The Consumer Council has welcomed the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) Heating Oil Market Study, commissioned after sharp rises in heating oil prices linked to conflict in the Middle East. The Council said the work is a positive step that captures a regionally diverse market and the material differences between Northern Ireland (NI) and Great Britain (GB).

This marks the second energy price crisis in four years. While heating oil costs have retreated from the peaks that followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, they remain above pre-invasion levels and continue to hit vulnerable consumers and households hardest.

Most of the price paid by consumers reflects movements in global wholesale markets, amplified by geopolitical events, conflict and other external factors. The CMA found wholesale prices accounted for 83% of the overall increase since March 2026. In the past week alone, the average daily price for 500 litres of home heating oil has risen by 24%. Regulation of the retail supply chain on its own is therefore unlikely to offer adequate protection from these pressures. According to the CMA, NI's heating oil market functions well in terms of competition and retail price transparency, and there is some consumer protection. Outside periods of significant market disruption, the volume of heating oil enquiries and complaints to the Consumer Council remains relatively low.

Consumers in NI already benefit from transparent retail pricing, protection of consumer rights, a voluntary industry code of conduct, access to independent redress, and flexibility around minimum order volumes. These measures are reinforced by information campaigns, research and advocacy. The CMA also recognised the Consumer Council's Heating Oil Price Checker as an example of best practice, alongside the statutory roles of both the Consumer Council and the Trading Standards Service.

The Consumer Council acknowledges the current framework could be strengthened. Any new regulatory approach should reflect the make-up of the NI heating oil sector, take account of existing legislative levers, close gaps in consumer protection across the whole-system supply chain, and identify which statutory organisations are best placed to act.

The Council looks forward to working with the Northern Ireland Executive, the Department for the Economy, the CMA and wider partners to develop a proportionate solution that supports consumers and communities, with a focus on those most at risk.