What a difference a year makes for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., still working its way through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, but facing kinder, gentler wholesale gas and electricity prices. As a result, the San Francisco-based utility began the new year with a retail natural gas price of 39 cents/therm, a 72% drop in commodity costs, noting that for the first time in many months, “prices are beginning to stabilize and are more reflective of natural gas costs during the past five years.”

January prices also represent a small decrease over December gas costs, which were 41 cents/therm for PG&E’s utility.

Last January, prices were hitting all-time record highs, with the utility charging $1.41/therm for retail natural gas supplies in the midst of a worsening energy crisis in the state that would drive the utility into a voluntary bankruptcy filing April 6, and the other state’s largest private sector utility, Southern California Edison Co. to near insolvency.

“Last January, in the midst of the crisis, alleged (wholesale) market manipulation and low supplies — coupled with cold weather nationwide — the price of natural gas in California rose to historic levels,” the PG&E utility said in a prepared news media announcement. “While costs spiked last year, it is important to note that (we) pass the commodity cost (we) incur directly to customers without marking up the price. Conversely, lower prices are also passed directly on to customers.”

PG&E’s utility estimates its average residential natural gas bill this January will be $48.38, compared with an average gas bill last January of $121.92, a 60% drop.

Historically, PG&E said its utility gas commodity costs for the three years prior to 2001 were 20 cents, 26 cents and 31 cents/therm in January, 1998, 99 and 2000, respectively.

Because the price last January more than quadrupled, PG&E noted in its announcements that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is considering allegations by the California Public Utilities Commission that El Paso Natural Gas companies withheld capacity to drive up prices.

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