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News Release Information

16-587-BOS
Thursday, March 17, 2016

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (646) 264-3623

Average Energy Prices In Boston-Brockton-Nashua – February 2016

Boston area households paid an average of $1.788 a gallon for gasoline in February 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Deborah A. Brown noted that this was more than $0.46 below the February 2015 price of $2.255 per gallon. Utility (piped) gas prices averaged $1.167 per therm in the Boston area in February 2016. Area natural gas prices were down from one year ago when they averaged $1.303 per therm.  The average cost of electricity at 20.3 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) in February was also down from 22.5 cents per kWh spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.)

At $1.788 the price of a gallon of gasoline in the Boston area was similar to the national average of $1.833 in February 2016. One year ago, the local price of gasoline at $2.255 per gallon was also similar to the national average of $2.308. (See chart 1.) 

 

The 20.3 cents per kWh Boston households paid for electricity in February 2016 was 51.5 percent more than the nationwide average of 13.4 cents per kWh. Last February, electricity costs were 63.0 percent higher in Boston compared to the nation. In each of the last five years, the price of electricity in Boston has exceeded that for the nation in the month of February, by 14.7 percent or more. The percent difference has widened since February 2013 from a low of 14.7 percent to a high of 63.0 percent in February 2015. (See chart 2.)

 

Prices paid by Boston area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $1.167 per therm, 30.4 percent higher than the national average in February 2016 ($0.895 per therm).  In February of 2015 local prices were $1.303 per therm or 29.4 percent higher than those of the nation ($1.007). In each of the last 5 years, the price premium of natural gas for Boston households relative to the nation has ranged between 25.8 and 30.4 percent of the national price. (See chart 3.)

 

The Boston-Brockton-Nashua, Mass.-N.H.-Maine-Conn. consolidated area consists of Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk, Bristol, Hampden, and Worcester Counties in Massachusetts; Hillsborough, Merrimack, Rockingham, and Strafford Counties in New Hampshire; York County in Maine; and Windham County in Connecticut.


Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, the 3 population size classes, 10 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 14 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

All eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity.  The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits. This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone:  202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.

Table 1. Average prices for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas, Boston-Brockton-Nashua and the United States, February 2015 - February 2016, not seasonally adjusted
Year and
month
Gasoline, all types,
per gallon
Electricity
per kilowatt hour
Utility (piped) gas
per therm
Boston
area
United
States
Boston
area
United
States
Boston
area
United
States

2015

      

February

2.2552.3080.2250.1381.3031.007

March

2.4372.5440.2260.1361.2160.985

April

2.4112.5450.2250.1371.2170.947

May

2.6852.8320.1970.1370.8500.930

June

2.7572.8890.1990.1430.8500.942

July

2.7532.8930.1790.1420.8440.933

August

2.5922.7450.1790.1420.7900.932

September

2.3642.4630.1790.1410.7800.921

October

2.1802.3570.1770.1360.7620.909

November

2.1722.2490.1940.1341.2020.903

December

2.0772.1250.1940.1331.1660.892

2016

      

January

1.9512.0340.2030.1341.1680.898

February

1.7881.8330.2030.1341.1670.895

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, March 17, 2016