Natural gas terminology
Btu
British thermal unit – the amount of heat required to raise one pound (about a pint) of water one degree Fahrenheit. Burning an old-fashioned kitchen match produces about one Btu of heat.
Commodity
Any product purchased by a consumer, in this case, natural gas.
Distributor
The entity that delivers the gas to the customer via a local pipeline system branching off of the interstate pipeline at the city gate. In the Nebraska Choice Gas Program, SourceGas is the distributor.
Fixed Rate
A gas price that is fixed or locked in and does not fluctuate with the gas price on the natural gas futures market. This is a “locked-in” price per therm.
Fixed/Market Blend
Combination pricing of both fixed and market index rates.
Market Index Rate
A price that is based on natural gas market monthly averages, and therefore fluctuates accordingly.
MMBtu
One million Btu’s. Also the equivalent of ten therms (decatherm).
Natural Gas
Methane, CH4. A fossil fuel produced by decomposition of organic matter. The gas is naturally colorless and odorless. Odor is added as a safety precaution.
Supplier
The provider of the natural gas commodity. The supplier’s price includes the cost of the gas from the well, plus costs of interstate transmission to the city gate and the local distributor.
Therm
A metric unit of measurement that is equal to one hundred thousand Btu’s. It is the approximate amount of heating potential carried in 100 cubic feet of natural gas.
Usage Factor
The usage factor on the Choice Gas natural gas bill is an adjustment for pressure and temperature variance and converts the cubic feet volume to therms.