According to New York Bronx Congressman Ritchie Torres, Con Edison charges almost 100 percent more for gas deliveries to some customers in the Big Apple than its competitor National Grid. A new study by his office uncovers the energy giant’s “hidden overpricing,” Torres said.
Analyzing gas bills from multifamily homes this year and last year, Torres’ office found that all areas served by Con Edison – the Bronx, Manhattan and parts of Queens – had higher prices.
According to the study, the average delivery cost per unit of gas in the Bronx was $1.29, in Manhattan it was $1.01 and in the supplied borough of Queens it was 92 cents.
National Grid charges an average delivery cost of 54 cents per unit of heat, and its customers in Queens paid 45 cents, according to the study, which did not include Staten Island.
Torres is now calling on the state Public Service Commission, which regulates and oversees the gas, electricity and water industries in New York State, to investigate the “inexplicable discrepancies.”
“When a state-sanctioned monopoly abuses its power to overcharge the public, exacerbating the crippling costs of inflation, the burden is on both the governor and the Public Service Commission to act quickly to protect New Yorkers’ hard-earned money from predatory price gouging,” Torres told the Post.
Con Ed customers were upset with the results.
“I’m very unhappy. I didn’t realize how bad it was,” said Wardean D. Squire-Askew, a retired construction manager who lives in Tremont. “Every time you turn around, ConEd raises the (fees).”
Marble Hill resident Angie Rodriguez called the situation “very unfair” and wanted to inform Con Ed about it.
“I live in a single-income household and pay double. Yes, I will call and complain,” she vowed.
Bronx landowner Ardon Wiener, who reviewed the data and helped analyze it, said the real problem is inefficiency at Con Ed.
“Con Ed is run significantly less efficiently than National Grid, and the consumer bears the cost of that inefficiency and therefore pays a significant premium for equivalent service that includes providing gas for heating and cooking,” said Wiener, who records show donating $6,100 to Torres’ campaign in 2023.
Con Ed did not dispute the cost difference, but stressed that the company offers a better product and invests in safety and “clean energy.”
“We replace 80 miles of cast iron and steel mains annually, conduct monthly leak patrols and install the first-of-its-kind gas detector in our customers’ homes, a huge step forward for safety,” said spokesman Allan Drury.
