OFTEC have great news for manufacturers of oil boilers and the installers that work on them.   You may have noticed that oil heating has been getting a lot of great press recently. In 2015 oil prices have dropped to a six year low meaning that it is currently the cheapest form of heating fuel for houses in the UK.   As we reach the winter months, November is about to see oil boiler sales reach a five year high, an amazing turn of events given the soaring cost of oil less than five years ago.   This is beginning to lead to an increase in demand for installers with OFTEC approved oil qualifications, which we deliver at our Basildon centre.   Purchases of new, high efficiency oil condensing boilers are at their highest level since 2010. Sales from January to October 2015 are up 9% on the same period the previous year. Given the uncertainty over renewables during the election in the summer, and the subsequent cuts to FiTs and the collapse of the green deal, it is maybe no surprise that the demand for oil boilers has increased.   The average UK selling price of kerosene in England and Wales fell to around 35ppl in September. This is the lowest point since autumn 2009 and almost 50% cheaper than when prices peaked in spring 2013.   OFTEC director general, Jeremy Hawksley said:   “The growth in oil boiler sales is clearly excellent news for manufacturers and heating installers, with three strong quarters of results. This is backed up by positive feedback from our OFTEC technicians, suggesting there is plenty of work around.   “Low prices are making an enormous difference to oil using households, with many saving hundreds of pounds on their fuel bills. Oil is now by far the cheapest major heating fuel with typical annual costs currently around £793 pa – that’s 48.7% cheaper than LPG, 50% less expensive than electric storage heaters and 24% cheaper than mains gas.”   “The fact that consumers are benefitting directly from the dramatic drop in prices makes oil heating even more attractive for both existing and new users. Predicting future kerosene prices is always difficult but with world demand for crude oil remaining low and continued oversupply, it’s likely that prices will remain low for some time to come. So far 2015 is certainly proving to be an outstanding year for oil heating users and manufacturers and technicians working in the industry.”
 

Get the right training

  This is a great time to invest in oil heating training. Logic4training’s OFTEC approved oil heating courses cover:     You can take these courses individually or we offer an oil boiler training and assessment package which covers OFT101, OFT105E and OFT600a.     oftec logo
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