Updated 10-2-2026
Heating oil/diesel prices have climbed back up due to Russia restricting Diesel / Heating oil exports through October. I wanted to update this post, because I’ve gotten a lot of questions and concerns from our customers with regard to the worldwide heating oil/diesel fuel shortages, so our focus is now more on supply rather than price. Here is a partial list of reasons why:
- New England heating oil / diesel inventories are nearly 50% below the running 5-year average.
- Iran conflict which is restricting the flow of crude oil and has resulted in several refineries being attacked and taken off-line. No clear agreement has been reached on the Strait of Hormuz, and the risk premium of shipping through that route has added considerable cost to shipments.
- Ukraine / Russia war has inflicted major damage on Russia’s refineries, taking massive amounts of heating oil off the world market. Much of this damage is significant and won’t come back online this year.
- Conflicts by Houthi rebels have disrupted shipments in the Red Sea.
- Refineries throughout the Persian Gulf have been attacked and damaged including UAE, Kuwait, Qutar, and Saudi Arabia. Some damage is short term, some of it is significant and will months to repair. These facilities are also subject to being attacked again in the future.
- The Saudi East/West pipeline has been attacked and has disrupted supply. This has been repaired and coming back online now.
- Russia, China, have stopped exporting heating oil / diesel, this is happening sporadically.
- Europe has now announced a release of some of its diesel SPR, which may provide some temporary relief on supply.
What do we recommend?
Despite the higher costs, we are recommending:
- Capped rate program: A capped rate plan may be a solution for some customers. It limits the rate at a ceiling price based on future heating oil costs. This plan provides some insurance against unexpected rises in price but also requires a one-time “cap fee” which is the insurance we use to secure the fuel for you and ensure downside protection.
- Budget plan which splits your annual heating and service costs evenly over 12 months, the budget monthly payment would cover all of your costs, including price protection fees as well as service plan costs.
- Auto Bill Pay Program This will ensure your account is always paid on time, and deliveries will not be disrupted.
- Possibly converting to Propane if your heating system and/or fuel tank are older than 20 years. (see information below), as of this writing, propane for central heating, can save over 50% on heating costs.
- Above all, dohttps://sippin.com/auto-bill-pay what you can to conserve energy. That should be very helpful to many people. To discuss pricing options, contact our customer service staff at 1-800-994-3835
Above all, Sippin energy is committed to the security of your home heating needs and will make sure that our products and services remain uninterrupted in the future. If you have any questions whatsoever, please feel free to email our customer service staff at csr@sippin.com
Thank you for your understanding and continued support.
Gary L. Sippin, President, COO