CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Piedmont Natural Gas (NYSE: PNY) released its annual winter forecast today for residential customers in North Carolina.  The Company is projecting that monthly natural gas bills will on average be $14 lower per month for Piedmont's typical North Carolina residential customer over the coming five month November through March winter period.

Forecast Incorporates Normal Winter Weather, Other Factors

The Company's forecast assumes 30-year average normal winter weather for the November through March forecast period.  In stark contrast, last year's winter weather was approximately 12 percent colder than normal and was a primary factor in upping customer consumption throughout Piedmont'sNorth Carolina service area which in turn led to higher monthly natural gas bills for residential customers. From a regional perspective, the United States Department of Energy'sEnergy Information Agency (EIA) is projecting winter temperatures for the upcoming winter to be nearly 11 percent warmer than normal throughout the Southern Census Region in which North Carolina is included.

In addition to the impact of weather on monthly natural gas bills, Piedmont also builds into its forecast the potential impacts of various other factors, some of which are offsetting, on its winter billing rates.  These other factors include potential changes to the Company's benchmark cost of gas, regulatory adjustments to Piedmont's retail natural gas rates under the Company's margin decoupling mechanism and its integrity management rider, and other smaller rate adjustments.

Billing Rates Expected to Decrease

Over the forecast period, Piedmont projects that the retail billing rates used to calculate monthly natural gas bills will average 6 percent lower than last year's winter period and 29 percent lower than the winter period of 2008-2009, some 6 years ago. For Piedmont's typical residential natural gas customer in North Carolina, the estimated cost of natural gas service this winter will be approximately 26 percent lower than the cost of natural gas service during the 2008-2009 winter period, an average savings of approximately $180 in energy costs.

Company Website a Resource for Energy Saving Tips for Customers

For customers who want to learn more about energy savings tips, Piedmont maintains a separate section on its website devoted to educating customers about their home's energy usage.  Visiting www.piedmontng.com could help customers better manage the natural gas they use this winter along with their monthly energy bills. Many of the tips, such as turning the thermostat down several degrees save energy and cost nothing.  Others like making sure windows and doors are properly sealed only cost a few dollars.  Still other steps, like investing in a programmable thermostat or purchasing higher efficiency natural gas equipment and appliances may cost a bit more upfront but will end up saving the customer both energy and money over the life of the equipment.

The Company's website also provides consumers with several energy calculator tools designed to help customers see what energy their home actually uses and how they can potentially reduce their energy consumption and better manage their monthly bills.

Piedmont's "Share the Warmth Round Up" Program Assists Others in the Community

Piedmont reminds its customers that its "Share the Warmth Round Up" program offers customers an easy way to help others in their communities who face economic hardship. Customers may enroll in the program to round up their monthly natural gas bills to the nearest dollar. The amount rounded up provides emergency energy assistance funds to individuals and families within the communities Piedmont serves, regardless of what energy is used in the home or even what time of year the need arises.  Piedmont will contribute $100,000 to the energy assistance program this winter and, since 2003, has provided more than $1.5 million to its Share the Warmth partner agencies.

For those customers who want to learn more about the Share the Warmth Round Up Program or to enroll in the program, they are encouraged to visit Piedmont's website at www.piedmontng.com.

About Piedmont Natural Gas

Piedmont Natural Gas is an energy services company primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to more than one million residential, commercial, industrial and power generation utility customers in portions of North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, including customers served by municipalities who are wholesale customers. Our subsidiaries are invested in joint venture, energy-related businesses, including unregulated retail natural gas marketing, and regulated interstate natural gas transportation and storage and intrastate natural gas transportation businesses.Piedmont Natural Gas is available on the Internet at http://www.piedmontng.com/.

SOURCE Piedmont Natural Gas

David Trusty, Piedmont Natural Gas, (704) 731-4391, [email protected]