NW Natural Receives Approval for Early Credit Request

In April, NW Natural voluntarily requested an early refund of $32 million in gas cost savings for Oregon customers, in light of the current economic conditions.  The Public Utility Commission of Oregon (OPUC) approved that request on May 19.  

"The natural gas prices we've secured in the last several months are substantially lower than what is currently set in our rates. Given the extremely tough economic conditions our customers are struggling with, we felt it was critical that these savings be refunded as soon as possible," said Gregg Kantor, NW Natural President and CEO.

The company normally files for a rate adjustment to pass through any savings on gas costs it was able to achieve on behalf of customers as part of the annual adjustment in November.

The refund, based on gas cost savings accumulated from Nov. 1, 2008 through March 31, 2009, will show up as a credit to Oregon residential, commercial and industrial sales customers on their June bills. This credit will be based on each customer's actual gas usage during those five months.

Return to June 2009 Western Energy News

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