Energy Cost

Recent implementation of energy conservation measures are helping ease our appetite for energy. A good thing since the unit costs are going off the chart, literally.

This chart shows Mount Holyoke College's energy cost since 1990, again corrected for total building square footage. It references the energy consumption on the preceding Energy Use page, multiplied by the cost per unit of energy. Present values are 1.85 for electric [yellow] and 2.53 for thermal [blue].

Although thermal use has actually declined 6% over the past 18 years, the unit cost has increased dramatically as oil and gas prices have skyrocketed. Between 1995 and 2005 costs increased by a factor of 3.4. Between 1999 and 2008, crude oil rose in price by a factor of 13 and natural gas increased by a factor of 3. Prices have retreated substantially since then.

Unit prices for electricity have been relatively stable over the past 18 years compared to the prices paid elsewhere in the state. The unit cost was at a low point in 2005, but has increased 30% since then. This unit cost increases, combined with the additional load, means our electric costs are up 85%.