NATURAL GAS PRICES DROP

Natural gas prices in Georgia sank this month, following a national trend of falling energy prices.

Defying the market’s usual cold weather logic, long-term contracts are going for bargain prices, as long as customers choose the right marketer.

A 12-month contract with Walton EMC Gas, for instance, is the cheapest any marketer has offered in two years.

But even that may not be the best deal. Marketers privately concede that variable rate plans, with prices that change monthly with the wholesale market, are often cheaper over a year’s time than a contract.

And if wholesale futures contracts are an indication, wholesale prices aren’t headed up much.

 MICHAEL DABROWA / Staff
DECEMBER 2008 PRICES
Cheapest 12-month standard plan(s): Walton EMC: $996 for year 
Priciest 12-month standard plan(s): MX Energy, GasKey: $1,179 for year
Cheapest variable plan: Coweta-Fayette EMC Gas: $183 this month
Priciest variable plan: Georgia Natural Gas: $195 this month

2008 PRICES
Cheapest 12-month, fixed-rate prices for year
Jan.: $1,063.79
Feb.: $1,120.95
March: $1,221.13
April: $1,175.20
May: $1,344.23
June: $1,436
July: $1,461.82
Aug.: $1,231.88
Sept.: $1.119.97
Oct.: $1,038.23
Nov.: $1,013.11
Dec.: $996.17

WHOLESALE PRICES AT HENRY HUB*
December spot: $6.48 per mmbtu (or about 65 cents per therm)
*A Louisiana complex of pipelines and the prime source of Georgia's natural gas

Futures as of Dec. 18
Jan.- $5.548
Feb.- $5.611
March - $5.639
April - $5.699

Source: Georgia Public Service Commission, New York Mercantile Exchange