Natural gas prices spike with winter weather

Along with the recently snowy weather, New Mexicans could soon see more expensive gas bills.

It’s a relatively common occurrence as a result of especially cold temperatures.

The New Mexico Gas Co. pulls about two-thirds of the gas it provides to customers from the San Juan Basin. The price of gas from San Juan increased 116% from the last week of December to the first week of January, NM Gas Co. spokesperson Tim Korte said via email.

It’s too soon to tell exactly how this will impact monthly gas bills, according to the gas company. Korte said that’ll depend on how much gas people use and how long the weather stays colder.

He said higher billing prices likely won’t kick in until later in January or even February because the billing cycle can lag up to a month behind actual usage.

The utility has energy conservation tips on its website at nmgco.com that can help ease a large winter bill, like clearing any vent blockages, scheduling a thermostat to match shorter and colder days, washing laundry in cold water and not using a dishwasher to dry dishes.

Korte said higher prices aren’t unusual when temperatures drop. It’s about 10 to 20 degrees colder than normal around New Mexico this time of year, he said.

He said the company still has a plan in place to supply natural gas to New Mexicans and isn’t expecting any potential supply disruptions.

He noted the New Mexico Gas Co. doesn’t make any profit on the natural gas it purchases for its customers.

“We simply want our customers to know that cold weather is here and gas prices usually increase when that happens,” he said.

The utility said gas prices could increase even more later in January.