The pending summer driving season brings higher gasoline prices

Whitehorse drivers can expect to see gas prices climb leading into the summer season, as prices down south prepare to do the same, say experts.

Whitehorse drivers can expect to see gas prices climb leading into the summer season, as prices down south prepare to do the same, say experts.

Wednesday saw a gas spike at most Canadian gas stations. Though it takes a little longer for southern trends to be reflected at Yukon pumps, a steady rise is inevitable.

John Voros, petroleum cost advisor for En-Pro International Inc. told the Star Thursday gas prices out of Edmonton will shape territorial trends.

En-Pro is an Ontario-based consulting firm specializing in gas and transportation prices.

Wholesale gas prices in Alberta’s capital are sitting at about 82.3 cents per litre this week, as compared to 77.8 cents April 1.

Refineries usually add about eight cents to this price for profit, he said. When you add shipping up to the Yukon, the price is higher still, by an estimated 12 to 15 cents.

Most gas stations in Whitehorse this week are selling regular grade gasoline for $1.199 per litre, a rate that has remained generally constant in recent weeks.

With refineries expected to try to net 20-cent profits per litre this summer, prices are set to soar, said Voros.

“We’re coming into driving season, and prices will keep going up,” he said.

He estimated that in the next month or two, regular-grade gas will sell in Edmonton for $1.30 per litre.

That translates into Whitehorse gas prices of about $1.45 per litre.

Voros explained that the gas price hike has to do with the reduced output of gas from refineries. Their margins in the U.S. have been poor, following investor information that said gas inventories were dropping.

The old cause-and-effect law saw prices spike to make up for lost product, said Voros.

Whitehorse’s gas comes primarily up the highway from Edmonton, and sometimes from Haines, Alaska, Bob Collins, the Yukon government’s energy resources analyst, said Thursday.

He said gas prices in the city are kept steady by competition, and advises drivers to shop around for those one or two-cent differences.

On Thursday, most gas stations contacted by the Star were selling regular gas at the same rate.

The fierce competition amongst gas retailers means that spikes down south are not felt so dramatically up here.

When gas is selling lower, “Prices inch downward among competing retailers,” he said. “When they rise, they hold steady, and then they’ll spike.”

That said, a sustained spike down south will be reflected at Whitehorse pumps in a matter of time.

Refinery control over reduced gas production and the general trend of higher summer prices mean Whitehorse drivers are in for a jolt at the pump.
“But, we have the lowest taxes in Canada,” Collins reminds residents.

While Whitehorse is right up there among the most expensive gas prices in the country, it is not at the top of the list.

That spot is reserved for Surrey, B.C., which Thursday had a price of $1.295 per litre of regular gas.