NI: Home heating oil is cheapest since 2009, gas petrol and diesel also well down

The consumer rights watchdog says forecourt petrol prices and piped gas have also seen significant decreases in NI.

As well as a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia in March, the global Coronavirus pandemic has shut factories and put the brakes on road and air traffic globally, meaning much less oil is being used. This means that Brent Crude oil - the benchmark used by Europe - has fallen from $70 a barrel in March to just above $20 - its lowest level since 2002.

Discussing the impact of the fall, Paulino Garcia, Head of Energy Policy at The Consumer Council, told the News Letter that its weekly survey of home heating oil prices across Northern Ireland had been revealing.

“This shows that the price of the average 500 litre refill has decreased by over 50% since January 2020,” he said. “Furthermore, the current home heating oil prices are the lowest since The Consumer Council records began in 2009.” A quote for 500 litres for Belfast yesterday was £123.

“Motorists in NI will also have seen lower prices in recent weeks, with prices in some forecourts breaking below the £1 per litre barrier,” he added.

Mr Paulino also said natural gas consumers in Northern Ireland have also benefited from significant price decreases. At the start of last month gas prices across ten NI towns had dropped by 21.2% and in Greater Belfast and the west of the province by 18.75%.

Research by AA Public Affairs shows that from Mid-March NI petrol prices per litre have dropped from 117.8p per to 103.8p, and diesel from 120.4p to 110.1p, the lowest prices across all UK regions. The average petrol price across the UK is now 107.8p.

AA Public Affairs spokesman Luke Bosdet said: “Even allowing for a generous margin for retailers, the average price for petrol across the UK should now be 100p.”