HARRISBURG, Pa. — UGI natural gas customers across Pennsylvania will see their monthly bills increase after state regulators approved a rate settlement Thursday, although the increase is significantly smaller than what the utility originally requested.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission voted 3-1 to approve a settlement allowing UGI Utilities’ Gas Division to collect an additional $65 million in annual operating revenue, an increase of about 5.3%.
UGI had originally requested an additional $99.4 million annually, or approximately 8.05%.
The approved increase will be phased in over two years in an effort to reduce the immediate impact on customers.
The first phase, totaling $40 million, took effect October 1, 2026.
A second $25 million increase is scheduled to take effect October 1, 2027.
For an average residential customer using approximately 68.8 Ccf of natural gas per month, the monthly bill will eventually increase by about $6.45, or 5.7%.
The average monthly bill will increase from approximately $113.76 to $117.69 under the first phase.
Beginning October 1, 2027, that same customer’s bill is expected to increase again to approximately $120.21 per month.
UGI’s original proposal would have increased the average residential bill by nearly $10 per month in one step.
Customers will also see a higher monthly customer charge.
The current $16.25 residential customer charge will increase to $19 under the first phase and then to $20 beginning October 1, 2027.
UGI had originally proposed increasing that charge to $23 per month.
The company has said the additional revenue is needed to support the installation, operation and maintenance of its natural gas distribution system, along with customer service, emergency response, infrastructure improvements and other operating expenses.
As part of the approved settlement, UGI agreed not to file another base rate increase request until at least January 15, 2029.
UGI Gas provides natural gas distribution service to hundreds of thousands of residential, commercial and industrial customers throughout 46 Pennsylvania counties.
The amount individual customers pay will vary depending on natural gas usage and other charges included on their bills.
