MISSOURI -- It's a first for Spire Energy since June, and its largest decrease of the year for customers. Customers in both the eastern and western regions will soon start paying less per month. The company received approval from the Missouri Public Service Commission to cut rates. The typical customer on the western side of the state will see their monthly bill drop by an average of $18.70, a 17% decrease. The company dropped rates in June by close to 6 percent. Officials cite lower gas prices and recovery of deferred costs from the winter storm in 2021 that prompted controlled outages from a number of energy companies. "So, our customers bills are really made up of two components. One is the cost to deliver the gas to the home or business. And the other component is the cost of the natural gas itself, and so this reduction in price and in rate is really related to the natural gas itself. Having an opportunity to lower rates as we head into winter is, is great for us," said David Yonce, Spire Managing Dir. of Regulatory Affairs. The new rates take effect on Friday.