The following are excepts from an article in The Boston Globe Business and Money column written by Bruce Mohl.

People who use natural gas for heat are in for a rude awakening this winter.

On average, gas utilities in Massachusetts plan to increase the typical customer's bill by about 24 percent.

According to George Yiankos, director of the gas division at the Department of Telecommunications and Energy, the increases being sought by the gas companies are the highest in percentage terms he has ever seen.

Even more surprising, given all the attention to heating oil, the price increases for gas are keeping pace with--and may even exceed--those forecast for heating oil.

The US Energy Information Agency in its winter fuels outlook [wrote] "Natural gas households are likely to see the largest year-over-year percentage increase in fuel bills of any heating fuel."

David O'Connor, executive director of the Division of Energy Resources... said his emphasis has been on heating oil because heating-oil customers have some options. For example they can lock in a price now for the whole winter or sit back and take their chances. Gas customers, by contract, have to pay whatever their utility charges them..... The reaction has been muted because most consumers don't understand their gas bill. The bill tells you how many therms of gas you use each much and how much you are charged for those therms, but who knows what a therm is?

Conversion from Oil to Gas Costs School $300,000

KeySpan took a big public relations whack last week following the revelation that Saugus town officials may be paying about $300,000 more this year to heat the town's high school in the wake of an oil-to-gas conversion back in December 2000. Compared to heating with oil, Saugus Finance Director Judy Mulligan said, "It's costing us three times the amount to heat the high school."

Mulligan said she is pressing KeySpan for an explanation, but town officials, including Town Manager and former Massachusetts legislator Steve Angelo, are looking a bit inept for not thoroughly researching the conversion.