Shipley Energy, the only company to compete with UGI as a result of the state's natural gas Customer Choice program, marks first anniversary with a savings announcement.

Shipley Energy saved $97,505 for its more than 5,600 residential customers during its first year of supplying natural gas to homeowners in areas served by UGI.

Shipley Energy made the announcement following the February 28th completion of its first 12 months of service to the local area. It also came hard on the heels of UGI's most recent price rate hike.

The statewide Customer Choice program allows customers to choose an alternative natural gas supplier. In Lancaster, Lebanon, Cumberland and Dauphin counties, the Choice program means UGI still transports the gas through their pipes, but Shipley Energy supplies the gas itself to its customers. Shipley Energy is the only alternative to UGI.

According to Bill Shipley III, president of the Shipley Group, "This is why the Choice Program was enacted in the first place, to give consumers a chance to save money through actual competition in the marketplace. As a local company, it is particularly gratifying for Shipley to be able to provide these savings to the people of Central Pennsylvania during one of the coldest winters in recorded history."

Rob Iosue, Shipley's vice president of marketing, described Shipley's original offer - which became available March 1, 2002 - as a choice between locking in a rate for 12 months or floating with a monthly variable rate. Most customers opted for the fixed price so it would not go up during the high-use winter period. This proved to be very prudent as Shipley's initial fixed price stayed below UGI's rate for the entire 12 months.

But recently, market conditions have changed dramatically. Said Iosue, "With natural gas prices at a six-year high, it is no longer prudent for new customers to lock in for the entire year. So Shipley is providing a variable rate only with a cap on how high the price can go. With a variable rate, customers get the benefit of any downward movement in the market, and can lock in a fixed rate later in the year."

According to Iosue, the likelihood of natural gas prices coming down in the spring is high, as the warmer weather will allow inventories to be replenished. Because Shipley is competitive and not a regulated utility, it is more flexible in responding to uncertain market conditions and meeting customer needs. Also, Iosue said, any cost adjustments UGI might impose on its customers to make up for losses incurred will not apply to customers of Shipley after they are away from the utility 12 months.

Iosue said he was in no way surprised by Shipley Energy's ability to deliver savings of this magnitude to the residential customers of Lancaster, Lebanon, Cumberland and Dauphin counties. After all, he explained, in the six years that Shipley has been supplying natural gas to homeowners in the Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania service area, Shipley has saved its customers millions of dollars.

>Shipley Energy, which has been in business locally for 74 years, also delivers heating oil and propane. "Shipley is a progressive company that strives to save customers money, no matter the market conditions," said Iosue. "In this case, we saw the opportunity to extend the kind of value we have been providing for 70-plus years to natural gas customers in the UGI area and wanted to be the first in the market."

In addition to providing natural gas, fuel oil and propane to homes, Shipley also services and replaces heating units and air conditioning. You can sign up for Shipley natural gas on their website: www.ShipleyEnergy.com, or call 800-839-1849.