10-27-2024 8:15pm

How A La Niña Winter

Jeff Barto Editor

How A La Niña Winter Could Affect MD Home Heating Bills

Assuming the forecast for a La Niña winter plays out, here's how it could affect the prices of natural gas, electricity and other fuels.

Heating costs in Maryland and most of the rest of the country should be about the same as last year as lower energy prices mostly offset colder weather associated with a La Niña climate pattern, the government said in a recent 2024-25 winter fuels outlook.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration forecast, heating costs in Maryland and the Northeast region of the United States are expected to be:

Natural gas: $772, a 1 percent increase from 2023
Electricity: $1,391, a 5 percent increase from 2023
Propane: $1,674, a 1 percent increase from 2023
Heating oil: $1,410, a 5 percent decrease from 2023

That’s assuming the forecast for La Niña winter to develop plays out. An updated winter outlook last week from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says Maryland has equal chances of below-, near- or above-average seasonal temperatures.

It is time to make sure your HVAC system is running efficiently. Make a call to PIPCO Heating and AC, the local experts for over 50 years, to do a checkup. This can save you thousands of dollars over the next few years.

While lower prices and colder weather may combine for relatively little change in home heating costs in most of the country, one exception is the Midwest, where last winter was very mild. With a more seasonal winter expected this year, home heating costs could rise between 2 percent and 11 percent, depending on the energy source.

The southern U.S. is another exception. Winter in that part of the country is expected to be mild and heating costs could be lower than last winter, according to the forecast.

The price of crude is a wild card. Rising tensions in the Middle East raise “the possibility of oil supply disruption and future crude oil price increases,” the EIA said.