Page 32 - Oil & Energy - March 2013

32 • OIL&ENERGY
production and global crude prices, total
distillate sales volumes were spurred to a
three-year high in 2011,” EIA wrote. “Total
sales of fuel oil and kerosene reached nearly
63.8 billion gallons, a modest 0.3 percent
increase over 2010. This year’s 178.0 million
gallon increase is the second smallest year-
to-year change in total sales volume since
data were first collected in 1984.”
Distillate sales increased almost 1.2
billion gallons, nearly 2.1 percent, in 2011
and were solely responsible for the overall
increase in total fuel oil and kerosene volume,
according to EIA. Sales of residual fuel and
kerosene decreased, 12.1 percent and nearly
38.6 percent respectively, between 2010
and 2011. Residual fuel oil sales fell 875.6
million gallons from 2010 levels to roughly
6.4 billion gallons. Kerosene remained the
most volatile sector in 2011 when sales
plummeted nearly 117.9 million gallons to
total almost 187.7 million gallons.
SHARE OF DISTILLATES SALES RISES
Distillate fuel oil sales increased as a
percentage of total fuel oil and kerosene
sales to an all-time high, accounting for 89.7
percent of total sales, EIA reports. Residual
fuel oil fell to a record low, comprising 10.0
percent of total fuel oil and kerosene sales.
Similarly, 2011 saw kerosene match a low
set in 2008 representing only 0.3 percent of
total fuel oil and kerosene sales.
Warm winter weather was not as severe
a problem in 2011 as in some other recent
years, according to EIA. For the year, 2011
was the twenty-thirdwarmest year on record
in the contiguous United States according
to the National Climatic Data Center, but
the winter months were cooler than average
across most of the country, with the coldest
temperature anomalies seen across the
Southeast. Florida experienced its tenth
coldest winter.
“Using heating degree days as an
indicator of heating requirements, 2011 was
a rather mild year with a 4.5 percent drop
versus the average,” EIA reported. “This
can be seen in the nearly 7.8 percent drop
in distillate sales to residential consumers.
The majority of this volume loss is centered
in the Northeast, which makes up a high
percentage of total homes heated by
distillates.
“Central Atlantic residential consumers
purchased about 178.6 million gallons, or
roughly 10 percent less in 2011. This also
points towards fuel switching as cheap,
locally produced natural gas has become
a realistic option for consumers in this
region,” EIA reported.
Fuel Sales Report
Sector Product 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Total U.S. Sales (thousand gallons)
Residential No. 2
Distillate Fuel Oil 4,650,931 4,937,882 4,746,683 4,245,439 3,833,190 3,683,095
Residential Kerosene 491,508 325,320 157,505 205,204 215,648 137,246
Commercial
No. 2 Distillate 2,610,044 2,526,463 2,396,852 2,750,751 2,650,146 2,891,891
Commercial Kerosene 112,392 67,960 32,857 31,231 35,646 23,635
Industrial Distillate
Fuel Oil 2,684,735 2,553,933 2,442,708 2,316,690 2,287,251 2,428,788
State/Region 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2011
Residential No. 2 Fuel Oil Sales (thousand gallons)
Connecticut 400,533 475,662 507,521 559,451 545,910 418,255
Maine 196,515 204,430 307,689 273,331 308,133 206,383
Massachusetts 739,337 723,636 811,103 810,055 673,859 578,961
New Hampshire 128,795 140,964 174,964 179,915 174,964 133,595
Rhode Island 139,249 106,546 141,080 129,246 136,566 109,981
Vermont 91,256 80,142 90,622 97,094 82,446 70,294
New England (PADD 1A) 1,695,685 1,731,380 2,038,294 2,049,091 1,921,878 1,517,469
Delaware 53,200 40,516 46,513 44,357 33,221 18,917
Maryland 208,177 179,310 199,689 192,665 149,919 109,470
New Jersey 752,559 481,526 489,629 405,046 322,088 187,371
New York 1,283,392 1,109,877 1,165,204 1,395,845 1,282,652 752,297
Pennsylvania 899,713 702,306 821,937 827,751 727,936 567,500
Central Atlantic (PADD 1B) 3,217,877 2,519,795 2,733,339 2,874,297 2,528,647 1,637,010
Virginia 212,693 213,034 209,418 224,159 197,143 115,000
Michigan 213,377 151,147 156,710 110,712 89,867 28,518
Wisconsin 238,522 176,248 153,496 113,025 113,190 41,090
West Virginia 18,333 23,440 19,446 19,931 13,498 9,338
North Carolina 190,972 145,480 162,343 127,951 81,528 41,320
U.S. Total 6,826,856 5,795,407 6,194,267 6,007,631 5,456,454 3,638,095
LONG-TERM TRENDS
The changes in sales volume from 2010
to 2011 were unremarkable, but the long-
term shifts continue to signal transition for
the Oilheat industry. 2011 residential sales
for the U.S. tumbled by 39 percent between
2000 and 2011, from 6.01 billion gallons to
3.64 billion. New England total sales fell by
26 percent from 2000 to 2011, and Central
Atlantic sales fell 43 percent.
A few states saw particularly sharp
declines between 2000 and 2011. New York
alone sustained a sales loss of 643 million
gallons over those 11 years, which marked
was a 46 percent decline. New Jersey’s
decline was even steeper, with sales falling
almost 54 percent from 405 million gallons
to 187 million.
Lower-volume Oilheat states also saw
a precipitous plunge. In Virginia, sales
fell 48.7 percent over that span, from 224
million gallons to 115 million. Michigan
sales fell from 110 million gallons in 2000
to just 28.5 million in 2011 (74 percent),
while Wisconsin slipped 63.7 percent, from
113 million to 41 million.
Annual U.S. Sales of Distillate Products, 2006-11
Historical No. 2 Fuel Oil Sales by State and Region, 1985-2011
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration