Union Gas prices to go up on New Years Day because of cold weather
Union Gas is increasing its prices starting Jan. 1, 2019 for all residential and commercial customers across Ontario.
A spokesperson said it's because of weather that has been unseasonably cold.
"What we've seen in the last two months is some of the coldest weather across North America that we've had in many years," said Andrea Stass.
Here are how people's bills may increase:
Northwestern Ontario: An increase of $71 a year for an average annual bill of $910.
Northeastern Ontario: An increase of $53 a year for an average annual bill of $1,042.
Southern Ontario: An increase of about $55 a year for an average annual bill of about $762.
However, Stass said the increase is following four decreases in a row this year.
Even with the increase, households and businesses in northeastern and northwestern Ontario will get bills lower than what they would have been in January 2018.
Customers in southern Ontario will see their bills go up by 4 per cent for residential and 3 per cent for business, compared to January 2018.
"We've seen increases of this size before. And generally, the market does go up when it's cold and there's more demand for the product," said Stass. "It's not unusual."
According to Stass, people on an equal billing system won't see that much impact right away.
For those concerned about not being able to make payments, she said the company offers some rebate programs and offer tips for saving energy.
She's not able to speculate if prices might drop once the spring comes, as the weather has been difficult to predict. But with warmer temperatures, the prices do tend to drop, said Stass.
