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News Release Information

24-310-PHI
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:

Average Energy Prices, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson – January 2024

Gasoline prices averaged $3.215 a gallon in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area in January 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that area gasoline prices were down 7.3 percent compared to last January when they averaged $3.469 per gallon. Baltimore area households paid an average of 18.0 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in January 2024, up 5.3 percent from January 2023. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $1.726 per therm in January 2024 was down from $2.002 per therm a year earlier. (See table 1.) (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.)

At $3.215 a gallon, costs for gasoline in the Baltimore area were 4.1 percent below the national average of $3.353 a gallon in January 2024. The prior four years in January, prices for a gallon of gasoline in Baltimore have ranged from 5.5 percent below to 0.3 percent above the U.S. average. (See chart 1.)

The 18.0 cents per kWh that Baltimore households paid for electricity in January 2024 was 4.0 percent higher than the nationwide average cost of 17.3 cents per kWh. Last January, electricity costs in Baltimore were 1.8 percent higher than the nation. Over the prior three years in January, prices for electricity in Baltimore have been below the U.S. average by 9.6 percent or less. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by Baltimore area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $1.726 per therm in January 2024, 18.9 percent above the national average of $1.452 per therm. Utility (piped) gas prices in the Baltimore area the past four years in January have ranged from 10.1 percent to 26.4 percent above the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Core Based Statistical Area includes Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard, and Queen Anne’s Counties and Baltimore City in Maryland.

The Consumer Price Index for February 2024 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).


Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, the 3 population size classes, 10 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 14 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

All eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity. The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits. This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Average prices for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas, the United States and Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, January 2023–January 2024, not seasonally adjusted
Year and month Gasoline per gallon Electricity per kWh Utility (piped) gas per therm
United States Baltimore area United States Baltimore area United States Baltimore area

2023

January

$3.555 $3.469 $0.168 $0.171 $1.819 $2.002

February

3.622 3.379 0.168 0.171 1.609 1.956

March

3.660 3.361 0.166 0.177 1.493 1.827

April

3.839 3.611 0.165 0.177 1.413 1.420

May

3.794 3.527 0.165 0.175 1.385 1.459

June

3.821 3.521 0.170 0.176 1.371 1.409

July

3.842 3.677 0.169 0.176 1.395 1.449

August

4.064 3.850 0.170 0.176 1.402 1.482

September

4.107 3.691 0.171 0.170 1.377 1.444

October

3.910 3.441 0.169 0.185 1.388 1.461

November

3.623 3.331 0.168 0.182 1.442 1.510

December

3.411 3.253 0.169 0.183 1.429 1.571

2024

January

3.353 3.215 0.173 0.180 1.452 1.726

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, February 13, 2024