The price surge is driven by tight refined fuel inventories alongside disruptions from international conflicts, including the war in Ukraine. In Maine, where approximately half of all households rely on heating oil, delivered prices have surged roughly 75 percent over the past year to reach $5.83 per gallon. Social service providers and federally backed aid programs are facing unprecedented early season demand as families exhaust their resources. One regional aid group logged 150 crisis voicemails within the initial hour of opening its emergency heating assistance line.
Key points
Average heating oil customers will spend roughly $2,115 to heat their homes between Novem…: Average heating oil customers will spend roughly $2,115 to heat their homes between November and March.
High per-gallon prices mean a standard minimum delivery of 100 gallons now costs Maine re…: High per-gallon prices mean a standard minimum delivery of 100 gallons now costs Maine residents around $600.
Financial strains are pushing vulnerable households toward dangerous alternatives, such a…: Financial strains are pushing vulnerable households toward dangerous alternatives, such as operating malfunctioning pellet and wood stoves.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Winter heating bills can strain household budgets. This year, a spike in heating oil prices could make the season especially difficult for households that depend on the fuel and have little financial wiggle room.
The national average price of heating oil was roughly $5.91 a gallon as of Nov. 9, up about $2.19, or 59%, from a year earlier, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
In Maine, the average price per gallon is roughly $5.83, up about $2.49 from a year earlier, or about 75%. The state is among those whose residents may feel the price rise acutely — about 50% of homes there use heating oil.
The jump "is crushing folks," said Jason Parent, CEO of AVEC Community Action, a nonprofit agency based in Presque Isle, Maine, that provides heating assistance and other social services in three of the state's 16 counties. Many residents face immediate crises, he said, such as empty fuel tanks or reliance on unsafe heating sources.
"My fear is that there are households out there who have secondary fuel sources like wood stoves, pellet…
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