heatingoilinfo

Heating Oil Users Could Pay 25% Less to Heat Their Home This Year

With gas and electricity prices still on the rise, it’s no surprise that energy bills are high on the list of homeowner worries. In fact, online watchdog Which? has recently named energy prices as one of the chief financial concerns for consumers, with over 41% of householders stating that they are “worried about the cost of heating their home this winter”.

In a statement released in September this year, the company’s Executive Director, Richard Lloyd, voiced his concern for energy prices, calling for a review of the marketplace.

Mr Lloyd stated: “The energy market remains at rock bottom for consumer trust. Millions of customers still don’t think they’re paying a fair price and most people find it hard to compare deals”.
press-release-price-drop-01 However, despite uncertainty in the mainstream energy market, heating oil users have seen an unprecedented drop in costs. Figures released today by the UK’s leading heating oil comparison site have revealed that households in England are currently paying, on average, up to 25% less for their annual heating oil bill compared to last year, with some customers paying up to £400 less for their annual supply.

BoilerJuice Founder, Paul Ward, believes that while these falling prices may benefit oil users in the short-term, there could be long-term shortage issues if cold weather hits over winter.

Mr Ward commented: “A significant drop in demand, largely due to a warm summer, mild autumn and a reduction in crude oil prices, is contributing to the drop in market prices. However with winter just around the corner, poor weather can typically lead to a sudden increase in demand for heating oil, which in turn can lead to a shortage in supply. If this happens, oil suppliers will be forced to go further afield to source their supply, which can leave customers waiting for deliveries”.

Mr Ward’s thoughts have been echoed by communities across the country, with ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England) releasing a campaign promoting the benefits of ‘buying early’ to heating oil users in August this year.

Energy Minister Matt Hancock has also voiced concerns about heating oil supply issues, pointing out that this situation can be worsened in remote or rural areas, where tanker drivers struggle to get through on roads covered with ice and snow. Mr Hancock also stated that “delivery times only increase as the weather gets worse”, and urged homeowners to buy their heating oil early to avoid this situation.

As with any household expense, if you do choose to buy early, it is important to compare prices to find the best deal. Use an impartial price comparison site to get the best price for your area and always take advantage of any special offers, deals or benefits offered by distributors (for example, group savings when multiple orders are placed in the same area).

Discount Heating Oil Prices is a company where one can find the lowest home heating oil prices. The company also provides delivery assistance to your home punctually and securely. Just visit the official website, enter your zip code, browse the lowest price available on heating oil in your place and click on the “buy now” button. Getting discount heating oil in Massachusetts is now just a click away from you

Buy Oil Early Campaign Gets Government Backing

The government has confirmed its support for a campaign that encourages users of heating oil to stock up on the resource now, before winter brings lower temperatures and shorter days.

Order heating oil early to avoid delivery problems

Launched by Action with Communities in Rural England (Acre), the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers (FPS) and Citizens Advice, the Buy Oil Early initiative points out that customers who place their orders promptly can benefit from lower costs and timely delivery.

Prices and demand tend to be lower in September, while transportation of oil is not disrupted by order backlogs and icy weather.

The campaign has received backing from energy minister Matt Hancock, who pointed out that early action can be particularly advantageous for people living in remote and rural areas, where deliveries are more likely to be held up.

He added: “Please do be sure to check that you are receiving all the help that you are entitled to with your local Citizens Advice Bureau.”

Janice Banks, chief executive of Acre, which provides a voice for England’s 38 rural community councils, cited research showed that over a third (36 per cent) of homes in countryside areas are off the gas grid. This means many households in these parts of the country rely on heating oil.

“We are urging households to buy their oil now so that they are prepared when the colder weather arrives and the time comes to switch on the heating,” she added.

In preparation for the launch of the Buy Oil Early campaign, Acre recently published its top ten tips to help heating oil users prepare for the winter.

The organisation recommended predicting your future oil requirements in advance, comparing prices and checking that your distributor adheres to the FPS Code of Practice.

Lib Dems Propose Tax Break for Energy Efficient Homes

New manifesto plans unveiled by the party would reward people who take action to boost energy efficiency with a council tax discount.

When reductions in gas and electricity bills are also taken into account, households could save at least £100 a year by adopting eco-friendly measures, according to the Lib Dems.

