REGION Natural gas to cost less through Jan.

Customers who have not opted for choice programs will be affected.
Natural gas companies serving the Mahoning and Shenango valleys intend to lower rates for November through January.
Most of the utilities serving the area filed rate requests this week with state public utilities commissions. Ohio companies said that though the new rates would be lower than current rates, they would be higher than customers paid at the start of last winter.
Dominion East Ohio is seeking a rate of $8 per thousand cubic feet, compared with the current rate of $8.58. At the start of last winter, Dominion customers were paying $5.03.
Columbia Gas of Ohio is requesting a new rate of $6.90 per thousand cubic feet, compared with a current rate of $7.23. At the start of last winter, Columbia customers were paying $6.54.
These rates are paid by customers who have not elected to be in the companies' customer choice programs.
Shenango Valley
In Pennsylvania, Dominion Peoples cut rates so that the average residential customer using 104,000 cubic feet of gas per year will now be paying $96.88 per month instead of $98.42 per month.
The average residential customer of Columbia in Pennsylvania, using 120,000 cubic feet per year, will see the monthly rates drop from $117.42 to $102.
Most Mercer County households are customers of National Fuel Gas, which is on a different adjustment schedule than Dominion and Columbia.
Dominion East Ohio said wholesale prices for natural gas are 50 percent higher than they were a year ago and are expected to remain high.