NW Natural requests rate hike for Oregon customers starting in late 2025

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Customers of Oregon’s largest gas utility could see higher bills starting in late 2025.

NW Natural filed a potential rate hike with the Oregon Public Utility Commission on Monday. The utility, which serves more than 700,000 people statewide, is seeking a 5.79% increase for customers starting on Nov. 1. The new rate would increase the company’s annual revenue by $59.4 million.

According to the filing, NW Natural’s proposed hike is a result of “increasing operating costs due to inflation and higher interest rates.”

“We know that every increase impacts customers and we’ve worked hard to keep rates down, which is why NW Natural customers are paying less for their natural gas service than they did 20 years ago,” the gas utility wrote in a statement. “General rate cases are a regular part of doing business as a regulated utility and they are an essential part of providing safe, reliable service that can keep up with growing demand for natural gas in the region.”

The company added that the rate hikes would further fund “long-planned” investments, like the replacement of two aging compressors at its Mist Underground Natural Gas Storage Facility. The oldest compressor is set to be replaced next October, while the next is set to be replaced the following year.

The filing claims the rate increase would also support the modernization of NW Natural’s information technology and services systems, and seismic upgrades to the company’s long-term facilities — among other improvements.

In its statement to KOIN 6, the utility noted that OPUC will conduct a months-long review process before any hikes are approved.

Earlier this year, the commission struck down NW Natural’s request for an 18% rate increase. The proposal would have cost single-family households an additional $14.38 per month. Instead, OPUC approved an increase that added about $4 to customers’ average monthly gas bills.