The party pointed out that household energy use has recently fallen by an average of 2.5 per cent a year, but stressed that “we need to go further and faster”.

Ed Davey, secretary of state for energy and climate change, said the best way to bring down household bills is to reduce them over the long term, which means reducing energy waste in the home.

He added: “A ten-year council tax cut will make action to end your home’s energy waste a no-brainer.

“to meet our legal climate change obligations, the cheapest way is to make rapid progress in cutting our emissions by saving the energy we now waste.”

Mr Davey also underlined the economic importance of efficiency, arguing that it will not be possible to build a stronger economy without environmental awareness and sustainability.

While the government is reportedly on track to meet its target of improving the energy efficiency of one million homes, the Lib Dems said their proposed tax incentive would allow substantial progress in the next parliament.

Recent initiatives to encourage efficiency in the home include the Green Deal Communities scheme, which offered funding for local authorities to help households install measures such as solid wall insulation and new heating systems.

Is Energy Regulator Ofgem to Blame for Higher Fuel Prices?

Nobody ever likes to see heating oil prices rise – we all have budgets to keep to and need fuel for own homes. But consumers generally understand that supply issues can cause price fluctuations at times, and fuel prices may rise when demand is at its highest.

But when price increases are caused by other factors – such as market regulation – this can be a bitter pill to swallow. The question is, to what extent are UK oil prices determined by the actions of Ofgem, Britain’s energy watchdog?

This question could be answered over the next couple of years, as the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) carries out a wide-ranging review of the energy market. Ofgem has brought about the investigation, believing that homes and businesses are paying too much for fuel. But some think the regulator is partly to blame for high prices.

As reported by the Telegraph, five former regulators have raised concerns about the role played by Ofgem. In a submission to the CMA, the quintet – which includes Stephen Littlechild and Sir Callum McCarthy – criticised regulation imposed by the body since 2008.

They believe the more interventionist regulatory approach has helped increase profits for energy suppliers at their customers’ expense. “Regulatory interventions… can increase customer and supplier transactions costs, leading to lower customer benefits including via higher prices, and weaker rather than stronger competition,” the ex-regulators stated.

Mr Littlechild noted that the combined profits of the Big Six energy firms rose from £233 million in 2009 to £1.1 billion in 2012. He told the Sunday Telegraph that post-tax takings have “gone up consistently” since Ofgem started intervening in the market.

“I’m not aware of anything else that could have caused it,” he told the news provider. “The only thing causing higher profits is the restriction on competition [Ofgem] has imposed.”

The CMA will look at all aspects of competition in the energy market during its investigation, and its report will be telling. It remains to be seen what the findings may be, but consumers will hope the upshot is more affordable fuel for their households.

Homeowners Urged to Consider Insulation

Homeowners looking for ways to make their properties more efficient and lower their energy costs before winter have been encouraged to consider installing insulation.

According to the National Insulation Association (NIA), about 60 per cent of the heat in a home can be lost through uninsulated walls and roofs.

The organisation cited figures from the Energy Saving Trust showing that householders could save up to £460 per year by introducing solid-wall insulation. Cavity-wall and loft insulation could also offer bill reductions of £250 per year, while measures such as draught-proofing windows and doors could lower costs by up to £50 per year.

With annual dual fuel bills now at an average of £1,328, these savings could look attractive to people who are keen to bring down their regular expenses.

Neil Marshall, chief executive of the NIA, said the benefits of insulation are “clear”.

“Home insulation is the single most effective method of saving money on domestic energy bills, with savings continuing year on year,” he added.

“By installing insulation householders will also be protecting against future energy bill rises.”

According to a recent report from the price comparison website energyhelpline.com, gas and electricity suppliers could be set to increase prices by around ten per cent before the winter months.

In another recent statement, the NIA welcomed the Liberal Democrats’ commitment to energy efficiency, following the announcement of the ‘five new laws for a greener Britain’ in the party’s manifesto.

Mr Marshall said the association was encouraged by the proposals for new regulations to address energy efficiency, with possible schemes including a new heating and efficiency bill and a national programme to raise sustainability standards for all households.

The NIA chief executive also called for a “long-term structured plan” to transform the country’s housing stock, adding that the industry group was looking forward to working with all political parties to make this a reality.

