Get comfortable reading your natural gas bill - FortisBC

Understanding your natural gas bill 

Did you know? 

Since 1985, natural gas is a commodity 

traded on the open market like oil or 

lumber. Weather, supply and demand, 

international events and market speculation 

are all factors that affect natural gas prices. 

Learn how the numbers on your gas meter translate into the costs you see detailed on your gas bill. 

How natural gas rates are set 

Every three months, FortisBC and the BC Utilities 

Commission (BCUC), a regulatory agency of the 

provincial government, review our natural gas 

commodity costs — the price we pay to buy natural gas 

on your behalf. 

Under BCUC regulations, we pass our cost for natural 

gas to you without mark up. You pay what we pay for 

natural gas. The BCUC ensures you receive natural gas 

service at fair and reasonable prices and approves all 

rate adjustments. 

We do charge fees for the service we provide — delivering 

natural gas safely and reliably to your home or business. 

These fees are shown as delivery charges on your bill. 

Working to keep costs down 

We work to keep costs down by seeking the best price 

for your natural gas in today’s marketplace. Some of our 

strategies include: 

• buying natural gas from a variety of sources 

• locking in prices through future contracts 

FortisBC does not explore for, or produce, natural gas. 

Managing your energy costs 

Looking for a way to manage your energy costs? Or a 

more convenient way to pay your FortisBC natural gas 

bill each month? Take advantage of our Equal Payment 

Plan and Pre‑authorized Payment Plan. You’ll enjoy the 

comfort of knowing your costs each month and the 

convenience of automatic payments. 

The Equal Payment Plan divides your estimated total 

yearly bill into 12 monthly instalments — smoothing 

out those seasonal highs and lows. Your monthly 

instalments are reviewed quarterly and there’s no 

charge for signing up. 

With our Pre‑authorized Payment Plan you can 

arrange to have your FortisBC natural gas bill payment 

automatically withdrawn from your bank account. No 

cheques to write, no missed due dates, and best of all no 

late payment charges ever. 

Save energy 

You can reduce your monthly bills by using energy more 

efficiently, while still enjoying all the comfort natural 

gas provides. Purchase ENERGY STAR ® high‑efficiency 

heating equipment or make simple changes like turning 

the thermostat down a degree or two. 

For more ideas on how to be energy‑efficient, visit the 

saving energy section of fortisbc.com

A closer look 

Here’s how FortisBC calculates your natural gas bill and 

what you can expect to see. 

It all begins with reading your natural gas meter. 

We look at your natural gas consumption, usage 

history, daily temperature and the number of days 

being estimated. 

To calculate how much natural gas you’ve used during a 

given time, we multiply the volume of natural gas used 

by a conversion factor. This determines the amount of 

energy used in gigajoules (GJs). Then, we multiply the 

cost of natural gas per GJ by the number of GJs used. 

Delivery charges, applicable taxes, and any outstanding 

amounts owed are added to calculate the final amount 

due. Here’s the breakdown of charges you’ll see on 

your bill: 

A 

Delivery charges 

This shows what we charge to deliver gas to your home, 

regardless of where you choose to purchase it from. 

B 

Commodity charges 

These charges show the cost for the actual natural gas 

commodity you’ve used. Under this section, you’ll see 

three items: 

1 

Midstream 

These charges show what we pay other companies to 

store, transport and manage our natural gas supplies. 

2 

Cost of gas 

This shows the rate you’re paying per gigajoule (GJ) 

for the natural gas you use. 

3 Gas marketer name 

and phone number 

This may appear under ‘Cost of gas’. If you enrolled 

in the CUSTOMER CHOICE program, this is where 

you will see the name of the marketer with whom you 

have contracted. Contact them directly if you have any 

questions about the cost of gas displayed in this section. 

For more information 

If you have further questions about your FortisBC 

natural gas bill, or wish to learn more about other 

natural gas topics, call us at 1-888-224-2710 or visit 

fortisbc.com 

The information provided is intended as a guide only. All natural gas piping and appliance 

installations should meet manufacturers’ instructions and all applicable codes, standards 

and regulations. 

archive_file=459535_20100927_90447845 

Name: 

Service address: 

Rate class: 

Billing date: 

SCOTT A WEBB 

20935 94A AVENUE 

LANGLEY 

Residential 

Sep 27, 2010 

Customer service 

1-888-224-2710 

7 am - 8 pm Mon - Fri 

9 am - 5 pm Sat, Pacific time 

www.terasengas.com 

Account number Due date Amount due Amount 

Account number Due 459535 date Oct Amount 19, 2010 due $89.00 Amount paid 

Previous bill 

Less payment - Thank you 

Balance from previous bill 

167.76 

167.76 CR 

0.00 

Gas usage calculation ( Meter RCT546245 ) 

