February spike expected in Minnesotans’ home heating bills
February 24, 2021 10:53AM CST
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – APRIL 13: An air-conditioning unit is tested in a revoloutionary and environmentally-friendly housing estate April 13, 2007 in Sydney, Australia. 16 houses in the estate use technology that converts natural gas into electricity. Utility provider Grid X claims that each house generates a third less greenhouse gas than houses that use coal fired electricity. (Photo by Ian Waldie/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota’s largest gas utilities are warning about sky-high heating bills because of the historic cold wave in the South and the state’s stretch of subzero weather.
At a special meeting by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission Tuesday, members were told February heating bills could be $400 more. The additional charge isn’t expected to show up on customers’ bills until September and the cost would normally be spread over a 12-month period.
The spike comes at a time when past due bills continue to mount as both CenterPoint Energy and Xcel Energy because of the coronavirus pandemic.
