South Jersey Gas Villas Blog

Propane heating prices higher, more volatile in New Jersey

2010-02-02T08:05:00.003-05:00

Atlantic City Press By ERIK ORTIZ Staff Writer Posted: Sunday, January 31, 2010

This most recent cold snap has John and Joy Cehlar doing something they never have in their Lower Township, Cape May County, home: turning on the natural gas.

The couple this month became new customers of South Jersey Gas, saying so long to the propane they have been using for the past four years to heat their house in the Villas section of the township.

John Cehlar said he switched to natural gas because he thinks it will be more efficient and less costly for his family than using propane. Folsom-based South Jersey Gas began expanding into the Villas last year.

“I can’t yet compare my propane costs with natural gas, but I expect it be a lot more economical,” he said Saturday. “Just recently, I saw the price of propane at $3.60”

Propane pricing is volatile, and the average retail cost last week in New Jersey was as high as $3.75 per gallon, not including taxes, according to the Energy Information Administration. That was more expensive than in surrounding states such as Pennsylvania, at $3.39 per gallon, and Delaware, at $3.01 per gallon.

The price has been fluctuating this winter, but remains about 31 percent higher from October. A year ago, the statewide average was $3.09, according to the EIA.

Unlike natural gas or electricity, propane is not regulated by the state, so prices can differ from supplier to supplier.

For instance, South Jersey Fuel in Cape May Court House was selling residential propane at about $2.18 per gallon last week to fill a 120-gallon propane tank, while Steenland’s Gas Service in Belleplain was selling it for $2.38 per gallon for a 100-gallon tank.

“We can pass the savings on to customers because of where we get (the propane) from, and because we’re a small company, we have less overhead,” said Steenland’s manager Susan Fowler.

Most people in Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland and Ocean counties heat their homes using natural gas or electricity, but there are still about 17,100 households that count on propane or some variety of liquefied petroleum gas instead, according to census data from 2006.

And Cape May County has the highest concentration of users in New Jersey, with about 17.9 percent of residents relying on it. Some municipalities and communities in the county have limited or no access to natural gas lines.

They include Cape May Point, where Deputy Mayor Anita van Heeswyk said last week that South Jersey Gas is still conducting a feasibility study to determine whether it can hook up the tiny borough of about 220 people to its system.

Van Heeswyk is a propane user and locks in a contract for it before the beginning of the winter heating season so she doesn’t have to deal with the ever-changing prices. But when the price dips, it concerns her, she said.

“Natural gas is regulated, that’s why I would want to have it,” she added.
It is difficult in general to compare heating fuels to determine which can be the most cost-effective because it all depends on usage, which is driven by temperatures.

Customers of South Jersey Gas might pay about $142.56 per month if they use the average 100 therms, the utility said.

New Jersey Natural Gas, which serves customers in Ocean County, says the average household uses 164 therms, which costs about $222.30 per month. The utility also is offering an $89 bill credit to its customers over February and March.

South Jersey Gas and New Jersey Natural Gas offer such credits when the wholesale price of natural gas declines. Natural gas prices continued to slide last week on the New York Mercantile Exchange because of new economic data that indicates there is still ample supply and limited demand.

Propane prices are influenced by supply and demand as well, and also follow crude oil prices, which have been dropping — which can mean falling propane costs. But users in New Jersey — and other mid-Atlantic and Northeast states — still pay among the highest prices in the country because of transportation costs associated with shipping propane from supply sources in the Midwest and Gulf Coast.

Larry Horowitz, president of the New Jersey Propane Gas Association, said the cold weather this winter has caused more people to turn on their heat.

“But you can see the response that people have cut back on how high they turn on the thermostat,” he said, which may be in part because of the poor economy and people trying to save money.

Businesses use propane as well, including many farmers who heat their greenhouses with it during the winter.

Matt Bruckler, an organic farmer in Egg Harbor Township, said prices for him have been a little more reasonable these days compared to a couple of years ago, when propane costs were high following the ballooning cost of a barrel of oil.

But he said he wouldn’t mind not having to rely on propane in the future.

“If I could use electric, solar panels, wind and geothermal, I would,” Bruckler said. “Unfortunately, that costs you a good amount of money. But that’s my dream.”

Great news for business owners in Villas!

2009-12-23T11:49:00.000-05:00

If you are looking to switch to high efficiency natural gas equipment, you owe it to yourself to participate in the new Direct Install program.

Why? The State of NJ will pay for 80% of eligible equipment and you can finance the remaining 20% at ZERO percent interest for up to 10 years.

Want to learn more? Call 1-877-458-9566.

Attention residents of Cape May Beach!

