Home Heating Oil Prices Still Rising

Last year, the average price of home heating oil in the Northeast was $1.36 per gallon. The latest survey from the New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning says the average price of heating oil is $1.52 – and it's only August…
BROYLES :07 this year, the prices have not gone down, climbed since late Feb early March.

Joe Broyles, an analyst with the state's Office of Energy and Planning says in a typical year, heating fuel prices go up in the autumn and begin to level off and fall after the worst of the winter is over. Fuel distributors take advantage of that drop in prices to buy futures contracts with suppliers. But not this year.
BROYLES :14 a lot of dealers have been reluctant to buy contracts for products to be delivered next winter. B/c they're not sure if prices will climb or decline. There's a lot of price volatility this year

But on average home heating oil is getting more expensive. Many consumers take advantage of pre-payment plans. If they lock in a lower rate, they can save when prices climb. But this year, heating oil prices have continued to climb all summer, right along with crude oil prices. Susan Davis runs H-R Cough (cuff)-Kearsarge Heating oils.
DAVIS :? everybody's been waiting for prices to fall. I know companies who haven't even purchased any product yet, purchased any futures for next years heating supply because they're waiting for that price to drop. Nobody's crystal ball is clear this year.

Her company delayed offering pre-payment plans, and their customers have to sign up before Friday. Davis says it's a nerve-racking time to be in the oil business.
DAVIS :19 it's just the unknown, the volatility in the world basically. This year there's a fear premium put on fuel oil. … b/c of war and election and not knowing where country is going economically or politically.

She says many of her commercial customers decided to wait for prices to fall before locking in a price. But prices rose instead. Irving Oil, a large regional distributor, waited six weeks longer than usual to offer its pre-buy program. Now they say customers from other companies that closed their pre-buy programs are eager to switch to lock in a price now.
At the very least, pre-buying heating oil helps consumers control their budgets. Some years consumers win, other years they lose. Broyles says it can also help stabilize prices. But conservation is always cheaper than buying more fuel.
For NHPR News, I'm RMD.