CHARLESTON, W.Va. –– The state Public Service Commission has announced a deal has been reached in the Hope Gas rate increase case that will affect 131,000 customers in 37 counties.

Kurt Krieger

The original Hope Gas proposal would have increased the base rate by 25% to 35% for customers totaling about $80 million. The settlement slashes the proposed increase nearly in half.

The increase will now be 21% on the customer resulting in $41.2 million in increased revenue. It’s believed the average customer’s bill will go up about $10 a month.

The new rates take effect Feb. 25, 2026. As part of the deal, Hope Gas cannot file another base rate increase request until February 2028.

“All of the parties have a settlement, not only in principle, but we also have a draft second joint stipulation that was circulated last night, and the parties will look through it this morning,” Hope Gas attorney Kurt Krieger told the PSC Wednesday.

Krieger indicated several times to PSC Chairman Charlotte Lane on Tuesday that a settlement was near. He announced the deal late Wednesday morning.

“This second joint stipulation resolves all of the remaining issues in the case—everything,” said Krieger. “So, combined, the two joint stipulations are a complete and comprehensive settlement of the Hope rate case.”

Krieger said the PSC Staff, state Consumer Advocate and intervenors worked through difficult, tedious issues in a short period of time to reach the deal.

Charlotte Lane

“It was a very difficult exercise and effort by everybody in the room and people beyond the room,” Krieger said. “There was an awful lot of back-and-forth and sometimes stressful negotiations.”

One of the factors that emerged from the negotiations was the loss of gas from the recently acquired Equitrans system. During testimony it was revealed the system lost $4 million in gas during an operating year and finding a solution will reduce operating costs.

“We’re hoping the Equitrans system can be tightened over time and flow better with less loss. A lot of these issues will be better for future cases,” state Consumer Advocate Robert Williams said.

The settlement also deals with legacy surcharges, which are fees charged to customers in the acquired system by Hope Gas. The fees will end Feb. 2026.

In closing, Lane thanked the panel and ordered Krieger to prepare the final order to be submitted to the PSC by Dec. 15.