Price Gouging on Heating Oil vs Off-Road Diesel

[JWR]

Here in MD on 16 Feb 22 I paid $180 more for home heating oil (HHO) than the same 300 gal would have cost for off-road diesel (ORD). The price difference was 60 cents a gallon! At the time $3.84/gal vs $3.23/gal. Priced with 2 different suppliers and both had the same differential within pennies. Had the State investigate and it is NOT a tax difference (which the suppliers claimed it was.) Have not yet found out how high the difference got nor what the difference typically is. Both fuels are IDENTICAL. Both are dyed. This was long before the Ukraine war hit. In less than 2 weeks after the State investigated and called suppliers about it, the price was suddenly the same.

So many unknowns: How high did the difference get? Are farmers now being gouged with the ORD being suddenly raised in price? Was some of this illegal? Did either State or Local govt know about it?

Any of you have this or similar experience?

 

[Sawyer Rob]

They could have been the same fuel, or the heating oil could have been kerosene that does cost more.

SR

 

[jyoutz]

It could have also been when the fuel was purchased, just like at the gas station. If a fuel was purchased at a higher or lower price, the supplier still needs to make their profit margin. Sometimes you’ll see differences is gas prices just down the road from each other. The seller with the higher prices may not be able to match the lower prices because they bought from the wholesaler at a time when the cost was higher.

 

[JWR]

They could have been the same fuel, or the heating oil could have been kerosene that does cost more.

SR

Neither home heating oil nor off-read diesel are kerosene. These were identical #2 fuel oil, not #1 kerosene.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Neither home heating oil nor off-read diesel are kerosene. These were identical #2 fuel oil, not #1 kerosene.

I actually was thinking #1 when I posted kero... It's mixed in or sometimes used straight in cold climates, you can't tell the difference by looking at them.

But you said it's neither soo...

SR

 

[Oaktree]

Here in MD on 16 Feb 22 I paid $180 more for home heating oil (HHO) than the same 300 gal would have cost for off-road diesel (ORD). The price difference was 60 cents a gallon! At the time $3.84/gal vs $3.23/gal. Priced with 2 different suppliers and both had the same differential within pennies. Had the State investigate and it is NOT a tax difference (which the suppliers claimed it was.) Have not yet found out how high the difference got nor what the difference typically is. Both fuels are IDENTICAL. Both are dyed. This was long before the Ukraine war hit. In less than 2 weeks after the State investigated and called suppliers about it, the price was suddenly the same.

So many unknowns: How high did the difference get? Are farmers now being gouged with the ORD being suddenly raised in price? Was some of this illegal? Did either State or Local govt know about it?

Any of you have this or similar experience?

I don't think home heating oil is taxed (other than maybe a sales tax in states that have one). It does sound like your supplier was pulling a fast one, but as others suggested, you don't know what they paid for it.
At least you can shop around for oil, unlike propane.
Speaking of propane, we're about due for a fill, I dread to think what that's gonna cost. Was high enough in the fall!

We do have an oil furnace, but only use it if we're going to be away, or at the very beginning/end of the season. Can't remember when the last time I filled the tank...gotta be 5+ years ago, still over 3/4.

 

[JWR]

I actually was thinking #1 when I posted kero... It's mixed in or sometimes used straight in cold climates, you can't tell the difference by looking at them.

But you said it's neither soo...

SR

Sure, I know what you mean. Down here in Southern MD it never gets cold enough to have to mix in #1 with the #2. To complicate matters getting to the bottom if this, the local County Govt levied a 1.25% "energy tax" on home heating oil so the suppliers dare not deliver off road diesel into my home heating oil tank. In my exact documented one sample case , I paid $180 extra so the county could collect $14.40 in "energy tax." Sure, that is an outrage but does nothing to explain why HHO is/was 60 cents a gallon more than ORD. Or why it suddenly became the same price after the state investigated...

 

[nyone]

Buy what ever is cheap. I'm still running on $1.29gal HHO in my mechanical injected equipment.

 

[JWR]

Buy what ever is cheap. I'm still running on $1.29gal HHO in my mechanical injected equipment.

$1.29? Must be 4 year old fuel...

 

[5030]

$1.29? Must be 4 year old fuel...

Probably loaded with micro organisms as well aka: algae.