(WSYR-TV) -- There’s good news for the upcoming heating season. National Grid has come out with its 2012 heating forecast and it appears your bill will be lower for natural gas this year.
Over the course of the heating season – November to March – based on a typical winter, your bill should be about $21 less than last year for the same amount of usage. It may not be a lot, but every dollar helps when your budget is tight.
“If you have to spend that much on heat you don’t spend it on something else, that’s all,” said homeowner Mike Von Sneideren.
Von Sneideren, like many of us, worries about staying warm during the winter, but doing it without spending too much. Besides the projected lower cost of natural gas, Von Sneideren has also taken advantage of National Grid rebates to install a high efficiency furnace.
“We wanted to be comfortable. That’s important. So we can save money on heat,” he said.
The utility says it’s comfortable with its forecast of lower natural gas bills based on current market conditions and the way Grid buys natural gas to reduce volatility, but they caution it’s not a guarantee.
“They need to look at what happens right here in our backyard. So weather…the impact of mother nature could be quite significant,” said National Grid’s Director of Customer and Community Management Melanie Littlejohn.
That being said, Littlejohn says it would have to be something rather dramatic to make a serious impact on your heating bill.