Gas usage calculation (Meter RAZ693415) Present Previous Conversion Gas used 

Present Previous Conversion 

- x = reading Gas used In - 

reading 

x 

factor 

= 

gigajoules 

reading reading factor gigajoules (GJ) 

Sep 24 ’10 Aug 25 ’10 


Basic charge 

Delivery (10.4 GJ at 2.845 per GJ) 

Commodity charge 

Midstream (10.4 GJ at 1.015 per GJ) 

Cost of gas (10.4 GJ at 7.536 per GJ) 

ABC Gas Marketer 

Call 1-888-888-8888 for cost of gas related inquiries 

11.99 

29.59 

41.58 * “ 

10.56 

78.37 

88.93 * ” 

Nov 28 ‘09 Oct 29 '09 

5,727 5,686 Est 0.1107533 

2,094 2,000 Est 0.1109647 10.4 

Premise number: 732071 

Premise number: 113113 

Comparison to previous year 

Comparison to previous year 

Billing Number Average Average Total 

Billing Number Average Average Total billing 

period of days daily daily pe 

period of days daily daily period 

billed temp. usage GJ usage 

billed 

GJ 

temp. usage GJ usa 

Nov '09 32 6°C 0.33 

Sep ’10 

10.4 

30 16 

Nov ’08 32 9°C 0.29 7.7 

Other charges and taxes 

Clean Energy Levy (0.4% of “ amounts) 0.52 

GJ Average daily gas usage over 13 months 

1.0 

Carbon Tax (10.4 GJ at 0.4966 per GJ) 

GST (5% of * amounts) 

Please pay 

5.16* 

6.53 

$142.72 

0.8 

0.6 

0.4 

0.2 

0.0 

N D J F M A M J J 

07 

A S O N 

08 

o C 0.13 4 

Sep ’09 31 18 o Previous bill 

Less payment - Thank you 

Balance from previous bill 

89.00 

89.00 CR 

0.00 


Basic charge 

Delivery (4.5 GJ at 3.145 per GJ) 

11.84 

14.15 

25.99 

C 0.11 3 

Average daily gas usage over 13 months 

GJ 

1.0 

0.8 

0.6 

0.4 

0.2 

0.0 

S O N D J F M A M J J A S 

09 10 

The Carbon Tax charge on your bill is calculated at 

of $0.9932 per GJ, effective July 1, 2010. 

* Your residential energy credit of $4.25 is autom 

deducted from the provincial portion of HST. 

* 

Commodity charges 

Midstream (4.5 GJ at 1.725 per GJ) 

Cost of gas (4.5 GJ at 4.976 per GJ) 

7.76 

22.39 

30.15 * 

Taxes and fees 

Carbon Tax 4.47 * 

HST ( 5% of * Formerly doing business as Terasen Gas 

BOB SMITH 

1245 MAIN STREET 

REVELSTOKE 

NATURAL GAS 

Customer Service: 1-888-224-2710 

7 am – 8 pm Mon – Fri, 9 am – 5 pm Sat 

fortisbc.com 

Account number Due date Amount due Amount paid 

450000 Oct 19, 2010 $89.00 

amounts) Reduced by Residential Energy Credit 

Total charges 

3.03 

63.64 

Equal Payment Plan 

Monthly installment 

Status: Gas charges to date 

Monthly installments billed 

Reconciliation date: December 2010 

797.65 

927.00 

89.00 

Please do not pay - Will be withdrawn automatically $89.00 

Save energy and money this fall with a programmable thermostat. Set it to 20 

degrees Celsius when you’re home and 17 when you’re out or asleep. It’s an 

easy way to stay toasty while saving up to 15 per cent a year on heating costs. 

NATURAL GAS 

Formerly doing business as Terasen Gas 

BOB SMITH 

1245 MAIN STREET 

REVELSTOKE, BC V3E 2R7 

GST #R100431592 

Payment return slip 

Payable at most financial institutions 

Please write your account number on your cheque or money order payable to FortisBC-Natural Gas 

Account number 

450000 

HST/GST #R100431592 

Recycled Paper 

Due dateAccount 

Amount number due Due Amount date paid Amount due Amount 

Oct 19, 2010459535 

$89.00 Oct 19, 2010 $89.00 

8244 PM109385 00100000 00023-00010 T 10 (R ) 

SCOTT A WEBB Automatic withdrawal 

20935 94A AVENUE 

LANGLEY, BC V1M 1S2 

A00831D900A 96 

00 000 459535 0 00008900 5 

A00831d900a 96 

FortisBC Energy Inc., FortisBC Energy (Vancouver Island) Inc. and FortisBC Energy (Whistler) 

Inc. do business as FortisBC. The companies are indirect, wholly owned subsidiaries of Fortis 

Inc. FortisBC uses the FortisBC name and logo under license from Fortis Inc. 

(01/11 10-410)

Get comfortable reading your natural gas bill - FortisBC

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