Mainers are becoming increasingly less reliant on oil to keep their homes warm throughout the winter, but despite this trend, fuel oil is still the most predominant way that Mainers are choosing to heat their homes.
Federal data shared by the State of Maine reveals that 50.3 percent of residential heating is achieved with fuel oil, a proportion that has steadily declined for the past several years as alternatives have begun to gain prominence.
Down 2.2 points from last year, usage of fuel oil for heating has dropped 20 percent since 2018. In 2010, more than 70 percent of energy consumed for residential heating was accounted for by fuel oil.
During this same period, use of propane and electricity for home heating have been on the rise. Since last year, propane usage has risen by 2.2 points, while use of electricity has increased by .7 points.
When comparing the breakdown of how Mainers heat their homes to nationwide measurements, Maine appears to be an outlier.
While half the state relies on heating oil, residential heating nationwide is accomplished by nearly equal parts natural gas (47 percent) and electricity (42 percent).
In Maine, natural gas and electricity only account for 16 percent and 14 percent respectively of the energy sources consumed in the state for residential heating.
Although the differences are far less stark when compared to other states in New England, which largely share Maine’s cold climate, there are still some noticeable differences.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Northeast accounted for 82 percent of fuel oil usage for home heating in the winter of 2023-2024.
Fuel oil accounted for 37 percent of energy sources consumed for residential heating in New Hampshire, followed by 35 percent in Connecticut and Vermont. This share drops to 25 percent in Rhode Island and 20 percent in Massachusetts.
In these states, the remaining share of energy consumption is either spread more broadly across the alternatives or is largely concentrated in natural gas, an energy source that is typically less available in more rural areas due to its reliance on well-developed infrastructure.
Despite comprising a smaller overall share than in Maine, fuel oil is still the most commonly used energy source for residential heating in Vermont and New Hampshire.
Propane accounts for a larger share of residential heating consumption in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, coming in between 16 percent and 20 percent, while occupying just 4 percent to 6 percent in other New England states.
In no New England state does electricity stand as the dominant energy source for residential heating, accounting for only 12 percent to 20 percent of total consumption.
Gov. Janet Mills (D) has largely attributed the state’s decreasing reliance on heating oil to her administration’s efforts to expand heat pump usage.
“Since I took office, Maine’s reliance on heating oil has dropped significantly thanks to our nation-leading work to promote cost saving measures, including programs focused on high efficiency heat pumps,” Gov. Mills said in a statement Monday.
“This progress is making a real difference for Maine people and businesses, improving their energy efficiency and cutting energy costs,” she added.
In 2011, Maine established statutory goals for the reduction of heating oil usage by 30 percent by 2030 from the state’s 2007 levels, and by 50 percent by 2050.
Mills goes on to note in her statement that the state has already exceeded the 2030 goal and is on the way toward achieving the 2050 goal.
“Maine has long aimed to reduce its dependence on heating oil, and this unprecedented drop shows how key investments in energy efficiency are lowering energy costs while growing our economy,” said Dan Burgess, Acting Commissioner of the Maine Department of Energy Resources (DOER).
“We must continue this progress to ensure more families and businesses are able to reap the benefits that affordable, efficient, modern heat pumps provide.”
[RELATED: Maine’s New Cabinet-Level Department of Energy Resources Marks Official Launch]
“The progress we’re seeing with heat pumps as the primary heating system for so many Maine homes is a testament to how well the technology now performs in cold weather and how hard Maine’s contractors have worked to market and install these systems,” said Michael Stoddard, Executive Director of Efficiency Maine.
“I think Maine boasts many of the best heat pump installers in the country,” Stoddard added. “These crews can completely convert a home to heat pumps in four or five hours.”
According to Yale Climate Connections — a project of Yale Center for Environmental Communication at Yale University — most heat pumps are able to run at full capacity at temperatures as low as 5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Although the systems will still produce heat at lower temperatures, heat pumps may “not necessarily keep it as warm as you may typically like.” In these cases, the group recommends turning to “backup heat sources,” noting that “supplementary heat is important for heat pumps in cold climates.”
[RELATED: Heating Oil Use Declines 6% as Mainers Adopt Subsidized Electric Heat Pumps]
In her Monday press release, Mills went on to detail the increasing number of heat pumps that have been installed in Maine over the past few years, as well as the growing number of “clean energy” jobs being created.
“Energy efficiency” jobs are said to account for more than half of the 15,600 jobs in this sector as of 2023.
The governor then goes on to indicate that the newly created DOER plans to award $1.2 million to support training programs in heat pump installation and maintenance, as well as weatherization.
This comes on top of the $7 million that has already been invested in “clean energy workforce development and innovation” since 2022.
