Metro Vancouver gas prices to see big drop, expert says
Posted October 12, 2022 9:24 am.
Last Updated October 12, 2022 10:24 am.
Metro Vancouver gas prices are expected to drop dramatically over the next couple of days, as west coast refineries come back online, according to an industry insider.
Kalibrate principal consultant Paul Pasco, says prices could fall by as much as 35 cents per litre of regular overnight into Thursday, adding there could be another reduction in the price at the pump by the weekend.
“Refinery outages that we’ve been talking about for the last two months that have kept prices higher on the west coast have finally started to come back on,” he told CityNews Wednesday. “Now we’re seeing the price benefit.”
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This comes as fuel prices have skyrocketed across the region for several months. Pasco says in addition to dropping below $2 per litre heading into Thursday, prices will likely decline another five-to-10 cents by the weekend.
“The west coast is now falling back to where it should have been relative to the rest of Canada,” he said.
Refineries in California and Washington state have begun ramping up production, which is the main driver behind the drop in gas prices, Pasco says.
“Hopefully, we won’t be going back over $2 dollars for the immediate future,” he said.
While the price for regular gasoline is trending downward, Pasco warns the cost for diesel will continue to show “no sign of relief.”
“The demand on the diesel market right now is so high that diesel just isn’t seeing the same relief that gas is and there’s no end to it in the immediate future,” he explained, citing ongoing refinery strikes in Europe as the main reason.
People in B.C. have been paying the most for gasoline out of any region in North America over the past few months, with a litre of regular costing over $2.40 at times.
The last time Metro Vancouver saw gas below $2 per litre for regular was nearly a month ago.
-With files from Sonia Aslam
