Page 31 - Oil and Energy-February 2013

February 2013 • 31
Continued …
GRAY, GRAY & GRAY, LLP CERTIFIED PUBLIC
Accountants, of Westwood, Mass., has
released the results of a survey the firm
conducted on the use and acceptance of
Bioheat® fuel in the home energy industry.
Responses to the survey were obtained from
home heating oil dealers from the Northeast
and Mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S.
“Bioheat® fuel is still a relatively new
product in the home heating oil business,
and our survey was designed to get a sense
of how dealers are adapting to this option,”
said Joe Ciccarello, CPA, managing partner
at Gray, Gray & Gray. “We discovered that
acceptance of Bioheat® fuel by dealers is
slowly building, but customer awareness
and demand is still low.”
Survey results included the following:
• 45% of dealers believe Bioheat® fuel is
a logical “next step” to help the heating
oil industry reposition itself
• Yet only 23% of dealers currently sell
Bioheat® fuel
• Of these, almost half deliver Bioheat®
fuel without informing customers of
the change in formulation
• Only 16% of dealers report that
customers have requested Bioheat® fuel
• 80% of dealers feel their customers are
unaware of the heating oil industry’s
transition to Bioheat ® fuel
Nearly half (49%) of the respondents
reported being aware of problems with
Bioheat® fuel. The most prevalent issue is
a freeze point that is higher than unblended
heating oil, resulting in gelling and clogging
issues (61%).
Here is a look at the survey responses.
1. In what state does your company
primarily do business?
CT:......................................................... 9%
DE: ....................................................... 1%
ME: ...................................................... 7%
MD: ...................................................... 1%
MA: ..................................................... 19%
NH: ...................................................... 5%
NJ: ...................................................... 10%
NY: .................................................... 15%
PA: ...................................................... 24%
RI: ....................................................... 3%
VT: ....................................................... 3%
VA: ....................................................... 3%
2. Which description best describes your
business?
a. Heating oil dealer, full service: ........ 83%
b. Heating oil dealer, COD/discount ... 13%
c. Wholesale marketing
company /terminal operator: ........... 4%
3. How familiar are you with Bioheat ® fuel?
a. Very familiar.................................... 39%
b. Moderately familiar ......................... 50%
c. Not familiar ..................................... 11%
4. Does your company currently market
and sell Bioheat® fuel?
a. Yes ................................................... 23%
b. No.................................................... 77%
5. Are you a registered Bioheat ® fuel dealer?
a. Yes ................................................... 23%
b. No.................................................... 77%
6. Fuel dealers: If you sell Bioheat® fuel,
what blend percentage are you selling?
a. 2%...................................................... 7%
b. 5%.................................................... 17%
c. 6-20%................................................. 3%
d. Do not know ..................................... 2%
e. N/A (I do not sell Bioheat® fuel)....... 71%
7. Fuel dealers: If you sell Bioheat® fuel,
are you publicly promoting Bioheat®
fuel or simply delivering it without
consumer knowledge?
a. Marketing it ..................................... 14%
b. Just delivering it .............................. 13%
c. N/A (I do not sell Bioheat®) .............. 73%
8. Fuel dealers: If you are not selling
Bioheat® fuel, why not?
a. It is not available through
my wholesale partners..................... 19%
b. Not comfortable with
the technical aspects ....................... 26%
c. It is too expensive............................ 20%
d. Other ............................................... 35%
No demand from customer .............(19%)
No storage ......................................(15%)
Not stable .......................................(13%)
Not proven successful
for today’s equipment .....................(13%)
Not needed/No interest from oil dealer..(12%)
Availability/Distribution ................(12%)
Cost ................................................(12%)
Don’t know enough about it..............(4%)
9. Is biodiesel or Bioheat® fuel available in
your terminal network?
a. Yes ................................................... 72%
b. No.................................................... 28%
10. Where is your company’s primary supply
of heating oil, biodiesel or a blend of both
located, in proximity to your business?
a. 0-10 miles ........................................ 19%
b. 10-25 miles...................................... 40%
c. 25-50 miles ...................................... 24%
d. 50+ miles......................................... 17%
11. Do your customers ever request
Bioheat® fuel?
a. Yes ................................................... 16%
b. No.................................................... 84%
12. Do you feel your customers are aware
of the heating fuel industry’s transition
to Bioheat® fuel?
a. Yes ................................................... 20%
b. No.................................................... 80%
13. If yes: What percentage of your
customers do you feel are aware
of the move to Bioheat® fuel?........ 31%
14. Have you ever used the Bioheat® fuel
sales and marketing tools available
through the National Biodiesel Board?
a. Yes ................................................... 13%
b. No.................................................... 71%
c. Not aware that they were available .... 16%
15. Do you believe Bioheat® fuel is a logical
“next step” to help the heating oil
industry reposition itself?
a. Yes ................................................... 45%
b. No.................................................... 55%
16. Do you believe that the conventional
heating oil you are currently selling is
competitive against other fuels such as
natural gas, propane or wood pellets?
a. Yes ................................................... 22%
b. No.................................................... 78%
17. Do you think Bioheat® fuel, against
other fuels such as natural gas, propane
or wood pellets, is:
a. More competitive............................... 9%
Survey Shows Support for
Bioheat ® as Next Step for Industry
Gray, Gray & Gray study shows dealers believe
customers lack awareness of biofuel blends
Bioheat