Why is the delivery fee so high on electric and gas bills?

"Local News Utilities say, simply put, the cost of everything from building materials to maintaining the infrastructure to labor has gone up. As the weather gets colder in New England, pending gas and electric bills start to become more nerve-racking, with ratepayers never seeming to know how high the cost will be. Meanwhile, New England ranks amongst the most expensive in utility bills in the country, with the Boston region outpacing the national average."

"So, when a user opens the bill and finds that delivery fees actually outweigh the cost of supply, many may start to wonder what it is they are paying for. To find out what's behind the bill, Boston.com reached out to utility companies and delved into the details - and also into who may be doing something to combat those unpredictable cost spikes."

"On most bills, there are two categories: supply and delivery. According to Eversource and National Grid, delivery charges cover the costs of operating networks, including day-to-day maintenance to ensure reliability and emergency response, upgrading aging infrastructure, and connecting customers. The delivery charges are the only costs that utility companies have some say over, although the Department of Public Utilities closely regulates them."

Rising costs for building materials, infrastructure maintenance, and labor have increased utility expenses. New England utility bills rank among the highest nationally, with the Boston region above the U.S. average. Utility bills separate into supply and delivery charges. Supply costs reflect global market prices and extreme weather, and are passed through to customers without profit by utilities. Delivery charges fund network operation, day-to-day maintenance, emergency response, infrastructure upgrades, customer connections, energy-efficiency programs, and income-eligible assistance. Delivery fees are regulated by the Department of Public Utilities. Utilities focus on managing controllable costs and using tools to ease short-term pressures.

Read at Boston.com