About these ads

Occasi

SGX Iron Ore Forum: more Chinese delegates a sign of China market’s revival?

After a painful 2014 and 2015, Chinese iron ore and steel markets have shown a small sign of revival–at least that is what the SGX Singapore Iron Ore Forum (SIOF) had told its audience of over 300 people on May 19.

The SIOF, now on its fourth year, enjoyed another full house with a nice mix of participants. I do not think it is just a personal observation when I say many more Chinese faces showed up at the event. Some Chinese companies sent up five to six delegates this time around.

Interestingly and creatively, SGX decided to put both the conference and exhibition booths under the same roof in a giant hall, so attendees could wander around should they be bored with the speeches. The noise was always in the background but it’s not really disturbing the conference, and people could mingle without missing the keynote speeches.

China’s obviously a hot topic at the forum. People are still trying to understand what is happening with China’s economy and what it could mean to the steel and iron ore markets. There are also discussions on the possibility of China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) seeing another round of volatility as it experienced over late April-early May.

Speaking of DCE, some attendees have noted the absence of the futures exchange at the SGX event: no sponsorship, no delegates. Some people wondered whether it had to do with the relationship between SGX and DCE, or with DCE’s busy schedule in promoting internationalization and regulating speculative trading where iron ore futures contracts are concerned. (Related podcast: Will China’s commodity exchanges be able to create international commodity benchmarks?)

The major takeaway from the one-day conference for me, personally, is that people are more realistic about their expectations on China’s economy–acknowledging that restructuring and the slowdown is for real and may last for some time. Some are even challenging the accuracy of China’s GDP numbers.

At the same time, more people are definitely looking at iron ore derivatives and what it can do to the Chinese steel industry and physical iron ore market, with more pairs of eyes actually being from the Chinese delegates who have been actively participating in the physical iron ore trading.

Last but not the least, SGX officials shared in great detail what its iron ore contracts–including swaps, futures and options–are with four major differences from the DCE iron ore futures contracts, and emphasized that the SGX iron ore products are more relevant with the fundamentals, thus less volatility.

Asia’s polymer producers add value for higher margins

Polymer producers in Asia, most of whom are integrated to naphtha, have been in a celebratory mood in recent months. The plunge in oil and naphtha prices has resulted in a significant reduction in their feedstock costs and caused their margins to improve beyond their wildest dreams. Margins for polyethylene over naphtha are around $300/metric ton currently, while those for polypropylene are at $150/mt, a direct result of the 58% plunge in oil prices since June 2014.

However, some of the more prescient producers realize that there are plenty of headwinds ahead, which may cause the happy situation to reverse, and are already pursuing strategies which will help them keep afloat should that happen.

One of the key strategies in these producers’ survival kit is value addition. This assumes added importance as China, the largest polymer guzzler in the world, marches towards self-sufficiency in commodity polymers. China’s imports of polyethylene and polypropylene have been steadily falling, thanks to the increase in local coal-based production, which has been focusing on commodity grades. PE imports into China have fallen 3% year on year in the first quarter of 2016 to 2.4 million mt. PP imports are down 23% in the same period to 1 million mt, according to China Customs.

This is in line with the priorities outlined by the Chinese government in the 13^th Five Year Plan which was launched this year. The government is quite clear about encouraging local production and building feedstock security by tapping into its immense coal resources. Imports will therefore be increasingly confined to value-added grades which China does not produce in adequate volumes. Hence the shift of focus by polymer exporters to China to high-end grades such as metallocene linear low PE and copolymer PP.

China only started up its first mLLDPE plant in March 2016 — China National Bluestar’s 100,000 mt/year plant in Shenyang. However, this is far from sufficient to meet the country’s growing appetite for this grade. End-users are willing to pay a premium for this grade over the commoditized C4 grade LLDPE. As recently as May 11, 2016, the premium of C6 mLLDPE over the commodity C4 grade imported into China was as high as $256/mt, according to Platts data. This is a huge increase from the low of $50/mt seen in October 2015, highlighting the increasing preference in China for this high-end grade in flexible packaging applications, thanks to its superior tear resistance, down-gauging and hot-stamping (high-speed printing).

