Massachusetts gas companies say support of clean energy contributing to soaring utility rates

Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald on Feb 25, 2025

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Massachusetts gas companies proposing to slash energy bills by 10% for the rest of the winter season say their support of “clean energy initiatives” has contributed to the soaring utility costs bearing down on Bay Staters.

The state Department of Public Utilities is reviewing the proposals from Massachusetts’ six main natural gas distributors. Costs are slated to be deferred to the warmer months.

A decision on each of the proposals received on Monday will be made on Friday, an agency spokesperson told the Herald on Tuesday.

After the DPU ordered the companies last week to reduce rates by at least 5% for the rest of the “peak season,” each proposal will likely receive the green light.

Massachusetts ratepayers have struggled to pay their bills this winter due to increased gas usage to combat the freezing temperatures and state-approved rate hikes last fall. DPU approved rate hikes of 20% to 30% for Eversource and 11% to 13% for National Grid last November.

Sky-high delivery charges have been tied to increased funding for state environmental initiatives including Mass Save, a program supporting Massachusetts’ “statutorily-required greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals.”

The Healey administration approved a 25% budget increase for Mass Save last October, accounting for 60% of Eversource’s delivery cost hike, a company spokesman has said.

In its filing, Eversource said it expects a 10% reduction in bills to decrease the cost for an average residential heating customer by $34 in March and $19.53 in April. The proposal did not indicate how much customers could expect their bills to increase from May through October when the winter cuts are recouped.

Eversource attorney Steven Frias wrote in the filing that the company “will not request any additional carrying charges other than what the Company would have otherwise collected absent this proposal for winter rate relief.”

“Eversource has comprehensively considered the options for providing bill relief in these unusual circumstances,” Frias wrote.

He added, “The company is cognizant that the Department is confronting a very challenging dilemma, balancing the costs of necessary gas services and clean energy initiatives with the customer impact aggravated by cold weather and high consumption.”

National Grid customers could see their monthly bills drop by $40 in March and April under the company’s proposed 10% rate cut. But those costs will be deferred to the “off-peak season,” with monthly bill increases of roughly $11. National Grid also proposes a “surcharge of $0.4553 per therm.”

National Grid attorney Christoper Tuomala wrote that his company agrees with the DPU’s “direction to continue efforts to promote energy efficiency programs” and says the long-term impact on customers “deserves a collaborative conversation.”

“We remain committed to supporting energy efficiency initiatives and the Commonwealth’s shared clean energy goals,” Tuomala wrote, “and at the same time recognize the financial impact for our customers. Energy efficiency program costs represent a significant factor in increased energy bills for National Grid residential and low-income gas customers this winter.”

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