Companies using heating oil have already begun rationing their fuel use, says Federation of Small Businesses
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Thousands of independent businesses across the UK are braced for their energy bills to more than double owing to the sharp rise in heating oil costs as the war in Iran pushed Europe’s fuel market prices to fresh record highs.
About 7% of all small and medium-sized companies warm their properties and provide hot water using heating oil, which in some cases has more than doubled in recent weeks.
Companies in rural areas are often not connected to the gas grid, meaning they have an even greater reliance on heating oil, which is a form of kerosene linked to the cost of jet fuel. It is used by about 17% of rural small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