2009-12-08T09:48:00.000-05:00

South Jersey Gas is extending service to your area as well.

Now's the time to take advantage of switching to clean, economical and efficient natural gas.

Call Heather McCurdy at 1-877-458-9566 to learn how you can save energy, increase your comfort and lower your utility bills.

Follow us on Twitter for energy efficiency tips and money-saving ideas.

2009-12-01T09:01:00.000-05:00

http://twitter.com/SJG_Green

Switching to Natural Gas?

2009-11-18T15:21:00.003-05:00

If you're switching to natural gas and becoming a South Jersey Gas customer, we have great news for you. We have programs that are designed to help you save money, lower your energy bills, make your home more efficient and ultimately increase your family's comfort.

Want to learn more? Visit http://www.sjgroadmap.com/images/sjgimages/SJGChart1.pdf or call 1-800-648-0138.

Important news on natural gas prices!!

2009-09-23T09:27:00.000-04:00

South Jersey Gas lowered its rates by 20% -- just in time for the cooler weather. Can your fuel provider say that? For families that use natural gas to heat their homes, this rate cut will help them stay comfortable for less money. Plus, as you know, natural gas is efficient, clean and dependable. There are no tanks, no deliveries and no chance of running out.

For Villas homeowners who are interested in switching to natural gas, your direct contact is Heather McCurdy. As the South Jersey Gas sales representative dedicated to this community, she can help you make the switch and explain to you all the benefits of becoming an SJG customer. Call her today at 1-877-458-9566 or email her at hmccurdy@sjindustries.com.

We’ve finished installing the natural gas main along Bayshore Road.

2009-07-24T13:56:00.000-04:00

Just in time as summer’s now in full swing and traffic flow is a little heavier! You’ll see our hardworking crews throughout the Villas as we’re focusing on running natural gas to homeowners along Delaware, W. Jacksonville, W. New Jersey, Evergreen, Spruce and Marshall.

Folks living on Oakdale, Birch and Schellinger Avenue will also be seeing installation activity on their streets in the coming weeks.

Installation crews seem to be everywhere.

2009-07-14T09:10:00.000-04:00

If you’re not already, you’ll see SJG contractors working on Walnut, Vermont, Arizona, States, Capital, Idaho, Union and Federal.

Work continues on Bayshore as the main trunk line for natural gas is being extended to Miami Avenue.

If you haven’t already inquired about switching, call Heather McCurdy at 1-877-458-9566 to learn why natural gas is the best choice for your home.

Comfy Bear at the T-Ball Game

2009-06-16T09:53:00.002-04:00

A recent baseball game for young tee-ball players from the Lower Cape May Little League turned into a “beary” fun evening when the South Jersey Gas mascot, Comfy Bear, made an unexpected visit to Mulligan Field in Villas to cheer on the utility-sponsored team.

Coaches Joe Sullivan (far left) and John Saltzman (far right) huddled up the players for this group photo.

Mother Nature

2009-06-12T14:29:00.000-04:00

Mother Nature has certainly been making her presence known. With so much rain, our installation project has been slowed a bit but, as you can see, our contractors and crews are continuing to make progress down Bayshore Road. We're all wishing for more sunny days ahead.

Update:

2009-06-05T11:12:00.001-04:00

For those of you keeping track, South Jersey Gas has installed 13,315 feet of the 8" pipeline along our planned route. As we work our way down to Miami Avenue, you'll see our crews working in the area of Bayshore and Oak. And, we're proud to announce that several homeowners are now officially customers.

We are installing services to homes on Freedom, Sheridan and Oak with many more planned for the coming weeks. If we haven't heard from you, there's still time. Give us a call (877-458-9566), send us an email (hmccurdy@sjindustries.com), respond to our blog or contact us through our website (www.southjerseygas.com). We'd love to hear from you!

Marking a Special Memorial Day

2009-05-21T14:18:00.004-04:00

It’s only fitting that Burt Arnold of Freedom Drive became our first homeowner from our Villas extension project to switch to natural gas. Burt is a proud veteran of World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam as well. The former Marine proudly served our country for 40 years and in Burt’s own words “I came home safe and sound and God Bless America!”

Burt and his wife, Rita, who have been married for 54 years took the advice of their sons (“They’re plumbers,” explained dad!) and became one of the first applicants on their block to sign up for natural gas. With their gas line installed and their meter now activated, Burt and Rita are officially our first new customer from this main extension project.

Asked why he wanted to switch fuels, Burt explained that he "felt it was quite a bit more economical than propane." As to the conversion process, he commented “It was a pleasure to work with Heather McCurdy. The installation job was just outstanding. It was clean and efficient and the crew did a great job.”

