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NW Natural gives $40M back to customers

FILE - About 100 Northwest Natural employees worked the field Saturday to finish turning on meters and relighting customers in Hood River after a gas service disruption occurred from a vehicle crash earlier this week. December 26, 2020 (KOIN).

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – NW Natural customers can expect to see lower bills for the first three months of the year as the natural gas utility company issues credits. 

NW Natural said the distributed credits total more than $40 million and are a result of NW Natural’s efficient pipeline capacity management and effective use of the company’s underground natural gas storage facility. 

The credits will be issued on bills in January, February and March. On average, a residential customer can expect a credit of nearly $13 each month. The average small commercial customer can expect a credit of about $60 a month. 

NW Natural said it has issued bill credits to customers for the last 19 years and that the credits have totaled nearly $212 million. The credits can vary greatly year to year, NW Natural said.

In 2021, the credit was about $9 million. In 2020, it was about $17 million and in 2019 it was about $11 million. So, the 2022 credit is significantly higher than it’s been in recent years. 

The credit is distributed to both Oregon and Washington customers, but the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission prefers that instead of a one-time credit, Washington customers instead receive their credits in the monthly billing rate throughout the year. 

For Oregon customers, their credit will appear as a line item on their January, February and March bills. 

David Anderson, president and CEO of NW Natural, said he’s glad to see the money returning to customers at a time when “inflation is impacting us all.”