Pritzker Asks Illinois Finance Authority to Develop Loan Program Due to Natural Gas Prices

Governor Pritzker has called on the Illinois Finance Authority (IFA) to develop a $15 million low-interest loan program to help small municipalities that have been financially impacted by record high natural gas prices due to extreme weather conditions.

Heather Viele, General Manager of the Interstate Municipal Gas Agency, said, “The crisis that occurred in the natural gas industry Feb 12th through Feb 21st elevated prices to egregious levels. To put the severity of this crisis in perspective, the egregious level of natural gas prices would be similar to a gallon of gasoline rising from the current $2.89 per gallon to $289 per gallon.”

Natural gas on average in the winter costs the impacted municipal utilities around $2-$3 per dekatherm. Municipal utilities drawing from the Panhandle Pipeline paid $225 per dekatherm from February 13th through February 16th. These bills are required to be paid within the next few weeks.

Panhandle Pipeline implemented restrictions on gas use due to increase in demands because of the extreme temperatures across the country, as well as a choking of supply in Texas and Oklahoma due to wellhead freeze offs at production sites. Panhandle Pipeline implemented restrictions to maintain operational capacity. Since then, natural gas prices have surged to record levels starting around February 13th.

The IFA loan program would assist impacted municipalities by allowing them to spread the payments across a more manageable timeframe without placing an overwhelming burden on their residents or businesses.

After speaking with mayors and other local leaders, the Governor and the administration issued a disaster declaration on February 16th.