MP urges residents to join oil clubs

The initiative is funded by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive and will run for three years. It is hoped the scheme will help 5,000 homes achieve cheaper oil.

The DUP man said: “At a time when fuel poverty is increasing in Northern Ireland and 68 per cent of households are dependent on using oil boilers as their main heat source, any way in which the price of oil purchased can be reduced is a valuable service.

“The cheapest way to buy oil is by bulk deliveries such as 900 litres and smaller quantities tend to cost more per litre for delivery.

“Even though oil prices are the lowest they have been for many years, I know that many households still struggle to pay for large one-off deliveries and local oil clubs are a way of getting round this problem. They help consumers by reducing the cost of purchasing their oil by buying oil in bulk as part of a group and then distributing it in small lots to individual consumers.

“It is anticipated that 12 clubs will be set up in the northern region and some of them will cover Northern Ireland and Bryson are looking for community groups and organisations to help them to set up and establish such clubs.

“The benefit of this arrangement will be that it is free to set up and free to join, it will be available to all household tenures whether it is privately owned houses, rented houses or Housing Executive homes. It saves money and everyone gets the oil at the same price, regardless of the size of their order. It also avoids people on low incomes having to purchase expensive emergency 20 litre drums.

“I would encourage community associations in the East Antrim area to make contact with Bryson Energy at Unit 2 Rivers Edge, 13-15 Ravenhill Road, Belfast, BT6 8DN, or visit on-line at http://www/brysongroup.org to see what role they can play in helping to address this particular solution to fuel poverty.”