The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) today approved a rate decrease for natural gas customers of Sierra Pacific Power Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sierra Pacific Resources (SRP:NYSE). Today's decision will reduce natural gas bills overall by 1.2 percent, or $2.2 million. For the typical residential customer using 56 therms of natural gas, their monthly bill will decrease from $75.23 to $74.37.

"This is the second consecutive year that our natural gas prices have been reduced heading into the winter heating season,"said Mary Simmons, vice president of external affairs for Sierra Pacific Power Company."In our initial filing made last spring, market forecasts indicated a continued rise in the price of natural gas through upcoming year. Fortunately, prices have stabilized since that filing rather than continuing to increase."

Today's action by the PUCN reflects a reduction in natural gas prices since the company made its initial filing in May."We're pleased that natural gas markets have remained relatively flat, and we're able reduce customer bills at a time when customers increase their use of natural gas,"Simmons said.

The PUCN also approved a consolidation of rates for approximately 410 liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) customers that will result in a 32 percent decrease in their monthly bills. The typical customer using 48 therms of LPG as will see their monthly bills drop from $91.89 to $61.27. 

Each year the company makes an annual mandatory filing with the PUCN that is designed to pass along to customers the rising or falling costs of natural gas and LPG that the company pays its suppliers. The filing is done on a dollar-for-dollar basis and does not include any profit or operating costs for the company. The PUCN also sets a new rate based upon what the company expects to pay for natural gas in the next year to serve its customers, also with no profit to the company.

The company serves approximately 145,000 natural gas customers and 410 LPG customers in the Reno-Sparks area of northernNevada.

Headquartered inReno,Nevada, Sierra Pacific Power Company is the principal electric utility serving approximately 360,000 customers in most of northernNevadaand theLake Tahoearea ofCalifornia. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sierra Pacific Resources which also is the holding company for Nevada Power Company, the electric utility for southernNevada.