It’s going to be a cold winter for many, and an expensive winter for nearly everyone.
A stormy and chilly winter in parts of the country means households will need more of already pricier heating, Accuweather reports. So depending on where you are, you may be in for a double whammy.
Heating costs are expected to rise for more than 90 percent of Americans amid increasing prices for natural gas and electricity, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its short term energy outlook earlier this month. Meanwhile, some parts of the country, like the northern plains and the Rockies, are facing a wet or cold winter (skiers rejoice!).
“We will start to see more energy use in late October and November in areas centered from the Appalachians to the Midwest and in the northern Rockies,” said Paul Pastelok, AccuWeather.com’s lead long-range forecaster.
The northeast is expected to be spared the cold in the first half of the winter, but residents may still end up spending more. Natural gas prices–the most common source of heating in the region–will rise 13 percent nationally, the EIA predicts, or about $80 more over the course of the winter period (Oct. 1 – March 31, 2014).