Thursday, the Canadian government announced it will require all diesel fuel and home heating oil sold in the country to contain at least 2 per cent oil from renewable sources.

Environment minister Peter Kent and Agriculture minister Gerry Ritz made the announcement at a biofuel factory in rural Ontario.

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s largest oil refinery, in Baiji, was crippled by a predawn attack on Saturday in which gunmen stormed the vast complex, killed one engineer and set off several bombs.

The attack shut down parts of the Baiji Refinery, halting the production of about 150,000 barrels per day of petroleum products and threatening to interrupt supplies of heating oil, gasoline and oil for generators for millions of people in northern Iraq.

There are higher at the gas pump and for home heating oil. But the biggest increases have been on jet fuel, prompting airlines to raise ticket prices and add hefty surcharges.
The turmoil in Africa and the Middle East is driving the price of crude oil up sharply. Prices
Every day, Ike Anand, the director of airline strategy and analysis for Expedia, pores over ticket prices. These days, he’s seeing steadily rising fares.

April heating oil prices established a new high for the move overnight and has approached weekly resistance at $3.1524. Some traders suggested that heating oil prices may be getting some measure of support from a rally in US jet fuel, where short term supplies appear tight as refiners continue with spring maintenance.

It’s unclear how long the country’s oil exports will be cut off, and traders prepared for a worst-case scenario in which world supplies would be under pressure for months. Oil prices continued to set new post-recession highs Monday as forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi pounded rebels near a key oil port in Libya.

As oil prices rise with turmoil in the Middle East, the fledgling fuel cell industry is hoping for a boost from a renewed push for alternative sources of energy.

Connecticut has two of the largest companies — UTC Power in Windsor and Fuel Cell Energy Inc. in Danbury — and the state has spent about $1.4 million over the past five years to promote the technology, which produces electricity through a chemical reaction involving hydrogen and oxygen.

Commodities finished higher as gold gained on renewed interest from safe-haven buyers. Meanwhile, crude oil futures hit $107 a barrel but then backtracked into the close.

Light, sweet crude oil for April delivery finished up $3.53, or 1%, to $105.44 a barrel. In other energy futures, heating oil was down 0.46% to $3.07 a gallon while natural gas was up 2.73% to $3.91 per million British thermal units.

Heating oil prices fluctuate on a regular basis due to many variations. These include the cost of crude oil, the demand for it and the prices that local competitors set. To be prepared for the almost guaranteed annual rise in costs during the colder months of the year, many homeowners buy as much as their storage tanks will hold before winter sets in. Gain knowledge on how to choose a heating oil supplier to find the best deal where you live.

Commodities were mixed by the close of trading as crude oil futures slipped to close below $105 a barrel while gold was pressured, in part, by a stronger dollar.

Light, sweet crude oil for April delivery finished down $0.64, or 0.63%, to $104.38 a barrel. In other energy futures, heating oil was up 1.95% to $3.06 a gallon while natural gas was up 1.68% to $3.92 per million British thermal units.

Energy shares are down in mid-day trading as crude oil dips below $104 a barrel and Dynegy ( DYN ) says it may be forced to file for bankruptcy protection.

Light, sweet crude oil for April delivery is trading down $0.20, or 0.19%, to $104.67 a barrel. In other energy futures, heating oil is up 1.55% to $3.05 a gallon while natural gas is up 1.35% to $3.00 per million British thermal units.

April heating oil prices stabilized recent weakness during the overnight and early morning trade. Some traders suggested that the market may have become short term oversold after this week’s $0.15 decline. The sharp sell off in April heating oil has also caused a breakdown in the April heating oil crack spread, which indicates lower profit margins for refiners.

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by MidnightTrader.com Staff from Midnight Trader Commodities finished higher, with gold jumping after the Federal Reserve said it would keep interest rates stable at historically low levels. Oil also gained. Light, sweet crude for June delivery finished up 0.5% to $112.76 a barrel. In other energy futures, heating oil was up 0.85% to $3.23 a gallon [...]