November 7, 2006 > November natural gas bills down $15.79 from a year ago

Natural gas bills in November are expected to drop 26.6% from last year, when market prices were at record-high levels. PG&E's residential customers can expect to pay $15.79 less for natural gas in November of 2006, compared to November of 2005.

Drivers for the November bill outlook include:

Hurricane damage to vital Gulf Coast infrastructure in 2005 drove natural gas prices up; the absence of severe hurricanes so far in 2006 has resulted in the November natural gas market prices being significantly lower than this time last year.

Market prices for gas in November tend be higher than in October because the market anticipates an increase in gas demand at the start of the winter heating season.

PG&E has also implemented a natural gas purchasing strategy that helps protect customers against severe winter price spikes, which in combination with conservation, can help customers control the size of their monthly natural gas bills.