In the old days, a householder just bought gas from the gas company. The gas came in a pipe, the bill came in the mail.
These days, the gas company company can deliver not just its own gas, but also gas from other, “energy supply company”, providers. You can choose to get the gas from one of the other suppliers. This means you pay two bills: one to the alternative provider and one to your local gas company for the use of their distribution system.
A while back, I got an offer from one of the alternative suppliers that serve my area. $90 per month for natural gas, with the commitment of a 1 year contract. I wondered if that was a better deal than the usual pay-the-gas-company’s-current-rate on a month-by-month basis. So I added up my gas bills for the past 2 years and divided by 24 to get my average gas bill. It was a little something below $90, which made me feel pretty happy.
Waiting until late November to turn on the heat, wearing sweaters, sitting on the couch under a blanket, and taking cold showers, … seems like it’s all paying off.
