BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – The war in Iran is spiking fuel prices and causing uncertainty for Vermont families heading into the winter heating season.
Soon enough, the mercury will begin to dip, and Vermonters will begin booting up their furnaces.
Now is the time of year when many are prebuying fuel oil to lock in a consistent price, but there have been wild swings in some of those prices. The war in Iran and the disruption of global oil trade is making it difficult to predict the price of heating fuels.
Prices have jumped from over $3 a gallon earlier this year to now running just shy of $5 a gallon. Families who locked in prices in June during the ceasefire may have seen a drop in prices. But with the war back on, experts say it’s difficult to know what energy prices will look like later this year or if home heating oil prices will come down.
“For some people, they may have missed that opportunity to lock in their contracts. For others, there may be an opportunity in the near future. It’s hard to tell because the crystal ball is a little fuzzy right now,” said Matt Cota of Meadow Hill Consulting.
As a northern state, the majority of Vermont homes use heating oil, propane or kerosene. Vermont also has one of the oldest housing stocks in the nation, many of which are not well-insulated. This leads many Vermonters to use supplemental heating sources like wood stoves and heat pumps.
“It’s been a few years with volatile price spikes. People are starting to look for more sustainable options in the sense that they won’t see huge price spikes,” said Rose Friedlander, the marketing manager for the Energy Co-op of Vermont.
Friedlander helps Vermont families find the right heating source for their homes and connect them with rebates. But which heating source, and where and when to install it, depends on your home, its age and more.
Weatherization is an important tool to help homeowners get the most bang for their buck. Efficiency Vermont has several programs and rebates for homeowners interested in sealing up their homes.
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