Heating costs loom large

By Roberta Stauffer - 10/02/2008

It's probably no coincidence that the Copper King Inn owner chose Sept. 30 as his closing date. Yes, the tourism season is drawing to a close, but more importantly, the heating season is just about to fire up. And no doubt owner Ken Burningham did not want to face that October utility bill.

"Energy (cost) is just killing me," Burningham said in a recent news story, adding that the facility operated at an $800,000 net loss last year.

A spokesman for the Gold Rush also told The Standard this week that energy costs were a factor in the decision to close the restaurant part of that establishment, too.

We're all feeling the pinch of rising prices and dreading the onset of higher heating bills, and we hope this is not the start of a run of business closures fueled in part by energy costs.

Fortunately, however, natural gas prices have gone down recently, and our winter bills might not be as devastating as some were predicting a few months ago. Montana Public Service Commission Chairman Greg Jergeson sounded the alarm back in June when the market price for natural gas was the highest it had been in the last two and a half years and nearly double what it was in June 2007.

Claudia Rapkoch, NorthWestern Energy's corporate communications director, said this week that the utility "had to purchase gas and put it into storage even when prices were high" this past summer, to ensure enough supply to meet winter heating needs. But prices have been steadily dropping since May, she said, and the utility has continued to purchase natural gas. The cost being passed on to consumers is a mix of the high- and the lower-priced gas.

"We're pleased that we're only at a 10- to 15-percent increase for this year," Rapkoch said. "It could have been far worse." The utility does offer a number of programs to assist customers in keeping energy costs down, but most of the natural gas-related programs are geared to residential, not commercial, customers. However, Rapkoch said the online energy calculator, available at www.northwesternenergy.com, may help business customers predict how potential energy efficiency improvements could affect their bills.

Butte Citizens for Preservation and Revitalization is also offering a workshop next week that could help both homeowners and business owners. The workshop is geared to building owners with hot water heating systems and radiators.

It will take place Wednesday, Oct. 8, from 7 to 9 p.m. on the second floor of the MoFAB building, 405 W. Park. Uptown homeowner Mike Hogan will share lessons learned from installing a hot water heat system and incorporating old cast iron radiators into a major home addition.

The cost is $10 for Butte CPR members and $35 for non-members, and people are asked to leave a message at 723-2174 if they plan to attend.

Low-tech solutions such as closing off unused space and sealing around windows and doors will become increasingly important ways to save money in the coming months. It's also time to dig out the sweaters and start dressing in layers — at home and at work and when shopping and dining out — so that we can all keep those thermostats as low as possible.