Heating Oil will go up 30% next year

Frank Pastor has spent three years in a house that reaches about 52 degrees in the winter. His Cabot home is poorly insulated and a small propane heating unit can’t keep up with winter’s cold.

This year, Pastor is expecting to set the thermostat about 10 degrees warmer. The state is helping the 62-year-old who suffers from diabetes and has no feeling in his feet to winterize his home, and a USDA Rural Development grant will pay for a new oil furnace.

Filling his new oil tank will be costly, though. Heating oil costs are expected to rise more than 30 percent this year, from about $1.60 a gallon to $2.10 for pre-buy prices.

Times Argus