Because of higher prices charged by natural gas producers, PPL Gas Utilities on Friday (8/29) asked the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to approve an increase in the gas-cost portion of customers’ bills.

The new rate, $12.79 per dekatherm, applies to gas use beginning Monday (9/1). The current rate is $11.01 per dekatherm.

“We understand the impact natural gas price increases have on our customers,” said Robert M. Geneczko, president of PPL Gas Utilities. “We don’t produce the gas our customers use; we must buy it from a variety of suppliers. We monitor gas prices daily and negotiate with suppliers to get the best price we can.”

State regulation prohibits natural gas delivery companies from making a profit on gas purchases. The costs of natural gas purchases are passed directly through to customers on the gas supply portion of the bill without any markup for PPL Gas Utilities.

For the average residential customer, gas supply charges make up 66 percent of the monthly bill, while charges for delivering gas through PPL Gas Utilities’ pipeline system account for 34 percent.

Under the new rate, a residential customer who uses 7 dekatherms per month will see an increase in the total gas bill from $122.84 to $135.34. The total gas bill for a commercial customer using 31 dekatherms will increase from $447.37 to $502.70. The bill for an industrial customer using 214 dekatherms will increase from $2,900.06 to $3,282.05.

PPL Gas Utilities bills customers based on gas use, measured in dekatherms — a unit of heat energy equal to 1 million British thermal units. The energy in a dekatherm can run a gas furnace for 10 hours or dry 72 loads of laundry in a gas dryer.

PPL Gas Utilities, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), provides natural gas delivery service to 76,000 homes and businesses in 34 Pennsylvania counties and a small portion of Maryland.