Natural gas prices soaring

Lower temperatures, expanding demand could lift heating bills
Friday, December 09, 2005
John Funk
Plain Dealer Reporter
Wholesale natural gas prices are breaking records and setting the stage for even higher heating bills as winter deepens and the cold weather hangs on.

January wholesale contracts soared Thursday to $14.99 for 1,000 cubic feet of the fuel. February contracts were higher still, $15.08, a new record. An average home here can burn up to 20,000 cubic feet of gas in a typical January.

Analysts blamed lower than normal temperatures from the Midwest to the East Coast for creating strong demand and sending the wholesale markets skyrocketing.
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