Just got my propane bill and was shocked. The price per gallon shot up from $1.11 a gallon to $1.33 a gallon...in the space of three months. That's a 22 cents increase, or about nearly 20%. I shudder to think what percentage rate that equals on a yearly basis.

I thought y2k was a non-event? Propane is mainly produced in the U.S., so they can't blame OPEC for this price hike.

What really amazes me is that Wall Street has totally ignored the ramifications of these serious price hikes.

-- Sure M. Hopeful (Hopeful@future.com), February 13, 2000

Answers

So far.

-- JB (noway@jose.com), February 13, 2000.

Propane is mainly produced in the U.S., so they can't blame OPEC for this price hike.

Sure, here's your research project for the day.

Reference: BP Amoco Statistical Review of World Energy, June 1999, Link

1. Find out where propane comes from. [hint: it's a product of the production of crude oil or natural gas]

2. Find out where these basic ingredients come from. [hint: you know where crude oil is produced, and most of it isn't in the US. How about the combination of NG and LNG?........we use mostly LNG, that comes from the mid east if the BP-Amoco report is to be believed.]

Actually, however, you're right in that most of the propane problems have been pipeline problems. Question: did Williams Energy really let a back hoe drop into a pipeline, or is that a cover story?

-- rocky (rknolls@no.spam), February 13, 2000.

Hey, I'll trade you for my heating oil bill. Just paid $1.74 a gallon, and that's down from the peak. It also represents a near-100 percent increase over prices in mid-November. Of *course* it's not y2k- related, it's just a coincidence that Saudi has cut its oil output 25 percent. Has anyone heard from any of our Saudi or Mideast oil people in the last few weeks? I saw a post from DD1st Light about activity in US oil fields, but have seen nothing about the Middle East since the rumors about the Saudi oil port going TU right after rollover.

-- Cash (cash@andcarry.com), February 13, 2000.

Hopeful, Had my propane tank filled about two weeks ago. Paid .80/gallon up from .70/gallon from early November. I was delighted, thinking it was going to be a lot higher. Just paid 1.46/gallon for diesel for the truck. I live west of Minnepolis. I'm going to keep burning lots of firewood hoping to make that my last fill this winter. Hope things settle down by June. I feel bad for thoses people whose heating bills that have double. Take Care

-- Bill (sticky@2sides.tape), February 13, 2000.

Please don't think I am gloating, but my last propane fill was at 60 cents. That was only because my supplier had locked in a price for the season before last Fall. (I have a good dealer.) I am sure it's on its way up.

As for the higher cost of heating oil, those of you with oil must consider that the number of btus in oil is considerably higher than propane, so cost per btu is not as different as it appears. Although the cost per gallon is less for us, we use it up a lot faster.

It looks like it will be a good summer to diligently tighten up the house. Turning the south wall into a big solar panel is beginning to sound like a good idea.

Perhaps we should become an alternate energy board, thereby helping each other to save money, and satisfying the poor souls who are troubled that we continue to exist after the rollover.

regards,

gene

-- gene (ekbaker@essex1.com), February 13, 2000.

Well, here in Florida my propane bill did not go up one cent....its ALWAYS BEEN $1.39!!!!

-- Taz (Tassi123@aol.com), February 13, 2000.

we paid $1.17 a gallon for propane the middle of Jan. our delivery last week was $1.79 a gallon, that's 1 months diference. Heating oil we locked in at $.79 a gallon last summer, haven't had a delivery since the end of Dec. 1999. It seems our Fuel Co. is reluntant to deliver as of now and we are on automatic. We live in the State of VT and have been a lurker on TB for over a yr.

-- Connie (dcbrown100@aol.com), February 14, 2000.