As gas prices are already relatively high in the Bulkley Valley, many residents are wondering whether prices will increase heading into the May long weekend.
Senior Petroleum Analyst Dan McTeague from Gas Buddy says he doesn’t expect prices to increase significantly.
“I believe prices in the Bulkley Valley will remain roughly where they are now. That is because the wholesale price to buy gas here with transport is $1.28. Gas prices in the Bulkley Valley are around $1.33-$1.35 which means retailers are only picking up a couple cents to get by. They could push prices as high as $1.40 but on a weekend like this, it would surprise me. People can expect prices to stay within a couple cents of where they are now. ”
Following this explanation, we asked McTeague why gas prices are so high when a barrel of oil isn’t worth what it once was in say 2013.
“Back in 2013, oil was trading for roughly $100 a barrel. At that time, it took 103 pennies to buy 1 US dollar, today it takes 128. What that means is the difference of $.25 cents is costing an additional $.12 cents a liter. In other words, how the Canadian dollar is doing will determine the price of gas. Other contributing factors would include a higher GST and a carbon tax that wasn’t nearly as high as what it is now.”
For more on gas prices across BC, you can click here.