By switching to LPG, Flogas believes the sector could reduce its energy costs on fuel alone by over £1.14 billion, a saving of 22%.

This saving rises to up to almost £1.43 billion when the oil burning equipment is replaced by more fuel efficient LPG burners, giving a total saving of up to 27% when compared to oil, says Flogas.

The company says that with cost savings of up to 27%, when compared to the cost of switching from oil to LPG, the average business will recoup its initial outlay in less than a year.

The benefits of changing fuels aren’t just financial, there are also environmental benefits. With the sector currently using almost 95 billion KW of energy a year from off-mains resources, generated from almost 8.6 billion litres of oil – more than any other sector in the UK – it is producing the equivalent of 25.4 million tonnes of CO2 a year.

However, if that energy had been generated from LPG, Flogas says the equivalent CO2 produced would be just over 19.6 million tonnes, a reduction of almost 6 million tonnes of CO2 a year (23%).

This saving is equivalent to 3 million flights from London to Sydney, or the weight of 60 million baby elephants.

The figures are revealed in the ‘Flogas Energy Expenditure Report’, a piece of research initially carried out by Flogas to provide background information for its sales teams.