Home Heating Oil Prices Soar This Winter
Prices of oil have a domino effect on the prices of many major products worldwide. As oil prices go up, so does the price of food especially those that use oil in manufacturing them. Soon enough, prices of other commodities go up as well.
With high oil prices, many people regardless of their status in society are very much affected and worried. Homeowners who use fossil fuel in their heating systems are not exempted. It is because they will have to spend more this time to have their regular stock of fuel and this a major concern for them. The Federal government already foresees a 30 percent increase in the fuel expenditures of an average household that uses oil as its primary heating fuel compared to the 2007 winter season. Apart from oil, they will also have to deal with the high electricity rates which have gone up as well.
As of August 2008, the average cost of home heating oil is pegged at $3.13 per gallon. This is still considered quite steep despite the recent drop in the price of crude oil.
Home heating oil prices are affected by several factors including supply, demand, geography, weather conditions and politics. Prices have become very volatile in that they can change several times in a single day mainly because of a variety of world events. However, as weather is another major factor, it is typical for home heating oil prices of oil to increase during the winter season despite a drop in the price of crude oil.
The Department of Energy’s Energy Information Agency projects that for 2008 to 2009, the prices of residential heating oil during the regular heating season covering the months of October to March will average $4.34 per gallon. This is an increase of 31 percent from last year’s $3.31. Home heating natural gas prices are also seen to go up by 22 percent during the same heating period to an average of $15.58 per Mcf.
Because of a weak economy and high prices of crude oil and other products, a survey by the Energy Information Administration projected a decline on U.S. petroleum and other liquids consumption by about three percent. The first half of the year alone showed a drop in total consumption by an average of 930,000 barrels per day compared to the same period a year before. The decline is seen to continue for the rest of the year despite a rise in domestic and worldwide crude oil production.
Fortunately, some concerned legislators are taking steps to help provide relief to the situation. A move in the works is the expansion of the Federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) that is aimed at providing direct assistance to low-income families and the elderly people experiencing high home heating bills. A noteworthy action is the introduction of the “Warm in Winter and Cool in Summer Act” which would allot $2.53 billion in additional emergency LIHEAP funding for this 2008 winter.
Other lawmakers, in their own way, are offering tips to consumers that will help lower their energy bills ahead of the winter months.
With high oil prices, many people regardless of their status in society are very much affected and worried. Homeowners who use fossil fuel in their heating systems are not exempted. It is because they will have to spend more this time to have their regular stock of fuel and this a major concern for them. The Federal government already foresees a 30 percent increase in the fuel expenditures of an average household that uses oil as its primary heating fuel compared to the 2007 winter season. Apart from oil, they will also have to deal with the high electricity rates which have gone up as well.
As of August 2008, the average cost of home heating oil is pegged at $3.13 per gallon. This is still considered quite steep despite the recent drop in the price of crude oil.
Home heating oil prices are affected by several factors including supply, demand, geography, weather conditions and politics. Prices have become very volatile in that they can change several times in a single day mainly because of a variety of world events. However, as weather is another major factor, it is typical for home heating oil prices of oil to increase during the winter season despite a drop in the price of crude oil.
The Department of Energy’s Energy Information Agency projects that for 2008 to 2009, the prices of residential heating oil during the regular heating season covering the months of October to March will average $4.34 per gallon. This is an increase of 31 percent from last year’s $3.31. Home heating natural gas prices are also seen to go up by 22 percent during the same heating period to an average of $15.58 per Mcf.
Because of a weak economy and high prices of crude oil and other products, a survey by the Energy Information Administration projected a decline on U.S. petroleum and other liquids consumption by about three percent. The first half of the year alone showed a drop in total consumption by an average of 930,000 barrels per day compared to the same period a year before. The decline is seen to continue for the rest of the year despite a rise in domestic and worldwide crude oil production.
Fortunately, some concerned legislators are taking steps to help provide relief to the situation. A move in the works is the expansion of the Federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) that is aimed at providing direct assistance to low-income families and the elderly people experiencing high home heating bills. A noteworthy action is the introduction of the “Warm in Winter and Cool in Summer Act” which would allot $2.53 billion in additional emergency LIHEAP funding for this 2008 winter.
Other lawmakers, in their own way, are offering tips to consumers that will help lower their energy bills ahead of the winter months.