Enbridge gas hike in St. Catharines, Niagara Falls starts this weekend

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Published September 28, 2022 at 9:59 am

Niagara residents are scheduled for some gas pains this weekend.

As of October 1, Enbridge Gas will be hiking their rates by 4.9 per cent following approval from the Ontario Energy Board.

In Niagara Region, Enbridge services natural gas users in Fort Erie, Grimsby, Lincoln, Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Pelham, Port Colborne, St.Catharines, Thorold and Wainfleet.

That means on average, the typical residential household or apartment can expect to pay between $65 to $100 more for natural gas every year.

The company says the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as strong domestic and global demand, are causing the price hikes.

Enbridge Gas services approximately 75 per cent of gas-using Ontario residents. More than half of the furnaces in the province are powered by natural gas rather than the under-10 per cent still using oil, which was the preferred method for homes built in the 1950s and 1960s.

For residents using gas and worried about paying their bills as winter approaches, the good news is rate-regulated natural gas utilities, such as Enbridge, are forbidden from disconnecting residential customers for non-payment from November 15 to April 30.

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