Heating oil customers report prices doubling

People who heat their rural homes using oil tanks have reported prices doubling amid the conflict in the Middle East.

The UK is heavily reliant on oil and gas imports and prices have jumped since the US and Israel began attacking Iran on Saturday.

Iran previously warned vessels not to pass through the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf, through which about 20% of the world's oil and gas is shipped.

Jacky Smith, from Monks Eleigh in Suffolk, said the price of oil to heat her home had increased and, if it continued, she would not be able order more.

"It cost me about £420, it always used to cost me £350 for 500 litres," she told BBC Radio Suffolk's Wayne Bavin breakfast show.

"Luckily it's being delivered today and they're sticking to my price because I looked at it a few days later for a comparison and it had gone up to £620 within a week.

"I live in quite a small house and [my order] is usually every six months.

"But I did get a note from the people I get my oil from yesterday saying however much I've ordered, I will only get 500 litres.

"So if people with big tanks have ordered 1,000 litres, they won't be getting it."

The Middle East is a region that plays a key role in global energy supplies and shipping routes.

The UK does get oil from the North Sea, but most of this is exported as it does not have adequate refinery capabilities to make it usable, therefore the country relies heavily on imports from elsewhere.

According to provider BoilerJuice, it is predominantly those living in rural and off-grid areas that are not on the gas supply network that rely on heating oil - usually stored in a tank in the garden that supplies their boiler.

The firm had seen a price increase of about 117% in recent days.

As well as this, 2021 Census data shows that seven out of 10 areas where heating oil is most commonly used are found in the East of England.

Qatar's energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, also told the Financial Times he expected all oil and gas exporters in the Gulf to stop production within days due to the conflict.

Rachel MacSweeney, based in Winterton, Norfolk, has two holiday cottages and her own house, all of which use heating oil.

She told BBC Radio Norfolk's Rob Butler she ordered 500 litres for her own house on 25 February which cost her just over £340.

But on Tuesday, when she ordered for one of her cottages, she ran into issues.

"I went to my regular supplier and couldn't order anything online - they weren't taking online orders," she explained.

"I called them and they quoted a delivery time of 15 days, which is unusual; they weren't able to give me a price, but added my name to a waiting list.

"That same evening I tried an online comparison website. Again no oil available from the 200 suppliers they checked, so at this point I'm starting to panic because we need oil."

She tried again later that night and found 500 litres for a cost of £658. When she looked again the next day the price had risen to £750.

She said she had to consider closing up one of her cottages and added that if prices did continue to rise, she would have to find alternative heating methods.

The alarm felt by MacSweeny is not surprising, but suppliers warn against panic-buying.

Ben Leworthy, from New Era Energy of Harlow, Essex, said: "The more people panic, the more the demand goes up."

He said oil was still coming into the UK, but he was "starting to see the ships being stuck, and that will have a knock-on effect".

"Supply might struggle a little bit for the next two weeks, but we're not seeing too much at the moment," he added.

Ken Cronin is the chief executive of UKIFDA - the Fuel Distribution Association.

He said the price of both crude oil and jet fuel, both of which are kerosene-based, had gone up since the start of the conflict.

Cronin explained that heating oil is priced against jet fuel in European markets and 40% of Europe's jet fuel was imported from the Middle East.

"The big issue is that the majority of heating oil distributors across the UK are small family-run businesses," he explained.

"They don't hold a huge amount of stock on the sites that they own, so they're constantly going to the import terminals, refineries, to pick up the stock for their customers.

"The price that we are paying is the price on the day and that is the reason why you're seeing such a big increase so quickly."

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