NI ‘least energy secure’ part of UK, MLAs warned amid surging oil prices

Northern Ireland is the “least energy secure” and “most exposed” part of the UK to global oil and gas shocks, MLAs have been warned as the Middle East war extended into a fourth day.

David Honeyford, Alliance MLA for Lagan Valley, said Stormont ministers need to devise a “contingency strategy” if prices rise further given the region’s dependency on home heating oil.

The majority of households (61%) in Northern Ireland use oil as their primary method of household heating, compared to just 5% across the UK.

On Tuesday oil prices rose further to stand at a one-year high after Iran took action to block the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route for crude tankers, as part of its response to a US and Israel military campaign which has continued since an initial strike killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.

Oil had soared by as much as 13% at one stage on Monday, rising above 82 dollars a barrel, before paring back.

In the Stormont Assembly, Mr Honeyford said families had woken on Tuesday to see “home heating oil price dramatically rising, instantly, overnight” and reiterated his party’s call for home heating oil to be regulated.

“The guarantee of transparency and fairness is absolutely essential for people,” he said.

“If suppliers are simply passing on wholesale costs then they need to show the workings out, they need to publish the numbers and they need to restore public confidence.

“The public rightly will call out how quickly prices can rise dramatically, instantly, but never seem to come down at the same rate of knots.

“Because here’s the reality, in Northern Ireland we are most exposed part of these islands to global oil and gas shocks. We are the least energy secure on these islands.

“Our energy prices are some of the highest in Europe because our energy is based on fossil fuels that we import, mainly from the Middle East.”

He added: “When energy spikes, everything spikes, and this has landed on top of fuel poverty, some of the highest, again, in these islands, recent reports state over 40% of households already spend more than 10% of their income and energy.”

He called on the Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald and Communities Minister Gordon Lyons to engage with oil suppliers and asked “what contingency plan is under way if prices climb further”.

Sinn Fein MLA for Mid-Ulster Emma Sheerin accused the DUP of “crying about the raise in the price of oil, the cost to our constituents, but not a word about the human cost of all of those who’ve lost their lives as a result of more unnecessary conflict”.

She told MLAs: “We have 165 young girls murdered by Israel, and no condemnation from the DUP, crying over spilt milk this morning with a reason in the increase of oil prices, actions have consequences, and when we have unnecessary conflict across the world killing innocent people and our constituents suffer as a result, that’s when you realise that your support has consequences.”

DUP MLA for North Antrim Paul Frew said people are “rightly worried about the rise in heating oil prices”, but said his party have “always been and will continue to be opposed” to regulation of the industry “because it will hurt consumers”.

“If you regulate retail markets which are really tightly competitive, then what you’re doing is you’re putting that spike over a period of six months. That’s what you will do,” he said.

“We will all pay more at the pumps, at the tanker for oil heating every time we purchase it, not just when it spikes. We need to do something on wholesale markets.”

He added: “The utility regulator is worried about the spike and about crude oil and about refined oil, but we have one of the best, tightly contested, competitive retail markets for heating oil.

“What we should do is ensure that our consumers and our householders have a choice of heating.

“So when we build houses with no chimneys, when we go to ban wood burning stoves, when you electrify heat, when you monopolise heat, well then all you’re doing is allowing, all you’re doing is making sure that our consumers and our householders have no choice, no choice when it comes to heating, and that means prices will go up.”

Gas prices on Monday also surged at the fastest pace since the outbreak of war in Ukraine, up 52%, after Qatar halted production of liquified natural gas after attacks by Iran and were up around another 20% on Tuesday.