[woodbutcher1963]

Thackney,

Please, O wise one explain to me why regular unleaded gasoline here in NH is now $3.19 but home heating oil is $3.29 or more.
Keep in mind that there is State and Federal tax on gasoline and neither on heating oil. Also, heating oil up until a few years ago was typically half the price of gasoline. lastly, #2 heating oil is a low grade petroleum product which is far less expensive to refine than either gasoline or desiel.

P.S.
I know the rules of supply and demand so the people who would like to add their 2 cents, please refrain I am addressing this question to thackney because he seems to be our FR energy expert.

[thackney]

I don’t think any one item is going to explain it all away.

Going back a few years the EPA regulations for ULSD greatly impacted pricing on distallates. The home heating oil does not have that requirement, but gets impacted by the regulation.

http://www.ilta.org/LegislativeandRegulatory/MVNRLM/ULSDinfo.htm

Keeping the fuels separate in the refinery adds cost and some smaller refineries may not be economically able to do so. The result will be that the home heating oil will compete with the ultra low sulfur diesel market.

But I have to question the claim that it was half the price of gasoline a few years ago.

http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=W_EPD2F_PRS_NUS_DPG&f=W

[thackney]

forgot to mention, #2 heating oil and diesel are essentially the same product. Today we have a difference of sulfur requirements but they are often the stream in the refinery.

The road diesel may have some small amount of additives added to it, but in a pre-2007 either would run just fine using the other except in some extreme conditions.