According to Burt, “I’m recommending to anybody who has any sense to switch to natural gas.”

Today marks a great milestone for South Jersey Gas!

2009-05-18T11:47:00.000-04:00

Our first homeowner to receive natural gas service as part of this extension project is Mr. Burt Arnold of Freedom Drive. Thank you, Mr. Arnold, and welcome to the South Jersey Gas family of customers. His neighbors on Freedom Drive will also see their gas lines installed this week!

In other news, you’ll see that our main installation along Bayshore Road is progressing quite well. This week you should see some work around the area in front of the library.

Happy Memorial Day to all!

Opening Day of Tee Ball and Coach Pitch Season

2009-05-05T11:29:00.000-04:00

If you’re a fan of baseball like we are, you won’t want to miss Opening Day of Tee Ball and Coach Pitch season in Lower Township. Slated for Saturday, May 9th, players will hit the ground running on Mulligan Field.

This year, South Jersey Gas is proud to sponsor some of the youngest players who will be batting and catching. We wish all the teams an enjoyable season!

2nd Community Information Day!

2009-04-30T09:13:00.000-04:00

Due to popular demand, South Jersey Gas is planning a 2nd Community Information Day for Saturday, May 9th. Once again, we’ll be meeting at the Town Hall on Bayshore Rd. We invite you to join us for a formal presentation about this long-awaited main extension project. For your convenience, there will be a two sessions – one at 9a.m. and one at 11a.m.

In addition to South Jersey Gas personnel, there will be several Preferred Contractors on hand to discuss with you options for your specific home.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Natural gas is on its way!

2009-04-15T14:03:00.001-04:00

According to Tony Nardi, SJG’s Construction Supervisor, the 8” main that was installed on Breakwater Road now has natural gas flowing through it. It was officially placed into service on Monday, April 13th.

If you’re a resident living on Breakwater Road and you’ve been waiting for natural gas, now’s the time to make the switch. Gas is available!

Heather McCurdy to assist Villas Homeowners

2009-03-30T11:50:00.001-04:00

First, thanks for all your phone calls and emails. As you can see, the natural gas main is being installed at a pretty good clip and we’re collecting applications from homeowners who live along the installation route. It looks like the folks on Freedom Drive and Sheridan Drive are pulling together to make sure their streets are one of the first to have natural gas. If you live on either of these roads and you haven’t yet contacted us, give us a call and we’ll get you squared away.

For your convenience, Heather McCurdy has been formally announced as the South Jersey Gas sales representative assigned to assisting Villas homeowners with their natural gas conversions. While she’s working out of our Swainton division, she’s becoming rather well known in the community already. Many of you have spoken to her over the phone and if you visited us on the Community Information Day a few weeks ago, you may recall meeting Heather in person.

She’s very familiar with Cape May County as she, her husband and twin daughters, Madeleine and Paige, reside in Dennis Township. If you have any questions, give her a call at 1-877-458-9566 or send her an email at hmccurdy@sjindustries.com.

We're On Our Way!

2009-03-26T08:44:00.002-04:00

Thanks to all the residents who have expressed interest about switching to natural gas. We’re definitely on our way. We now have just over 3,000 feet of 8” main installed on Breakwater Rd. Once we have a tee in place at Breakwater and Fishing Creek, the pipe laid so far will be fed with natural gas and will be ready to serve the homes along the way. We anticipate this to be within two weeks after another 2,000 feet of 8” is installed.

Please be aware that due to bends in the road and the increasing number of cars travelling along the site, local police may be assisting with traffic control to assure the safety of drivers and work crews in the area. This will only be necessary if we need to shift the south bound lane over the center line and the North bound lane onto the shoulder.

We’ll keep you posted as we continue to move closer to Bayshore Road.
- Paul Zuccarino

2009-03-18T09:22:00.004-04:00

Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tubeman greets visitors as they arrive for the Villas Customer Information Day. (All photos courtesy Jacqui Tate)

2009-03-18T09:21:00.000-04:00

The popular Buy Shore Real Program broadcast live from the event at Town Hall.

2009-03-18T09:20:00.000-04:00

SJG Sales Representative Heather McCurdy provides informaton to residents about how they can save energy and live comfortably for less money.

2009-03-16T15:13:00.000-04:00

Wow! What a day Saturday turned out to be! Our very first Villas Customer Information Day was a fantastic success. With nearly 400 people stopping by, we were able to meet so many wonderful people who shared their stories, asked great questions and expressed genuine support for our main extension project. It seems that many of you have been waiting decades for natural gas and now, here we are. All of us at SJG are looking forward to helping each of you save energy and live more comfortably for less money.

