“Texans will be paying for the effects of last February’s cold snap for decades to come,” reports Ars Technica, “as the state’s oil and gas regulator approved a plan for natural gas utilities to recover $3.4 billion in debt they incurred during the storm.
“The regulator, the Railroad Commission, is allowing utilities to issue bonds to cover the debt. As a result, ratepayers could see an increase in their bills for the next 30 years.”
During the winter storm, natural gas prices spiked as cold temperatures drove demand up while also depressing supply… The governor’s office knew of the looming shortages days before they happened, yet the preparations they made did little to alter the course of the disaster… Gas sellers made record profits in just a few days, together bringing in as much as $11 billion, about 70-100 times more than normal, based on spot prices at the time. Meanwhile, many Texans suffered through blackouts and bitter cold, and 210 people died, according to the latest estimate from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
In the wake of the storm, many officials have called on utilities and oil and gas companies to winterize their operations…
Texans aren’t the only ones whose bills are higher as a result of producers’ and utilities’ unwillingness to winterize their equipment. Utilities around the country were forced to buy natural gas at significantly higher prices when Texas’ markets went haywire as a result of low supply and high demand. Ratepayers as far away as Minnesota will be paying surcharges for years to come after their utilities had to pay $800 million more than expected for natural gas.
The article also includes a quote from Katie Sieben, chairwoman of the Minnesota Public Utility Commission, from an April article in The Washington Post.
“It is maddening and outrageous and completely inexcusable that Texas’ lack of sound utility regulation is having this impact on the rest of the country.”
of this story at Slashdot.
Source:: Slashdot