Puget Sound Energy is seeking to significantly reduce rates for its 790,000 natural gas customers just as cooler weather moves in.

If the reduction is approved by the state Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC), the average rate for a residential customer would drop by 15% starting Nov. 1. The filings of two separate rate plans were made to the UTC on Sept. 18.

What customers can expect

If the requests are approved by state regulators, residential natural gas customers using an average of 68 therms a month could expect to see their monthly bill drop from about $81 to $69. The last time customers saw average bills that low was 2004.

Businesses will also benefit. The typical commercial customer would see rates drop by 17.5%.

Why the overall decrease in rates?

The cost of natural gas continues to drop. We purchased it more cheaply than expected last winter. Plus, the estimated future cost of natural gas is less than last year’s estimate. PSE does not financially profit or lose on the cost of natural gas supplies purchased for customers.

How the rate filing process works

Each year, we file a Purchased Gas Adjustment (PGA) with the UTC. The purpose is to adjust rates — up or down — to reflect changes in the wholesale price of natural gas supplies, and to establish the cost of natural gas to be applied to customer bills for the upcoming cycle.

One of the requests we just filed relates to the PGA, which this year is a sizable decrease in rates for customers. The other request is connected to the Cost Recovery Mechanism (CRM), which is a slight increase in rates for the replacement of aging natural gas pipelines to improve safety.

What’s next

The UTC is scheduled to rule on PSE’s requests, and similar requests of other state utilities, on Oct. 29. Customers would begin seeing the reductions in their natural gas bills starting in November.