A renewable energy company says it has had more than 800 inquiries in seven days due to the increasing price of heating oil.
Josh Young, 31, chief executive at Greenscape Energy based in Ipswich, said he was dealing with a mass of inquiries for things such as solar panels and air source heat pumps.
It comes as prices for heating oil, as well as petrol and diesel, have increased due to the US-Israel war with Iran in the Middle East.
“It’s gone crazy in the last week,” Young said.
“We’ve had over 800 inquiries in seven days; trying to deal with them is really tough at the moment, but we’ve had worse things to manage,” he said.
“A normal month is around 250 to 300 inquiries, so to have nearly 700 in seven days is just off the charts, but it’s very similar to the Ukraine scenario when Russia invaded.
“It’s the same amount of volume coming through.”
Young said customers he had given quotes to years ago were returning to see if those quotes were still valid.
Since the US-Israel war with Iran began, oil and gas prices have soared, with crude up 45% to $106 (£80) a barrel.
Around 20% of the world’s oil usually flows through the Strait of Hormuz, but Iran’s targeting of shipping through the vital waterway has effectively brought it to a complete halt.
Brandon Rood, 27, is the director and founder of Greenwave Renewables in Bury St Edmunds.
He said he had seen a “massive increase in demand, particularly from people with oil systems”, with customers trying to benefit from the £7,500 government grant for air-source heat pumps.
“A lot of people are on oil around here and the price of oil has absolutely soared,” he explained.
Rood said inquiries had doubled compared with this time last year.
“Heat pumps weren’t always a massive cost saver with running costs because of the price of electricity being quite high,” he added.
“But given the price of oil now and the surge seen, given that a lot of companies are bringing out these smart tariffs which make it a lot more attractive, we’re seeing a much bigger uptake.
“It makes a lot more sense now financially as well as environmentally, whereas it was just an environmental decision before.”
Greg Jackson, head of the UK’s biggest energy firm Octopus Energy, said it had seen a 50% rise in solar panel sales due to the war.
Daniel Pilley, owner of The Gainsborough Health Club and Spa near Sudbury which uses oil for its pool, has said large oil companies are “profiteering” and more needed to be done to stop the issue.
