INDIANA — Indiana’s lowest-cost natural gas provider, Northern Indiana Public Service Company LLC, received a decision from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission to modify its natural gas rates effective Oct. 1.

“Maintaining affordable energy costs for customers is essential,” said NIPSCO president Violet Sistovaris. “This balanced outcome allows us to continue to improve service and provides a platform for continued investments in public safety and other programs to better serve customers now and into the future.”

The decision follows an extensive regulatory review and public input process and is based on a collaborative agreement reached earlier in the year with the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, industrial customers and the NIPSCO Gas Supplier Group.

Newly approved rates will be phased in over two years, and an average NIPSCO residential natural gas customer will see an overall increase of approximately $8 per month instead of $10 in the original proposal.  

Included in the overall bill change will be an increase in the monthly customer charge from $11 to $14, which is also lower than what was originally proposed. New rates also account for the lower tax rate associated with the federal tax reform.

The change for individual commercial and industrial customers will vary depending on usage patterns, but on average, rates for overall commercial and smaller industrial customers will also increase less than the original proposal.

It has been more than 25 years since NIPSCO’s base natural gas rates have increased, and in 2010, a regulatory review led to a slight decrease. Since that time, NIPSCO has repeatedly been the lowest-cost provider in Indiana — and among the lowest-cost providers in the nation — while improving service, reliability and safety to customers.

NIPSCO anticipates that, with the newly approved rates, it will remain among the lowest-cost providers.

NIPSCO electric rates are not affected.