(CNN) Democratic Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota sent a letter to regulators Saturday calling for an investigation into possible price gouging of natural gas in Texas and other areas affected by severe winter storms this month. "One such ripple effect has been in the natural gas markets, where natural gas spot prices have spiked, in some cases, to nearly 100 times typical levels." Smith specifically requested an investigation into the conditions in the natural gas market over the last week and asked that the acting secretary of the Department of Energy, David Huizenga, and other regulators invoke emergency measures such as the Natural Gas Policy Act, which would regulate natural gas production and transmission. "These drastic price increases are forcing utilities and other natural gas users to incur exorbitant costs, much of which could be passed along to consumers in the form of higher electric or natural gas bills over the next year," she wrote. The letter comes as Texas struggles to recover from a deep freeze that killed dozens and left millions without power.

Source: CNN February 21, 2021 21:45 UTC