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Houston gas prices continue to rise

Will increase by 15-30 cents per litre by May, says GasBuddy
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Gas prices have risen significantly over the past year. (Angelique Houlihan photo/Houston Today)

Gas prices in Houston have risen to $1.659 per litre compared $1.39 per litre at this time last year. According to GasBuddy, a tech company that finds real-time fuel prices across North America, it’s a trend that will likely continue.

According to Nicole Petersen from GasBuddy communications, due to a number of factors, gas prices could potentially increase by 15-30 cents per litre between now and the end of May.

“Gas prices have been increasing across all of Canada, largely because of imbalances in supply and demand, and more recently tension in oil markets due to the Russia and Ukraine situation,” said Petersen.

READ MORE: Inflation continues to outstrip wage growth as annual rate surpasses 5 per cent

The situation Petersen is referring the armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Russia is one of the world’s biggest oil and natural gas producers, but a sizeable amount of its exports are carried through a pipeline that runs through the Ukraine, so any conflict between the two countries could shut down much of Europe’s supply causing a chain reaction in the global market.

READ MORE: Ukrainian leader: Russian forces trying to seize Chernobyl

In addition, Petersen told Houston Today that there are also other factors that will cause prices to keep rising.

“As the weather begins to warm up, we’re also likely to see an increase in demand in western Canada, including Houston and B.C. as a whole. There are normal imbalances between rural areas where there may be lags to fuel price changes, and larger cities where there is more competition and less lag due to higher demand,” she said.

“We do expect prices to continue to rise throughout the spring and potentially summer. Gas prices typically rise this time of year due to increased demand, as the weather warms and more Canadians are on the roads. In the spring we’re also contending with refinery maintenance season, which constricts gasoline supply while underway, and the change to the more expensive summer blend gasoline,” Petersen continued.


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Eddie Huband
Multimedia Reporter
eddie.huband@ldnews.net
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