The company said that this was because increases in selling prices were more than offset by a decline in product sales due to lower volume. Indeed, home heating oil volumes declined by 13.3 million gallons to 376.6 million gallons.
Total operating expenses decreased by $9.9 million, or 4.3%, largely due to a lower insurance expense of $4.7 million and other expense reductions of $5 million. Adjusted EBITDA increased by $13.5 million to $68.4 million during the year.
Dan Donovan, CEO of Star Gas Partners, said: We have seen all-time record home heating oil prices since the end of fiscal 2007. To counteract this challenging industry environment, our entire organization continues to focus on offering our valued customers excellence in all facets of our service and also keeping the partnership’s operating expenses under control.
The difficult market conditions may also present increased opportunities for Star to make additional acquisitions.
