Shannon Van Hoesen, shannon.vanhoesen@sierraclub.org
Bianca Sanchez, bianca.sanchez@sierraclub.org
BOSTON, MA - A new report explains how spikes in the price of fossil gas are the cause of the dramatic rise in electricity rates for New England customers. Fossil-Fueled Rates: How Gas Costs are Causing New England’s Electricity Price Spikes, and How Electrification Will Help Protect Customers in the Future highlights that the recent increase in electricity prices ultimately demonstrate the risks of continuing to depend on volatile commodities like fossil gas.
Authored by Strategen Consulting, Inc. on behalf of Sierra Club, the report illustrates how the electric sector in New England is heavily reliant on gas-fired generation and how those gas commodity costs are quickly passed on to customers in their electricity bills, causing the recent price spikes in the cost of electricity, while gas customers’ heating bills are generally only adjusted to reflect the cost of gas once or twice a year. Gas prices across the country rose around 62% year-over-year at the start of 2022, but the increase was closer to 400% in New England, due to the region’s overreliance on gas for power generation and heating, no regional source for gas, and increased global competition for gas due to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The report concludes that the most effective way to protect customers from fossil gas-driven price spikes is electrification of home heating and appliances and procuring more wind, solar, and battery storage as sources of power on the grid.
Sierra Club and Strategen released the following statements:
Sarah Krame, Staff Attorney for Sierra Club’s Environmental Law Program, said, “Far from being a reason to delay electrification, this report highlights that the high electricity prices customers are facing this winter are due to spikes in the price of fossil gas, and that moving away from fossil gas for electricity and heating and towards efficient, electric appliances powered by renewable energy is the best way to ensure lower, more consistent energy costs and to protect New England residents from the volatile price of fossil gas.”
Brad Cebulko, Senior Manager at Strategen, said, “New Englanders are burdened by some of the country’s highest electric rates, and this burden is exacerbated by the extreme volatility of natural gas prices during the coldest periods of weather. Transitioning New England’s electric supply to clean, abundant renewable energy sources and prioritizing the electrification of residential energy needs holds the promise to pay considerable and enduring dividends to residents for decades to come.”
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About Strategen
Strategen advises and empowers leading organizations — utilities, government agencies, NGOs, and industry clients — to design innovative, practical solutions that capture the promise of a clean energy future, strengthen resilience and adaptability, and are equitable, collaborative, and impactful. Headquartered in Northern California, and with offices across the western U.S. and in Australia, Strategen’s mission-driven experts leverage a global perspective and market-leading capabilities to deliver novel, high-impact, stakeholder-aligned approaches across the policy, regulatory, and market design spheres that sustainably accelerate the deployment of low-carbon energy systems. Strategen’s expertise spans corporate strategy, energy system planning, policy and regulatory innovation, and multi-stakeholder engagement. We take an integrated, multidisciplinary approach, informed by our core values of intellectual honesty, humility, sustainability, diversity, and inclusion. Visit strategen.com to learn more.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.