According to official population statistics, approximately 10 million people live in rural areas in the United Kingdom. Whilst more people live in urban areas, 17 out of every 100 people in England live in rural areas, and at least one in four are aged 65 years or older.
There are many benefits to living in the countryside, with a quieter and slower pace of life away from the hustle and bustle of city life which can offer a unique appeal. Advantages include beautiful scenery and open spaces, such as in Nidderdale, a designated area of outstanding beauty, proximity to nature in areas such as Seahouses and Bamburgh along the Northumberland coast, cleaner air quality with significantly less pollution and emissions than in highly populated towns such as Leeds or Sheffield, and a sense of community with small rural market towns such as Skipton and Richmond in North Yorkshire fostering close-knit communities, to name just a few.
However, rural communities can face challenges when it comes to energy due to geographical and infrastructural limitations. Many remote locations are off-grid meaning limited heating options, with householders frequently having to rely on alternative energy sources to mains gas.
In this blog we’re going to take a look at energy in rural areas, what the challenges are and why, and what the future holds.
What are the off-grid options?
The majority of households throughout the UK use mains gas and electricity as their domestic sources of energy. Indeed, the Census 2021 found that 73.8% of households in England and Wales used mains gas. But the estimated 4.4 millions households that are not connected to the mains gas grid, whether in Humberside or Harrogate, Northumberland or Nottinghamshire, or anywhere else in the UK, must look for alternative fuel sources such as heating oil, LPG, or solid fuel such as coal. Then there are renewable options such as heat pumps and solar panels.
Whilst there’s a lot of talk about heat pumps at the moment, they’re not a suitable alternative source of heating for many homes throughout the UK. Whilst they can be a good choice for off-grid new build properties, they are costly to install, are noisy and require significant upgrades to your property to achieve the same level of heat as from previous energy sources. These improvements can include upgrading existing loft and cavity wall insulation, and installing under floor heating and larger radiators – which all bump up the cost considerably of installing a heat pump.
Home heating oil is a popular choice for residential heating and hot water. The most common type is kerosene which is delivered by wagons and stored in tanks. Whilst a very efficient fuel, prices are highly volatile as they are closely linked to crude oil prices. However, other factors such as political unrest, supply and demand, exchange rates and even the weather also play their part. Over recent years, prices have been particularly volatile, with the recent COVID 19 pandemic lockdowns leading to a sharp drop in crude oil prices due to reduced demand, followed by big spikes in prices when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. It can be a challenge to know when is the best time to top up, but more recently, home heating oil prices have fallen to a 2-year low, which is great news for the many households that depend on it for heating and hot water.
LPG, or liquid petroleum gas, is another popular choice for heating off-grid homes where mains gas is unavailable – and is the closest thing you’ll get to using natural gas. A highly cost-effective and versatile fuel which can be used for heating, hot water and cooking, and even for fuelling appliances such as gas fires, it is clean burning, producing less carbon emissions than other fossil fuels such as heating oil or coal.
Guaranteeing constant supply
Unlike mains gas which is on constant supply, heating oil and LPG are stored in tanks in the grounds of the homeowners property. Of course, as a heating oil or LPG user, there’s always the risk your tank may run dry if you forget to top up or your supplier takes longer than usual to get to you when demand is high or weather can cause unexpected delays and challenges for transportation and delivery.
Many suppliers offer an automatic refilling service, a convenient delivery option based on your individual usage and factoring in weather and outdoor temperatures, which ensures you don’t run out of oil or LPG, and takes away the worry, particularly helpful during harsh weather.
There’s help there for the vulnerable and elderly (over 75’s) who can register with their local UKFIDA member heating oil supplier for The Cold Weather Priority initiative so deliveries can be prioritised for those most at risk. It’s a free scheme, designed and introduced by UKIFDA, the UK and Ireland Fuel Distributors Association, to allow vulnerable customers to access priority deliveries at no extra cost.
Off-grid domestic heating oil and LPG users generally need to buy their fuel in bulk, which can mean large one-off winter bills. However, many suppliers offer easy direct debit monthly payments to help homeowners spread the cost.
At Northern Energy, our Premium Package* for oil customers and our LPG Package* for LPG customers both offer the option of interest-free monthly payments and further benefits which include an automatic refilling service.
Regional variations in price
Whereas mains gas and electricity prices are controlled by OFGEM’s energy price cap, the market for heating oil, LPG and other alternative fuels is not regulated in the same way. Prices can vary from region to region due to several factors such as infrastructure, with some areas having better-developed storage facilities for instance, and transportation, with regions closer to refineries such as North Lincolnshire and the Humber region tending to have lower prices. Conversely, remoter areas such as the Yorkshire Dales and the North Yorkshire Moors National Park can face higher transportation costs.
According to Sutherland Tables, a quarterly publication of unit fuel costs, in December 2023, prices varied by from region to region. So if you live close to refineries in the Grimsby area in Lincolnshire, for instance, prices may well be cheaper than in more remote rural areas.
Looking to the future – the path to Net Zero
Households off the gas grid network currently use some of the highest-carbon heating fuels. So with the previous UK government’s commitment to reaching net zero by 2050, meaning that the total greenhouse gas emissions would be equal to the emissions removed from the atmosphere, whilst we are still waiting for the new Labour government to announce their plans, we need to transition away from fossil fuels. George Webb, CEO of Liquid Gas UK, the trade association for the liquid gas industry in the UK, said ‘decarbonising the way we all heat our homes will play a significant role in the UK meeting its net zero targets’.
So what does the future hold for households that rely on carbon fuels such as heating oil and LPG?
The good news is that renewable fuels are on their way. Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) is a renewable low-carbon fuel made from fossil free, certified sustainable waste materials that can be used instead of traditional domestic heating oil and diesel. A drop-in solution which can be used in existing systems with just a simple, cost-effective conversion, HVO can reduce net CO2 emissions by up to 90% with no need to buy an expensive new heating system.
And for LPG users, renewable gases are also on the horizon. BioLPG is a more environmentally friendly version of traditional LPG, being both renewable and sustainable. Like HVO, it can lower your carbon emissions by up to 90% and is a drop-in solution, so again there’s no requirement to install a new and costly heating system. In addition, there’s rDME (renewal dimethyl ether), a complimentary choice to BioLPG which is made from renewable feedstock such as methane from agriculture and municipal waste. At Northern Energy, we’re excited about these new renewable options that we’ll be able to offer soon.
Whilst living off-grid can offer many benefits, it can also be challenging, but if you’re prepared for the challenges, you’ll be able to overcome them. Keeping topped up with an automatic refilling service, undertaking energy efficiency measures at home and tackling heat loss, having your boiler serviced so its running at maximum efficiency, and preparing ahead of winter are just a few of the things householders can do.
If you're interested in switching to Northern Energy for your supply of heating oil, go online for a quick quote and to place your order, or to switch your LPG supply to us, get in touch on 01423 772 789.
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