Natural gas prices dip during second quarter

By MEDICINE HAT NEWS on April 4, 2026.

newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com

The price for natural gas is set to decrease during the next three-month period, while power prices remain at the minimum mandated rate.

Updated pricing from the municipal utility department shows April’s natural gas default rate is dropping to $1.638 per gigajoule, down from March’s $1.641.

The natural gas rate is based on the weighted average cost of the city’s natural gas purchases for the month of consumption, plus an added seven cents per GJ to recover transaction costs and a small rate of return.

Electrical rates were set for the second quarter of 2026. The rate for the months of April through June is set at 0.04490 dollars per kWh. However, under the local Electric Utility Bylaw, prices will remain at the minimum of 7 cents per kWh, the same as the previous quarter.

The rate is based on a 12-month volume-weighted forecast of the wholesale electricity energy market, not to exceed a maximum of 11 cents per kWh or go below a minimum of seven cents per kWh.

The rate will next be recalculated on the first business day of April. As power rates in the province’s wholesale market have kept low, the rate in Medicine Hat has remained at the mandated minimum of seven cents since July 2024.

Rates for large commercial, industrial and street lighting customers are set at $0.12025 per kWh, which is on par with the rest of the province. EPCOR Energy in Alberta and Edmonton have set rates at $0.12010.

All ratepayers will also be charged $0.0043 per kWh for the ‘Going Green’ surcharge. This surcharge is for renewable energy purchased for residential, farm, small and medium commercial customers.

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