Bulk LPG - Cheapest suppliers / supply route?

Speakeasy_2

Yes I thought I might wind a few of you up about wood burning and "burningissues". Certainly not put me off. If these costs keep going up, it will be a question medium term survival anyway. I already sit in the house dressed like an Eskimo (laughing).

SD-253

Speakeasy wrote: »

Must admit I have not seen these new contracts. I was offered a contract a couple of months ago and if they went above the 3p in 6 months, it just meant that you could break the contract. You therefore had to pay the increase or find someone else.

Now that looks like a good contract I was unaware that was they way they were worded as they have not bothered giving me one. I suspect this may alowe me to change suppliers before the end of the 2 years?
As stated I would prefer if they did not go bankrupt therefore reducing what I consider to be insufficient competition

HateLPG

SD-253_(a.k.a._brandeberryj) wrote: »

Now that looks like a good contract I was unaware that was they way they were worded as they have not bothered giving me one. I suspect this may alowe me to change suppliers before the end of the 2 years?
As stated I would prefer if they did not go bankrupt therefore reducing what I consider to be insufficient competition

To clarify (at least based on my meagre knowledge of the various LPG contracts currently around):

Those contemporary (i.e. POST CC ruling) contracts that I have seen which have any kind of "price cap" clause (and not all do), effectively offer a "get out" if the price rise exceeds a certain pre-determined rate (not always too useful - Shell last year offered a 10ppl/6 month cap , as I have posted before).

There were some contracts (specifically Calor contracts) issued prior to implementation of the new CC rules that offered a hard and fast and contractually enforceable price cap during the first two years of your contract (remember, contracts back then were typically 3 or 5 years), subject to certain conditions (i.e. if you were signed up to a "Special Introductory Price"). I cannot remember, off the top of my head, whether there was then any limit to the price rise they could impose after expiry of the "Special Introductory Price", but as that's all now ancient history, I don't plan to go digging out my ancient contracts to calrify that - unless someone is still on one of those old contract and specifically needs that info )

Speakeasy_2

Just one last thing Brandeberryj with reference to what you have here:

I have figures that there is 30% more heat in a litre of oil compared to a litre of lpg. The opposite of what brandeberryj posted,

As can be seen I have started a new sentence and went on to refer to what lpg-solutions said about oil burning slightly more efficiently than lpg. Granted it may not be completely clear but if I remember your post about lpg-solutions was on the same page. Remember I have only been a member of this forum a few days and do not know a lot about what has gone on before. I came to the conclusion that there was around 30% more heat in a litre of oil compared to a litre of lpg about 2 years ago. The figures I came across were in Kgs and since we buy by volume, I had to convert using the specific gravity of oil and lpg. The figures turned out to be very close to what you have.

Janners

So I rang around the companies listed on uklpg.org as supplying to my postcode (Newark area):
Discount Gas Supplies - say they don't deliver to my postcode
Bulk Gas UK - didn't seem interested, their price is 43ppl, variable rate only and said they'd contact existing supplier first to get tank price before deciding whether they'd buy it.
Calor Gas - didn't contact them today as when I rang them in December they were already asking 46ppl.
Flogas - offered 39ppl in December fixed for 6 months £79 tank rental, then paperwork never arrived and not impressed with their customer service. Won't be signing with them.
Shell - my renewal came through at 46ppl which I queried and they reduced to 43ppl. £100 for tank rental per year. Wasn't able to get through on the phone today as I was short on time so couldn't hold long. Will try again tomorrow to get the rental reduced to £60 in line with what others appear to be paying.
Energas - haven't returned my call. Will update here if they do.
Extrafuel - didn't contact them as ran out of time

I think on balance I'll just renew with Shell as I've had no problems with their customer service/deliveries over the past 2 yrs and the price doesn't appear to be over the top having seen some of the nightmare prices quoted on this thread Edit: Oh and I checked the contract which has the 3ppl in 6 months clause.

sabretoothtigger

Speakeasy wrote: »

Just one last thing Brandeberryj with reference to what you have here:

I have figures that there is 30% more heat in a litre of oil compared to a litre of lpg. The opposite of what brandeberryj posted,

Calorific content. Thats correct, LPG is not as 'good' as oil or petrol.

If you run your car on LPG for example it will give a 20% lower MPG then the same car on petrol. Thats because it has less energy, LPG is a fine energy source otherwise

If you want to go all way, you'd find Coal has an even higher calorific content and gives out even more energy for its weight.
Most people arent going to return to coal, its more then one factor

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relative_cost_of_electricity_generated_by_different_sources

LittleVermin

Janners wrote: »

I think on balance I'll just renew with Shell as I've had no problems with their customer service/deliveries over the past 2 yrs and the price doesn't appear to be over the top having seen some of the nightmare prices quoted on this thread Edit: Oh and I checked the contract which has the 3ppl in 6 months clause.

Thanks for sharing all the prices (and non-prices!).

If you've a little time - and are not desperate for a fill - I wonder if you'd give Mole Valley Farmers a ring, please (01769 576201) and see what they might do for you (if you joined them for £10 p.a.). Maybe they don't operate in Newark/Notts but I don't see why not as the YOBCO oil buying consortium has become national (having started in one village).

On MVF's website on the fuel oil page they have flagged up Calor, Flogas and Shell (see http://www.molevalleyfarmers.com/mvf/info/farming/Fuel_Oils ). I guess you might also ask if they could send you a graph of their prices over the last - say - two years (which you can then compare with the info HateLPG gathered (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=38448236&postcount=324 ) - and Extra Fuel will email you a graph of their prices (well, they did to me ... but at that time - May this year - their price were far less than I was paying BP).

You just might get a moreish/moleish Shell deal! A moley good starting price plus not more than 3p in 6 months rise. [That's enough sillies. Ed]

{OK, I'd better explain - MVF's logo is a mole, naturally. Despite farmers hating the animals and just about exterminating them in fields. When the BSE crisis was at its height lots of farmers' cars round here sported a sticker showing an anthropomorphised mole chewing on a straw and saying "I eat British Beef".}

DAVID.T_3

i think flogas have just increased bulk by 7p ltr, anyone received a letter yet?

HateLPG

DAVID.T wrote: »

i think flogas have just increased bulk by 7p ltr, anyone received a letter yet?

Holy McKeith!!!!!!

HateLPG

From the Consumer Focus website:

Consumer Focus welcomes your views on our draft Annual Plan for 2011/12!to help ensure our work achieves the most benefit for consumers.!

This document presents potential areas of work for Consumer Focus in 2011/12. We can’t do all the projects contained in this document.! We would like your help in making decisions including on those areas where you think we should focus our efforts and any which you feel are of lesser priority.

The consultation process runs from 17 December 2010 to 18 March 2011. Your responses will help determine how we could use our powers and resources to best effect to advance the interests of consumers.

The draft plan can be found on their website: http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/publications/draft-annual-plan-for-consultation

The head of Consumer Focus was also on today's "You and Yours" - see http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00x97j0 for "listen again" (about 25 mins in), asking people to contact them with any concerns or areas they feel should be investigated.