In a bid to capitalize on this opportunity to improve their margins, two more mLLDPE plants are set to go onstream in Asia in the second half of 2016 – PT Lotte Titan Chemical’s 200,000 mt/year plant in Merak, Indonesia and Gail India’s 400,000 mt/year unit in Pata, Uttar Pradesh. Prime Evolue, a joint venture between Japan’s Prime Polymer and Mitsui Chemicals, started up a new 300,000 metallocene polyethylene plant on Singapore’s Jurong Island in 2015, but this is currently shut because of a force majeure at Shell Chemical’s complex located in Singapore.

“Metallocene is probably one of the best [in demand] growth in the PE portfolio; that’s why we are supporting our customers by investing in our Nexlene technology in [South] Korea and introducing it to our customers in China,” Sabic’s Executive Vice President of Polymers Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh told Platts PP editor Yi-Jeng Huang on the sidelines of the Chinaplas exhibition in Shanghai in late April 2016.

Incentivized by the prospect of garnering better margins, China-based traders told Platts senior editor for PE Heng Hui at the same ChinaPlas event that they are also changing the way they do business, opting more and more for specialized polymer grades.

A similar trend can be witnessed in PP, where producers are diversifying increasingly into higher-end grades. For instance, IRPC of Thailand is looking into producing high rubber PP for the automotive sector using Japan’s JPP technology at their plant in Rayong. The unit is expected to be up and running by end-2017. Another Middle East producer, Borouge, has begun producing PP composite reinforced with carbon fiber for automotive applications. NatPet is also exploring new technology options for its compounding joint venture with Schulman at Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, aimed mainly at the automotive sector.

In short, it’s a win-win situation for both — producers looking to lock in their margins in a volatile market, and customers aspiring to improve their lifestyle options.

Oil Prices Stable ‘Despite Middle East Conflicts’

Homeowners and business leaders may be concerned about the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, and its potential impact on heating oil prices.

The region is a major global oil producer, and the continuing political uncertainty threatens to disrupt the supply of oil to Europe.

However, the situation for UK oil consumers is surprisingly positive. A significant rise in production in North America is helping to keep markets well-supplied.

The International Energy Agency (IEA), which oversees energy use in the west, believes that prices will continue to fluctuate in line with patterns that heating oil users have seen in previous years.

“Despite armed conflict in Libya, Iraq and Ukraine, the oil market today looks better supplied than expected, with an oil glut even reported in the Atlantic basin,” the IEA said in its monthly report.

“US and European Union sanctions on the Russian oil sector are not providing oil markets with much support either. The consensus in the industry seems to be that neither set of sanctions will have any tangible near-term impact on supplies.”

The IEA said that even for the medium term, the impact of political uncertainly on oil prices appears “questionable”.

“The market appears confident that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries can deliver the production increase needed from it to meet rising demand expected in the second half of the year,” it added.

About these ads

Occasi

Is Energy Regulator Ofgem to Blame for Higher Fuel Prices?

“I’m not aware of anything else that could have caused it,” he told the news provider. “The only thing causing higher profits is the restriction on competition [Ofgem] has imposed.”

About these ads

Occasi

Outdoor Oil Tanks Need Sturdy Support

It might be stating the obvious, but your can’t just plonk your tank down anywhere – on the lawn, on the patio, in your flower bed – as the unit needs a suitable base and support.

Unless you’ve put the foundations in place for your oil tank, you won’t just be holding oil – you’ll be storing up problems for the future.

As the Oil Firing Technical Association (OFTEC) explains, tanks that are not adequately supported can be weakened, leading to their eventual failure and the escape of the stored fuel.

“During the life of an installation, an oil storage tank base will need to provide continual structural support, even though ground conditions may alter from season to season and year to year,” OFTEC explained.

So what do you need to consider when installing an outdoor oil tank for your heating oil?

First and foremost, the base should be strong enough to cope with the weight of the tank, when it is full of oil.

The base materials used should be non-combustible – for obvious reasons – but also imperforate.

Concrete, paving stones or stonework are typically used for this task, but the surface needs to be levelled off before the tank is installed.

Also, you need to ensure sufficient room – approximately 300mm – is left beyond all sides of the tank.

If you fail to follow oil tank support best practice, it might cost you money, harm the environment – and potentially ruin your floral displays.

About these ads

Occasi