We thank the township for allowing us to use their facility and we appreciate Mayor Beck, Township Manager Kathy McPherson and Councilmen Tom Conrad and Glenn Douglass for dropping by the Community Information Day to show their support of this community-wide money-saving effort.

What’s the next step?? Well, we’ll continue to collect applications from residents interested in switching to natural gas and identify those streets that have the highest level of interest. As streets with the most interest will be the first in the community to receive natural gas service, it’s very, very important to turn in your application if you haven’t already and encourage your neighbors to do the same.

Keep in mind, as this is an on-going process, we’ll be reaching out to everyone in the Villas who wants to switch to natural gas. It’s our aim to provide all residents of the community with a money-saving fuel option!

Learn more about natural gas service to the Villas at tonight’s Township Council meeting held at the Town Hall at 7pm!

2009-03-11T07:27:00.000-04:00

Hello, Villas! My name is Michele Lamb and I’m responsible for the marketing side of bringing natural gas to South Jersey residents and business owners just like you.

We’ve got some great things in store for you starting with a groundbreaking ceremony this Thursday, March 12th at 2:15pm to mark the beginning of this fantastic project. All are welcome to join SJG representatives and elected officials on this monumental occasion as we literally put the shovel to the ground in celebration. The event will be held at the entrance of the Cape May Airport Complex (on the corner of Breakwater Road and Lexington Avenue, just past the Erma Fire Station).

Plus, mark your calendar for this Saturday, March 14th, as we’re holding a Customer Information Day at the Town Hall on Bayshore Rd (next to the library) from 10 am to 1pm. We’ll have representatives on hand to answer your questions, provide you with information about free estimates, State rebates and federal tax incentives, and help you complete an application for natural gas service. Join popular radio hosts Bob Maschio and Buddy Tarbotton as they broadcast their Buy Shore Real Estate Show live from Town Hall during the event!

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn how you can save money, lower your energy costs and live comfortably for less!

Hope to see you there!

2009-03-09T09:04:00.001-04:00

My name is Paul Zuccarino, Director, Construction Services for South Jersey Gas. In my role, I oversee our contractor for this project which is J.F. Kiely Construction. You may be familiar with their trucks as they have an office in Swainton.

All indications, weather permitting, point to work beginning late this week. We anticipate seeing some construction activity on Thursday, March 12th, with crews starting at 7 am and typically working until 3:30 pm. At this point, you can expect to see yellow pipe along the side of the road being put together for underground installation.

There will be a number of blue and yellow trucks identified by the contractor's name "JF Kiely" present in the area. In addition, SJG inspectors will be on site to assure quality control. They will be identified by white trucks with the SJG logo. There will be appropriate traffic control efforts consistent with the MUTCD standards and in accordance with the local authority's requirements.

Please pay particular attention to the safety of our dedicated workforce who will be working along the roadway. We will make every effort to cause the least disturbance to your neighborhood. Thanks and it is a pleasure to serve you.

2009-03-05T09:44:00.002-05:00

Welcome to the Villas Blog!

This is the first time we have used this forum to communicate with our customers, and we are interested in hearing from you as to its effectiveness.

First, let me introduce myself. My name is Bob Fatzinger and I am the vice president of customer and distribution operations for South Jersey Gas. I want to personally thank you for visiting this site and for taking interest in our project to provide natural gas service to the Villas. All of us at South Jersey Gas are very excited about extending natural gas into the Villas, and we want your conversion experience to be as easy as possible.

During the course of this year, you'll hear from several of our team members on this blog -- from Sales and Marketing to Installation Crews and Customer Care. It's our intent to keep you updated on our progress, provide you with useful information and share with you observations along the way.

As you know, this has been a project that's taken awhile to get off the ground. But with a system upgrade completed last year, we're now able to offer residents and business owners in the community the option of having natural gas as their fuel of choice. While this news is fantastic in itself, I want to assure you that this is just the first of many steps that we're taking to help you lower your energy bills and live comfortably for less.

To give you an idea of what we're doing, right now, we've requested approval from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to offer a series of five programs to help customers save more energy, reduce their carbon footprint and create jobs in the southern portion of our State. This will give every Villas resident the opportunity to lower their bills substantially. Check back to this blog for more details as we move forward.

Again, thanks for visiting and we look forward to having you join the SJG family of customers. If you have any questions about switching to natural gas, call our hotline at 1-877-458-9566. We welcome your feedback to this site and invite you to email your comments to mailto:villasblog@sjindustries.com Also, please be sure to visit southjerseygas.com for tips and information on energy efficiency and savings.