Maine heating oil costs just hit a record high — again
Workers fills oil trucks at the Sprague Terminal in South Portland in 2022. Heating oil costs just hit their second all-time high in a month. (Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer)
Heating oil costs in Maine just hit an all-time high for the second time this fall.
The Maine Department of Energy Resources said Thursday that the average gallon of heating oil cost $6.04, breaking the record set last month by two cents. Costs are up by 83% over last October, when that same gallon cost an average of $3.30.
At this price, Mainers will spend about $750 more filling a standard 275-gallon oil tank than last fall.
“Maine has broken yet another record for heating oil prices, putting even more pressure on families as winter approaches,” Acting DOER Commissioner Celina Cunningham said in a news release.
President Donald Trump and his administration’s officials have long told the public that the U.S. and Israel’s war in Iran, which has constricted the crucial oil passageway of the Strait of Hormuz and driven oil prices up, would be quickly resolved. But Trump said this month that the U.S. would not resume strikes on Iran until after the midterm elections next month, a move that could drag out the conflict.
Since the war with Iran began in late February, Maine heating oil prices have spiked 57%.
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With costs at their new record high, Maine’s federally supported heating assistance fund, the Home Energy Assistance Program, won’t go as far as in past winters — even with an early release of those funds and $4 million in carryover from last year.
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Maine, as the state most reliant on heating oil, is most vulnerable to price spikes and stood to gain most from the early release of those federal heating assistance funds. About 45,000 households received the supplemental assistance last year, MaineHousing said — and the primary population served by heating assistance programs are seniors on fixed incomes.
To help ease price concerns, the U.S. Department of Energy announced Wednesday that it would release 315,000 barrels of heating oil through a rarely used emergency stockpile, the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve.
Those 315,000 barrels, which carry about 42 gallons each, would fill about 48,100 standard-size heating oil tanks.
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But with the release split between the New England states and New York, which by itself has 1.7 million households dependent on heating oil, it’s unclear how the extra supply will impact prices in Maine.
The Department of Energy is using an “exchange” to release the new heating oil — a process where oil companies bid on and receive at least 25,000 barrels of the strategic reserves, and then must return the entire portion they took, plus at least 5% extra, at a later date. The oil will hit the market next month.
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Companies must return heating oil to the federal government by April 2027 or face an additional premium that increases by 2.5% monthly, according to the Department of Energy’s request for bids.
But if the Iran war continues into next spring, long-term supply issues may remain.
Heating oil has become a campaign issue, less than two weeks out from Election Day. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and her Democratic challenger, Troy Jackson, have blamed each other for high costs. Gubernatorial candidates have also called for more heating assistance funding.
Applications for heating assistance are open now. Maine residents hoping to apply for HEAP funding or looking for other assistance can contact their local community action program or call 211. The state also releases an annual Winter Heating Guide with cost-saving resources for households of all incomes.
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Tagged: cost of living, Department of Energy Resources, heating assistance, heating costs, heating oil
Ethan reports on cost of living for the Portland Press Herald. Before he joined in mid-2026, he covered local news in Augusta and surrounding areas and ran a weekly newsletter for the Kennebec Journal. More by Ethan Horton
