) has received approval from the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) to maintain the cost of gas rates for the majority of its customers until December 31, 2022. As such, customers will not see a change to the cost of gas rate on their bill, with the exception of customers in Fort Nelson who will see an increase.

“We are always working to keep our gas rates affordable and its especially important now with cost of living increasing and the fall and winter heating season upon us, “said Joe Mazza, vice-president, energy supply and resource development at FortisBC. “Our priority is to deliver safe and reliable energy to our customers while working to accelerate our transition towards renewable and low-carbon energy.”

As of October 1, 2022:

Mainland and Vancouver Island (including North and South Interior, Whistler and Revelstoke)

• There is no change to the current approved cost of gas rate of $5.907 per gigajoule (GJ).

Fort Nelson

• Customers in Fort Nelson will see a change of $0.656 per GJ to their current approved cost of gas rate, increasing to $5.997 per GJ. For residential customers, monthly bills will increase by approximately $7 or six per cent. This is based on an average household consumption of approximately 10 GJs per month.

As an energy solutions provider regulated by the BCUC, FortisBC reviews the costs of gas rates with the BCUC quarterly to make sure the rates passed on to customers reflect the cost of the commodity purchased on their behalf. The cost of gas is only one component of the overall FortisBC gas bill.

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

BACKGROUNDER

Historical data for Mainland & Vancouver Island (including North and South Interior)

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.

 

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