Canadians need to prepare for an expensive summer of pumps as the price of oil continues to rise, with one analyst warning that the $ 2 per liter price could become common in many regions.
The warning comes after months of record price fluctuations caused by demand for fuel after a pandemic and declining supply, and further complicated by sanctions against Russian oil imposed in March.
And while Canadians may be accustomed to volatile price fluctuations over the past few months, analysts say weekend price jumps over the weekend are setting the stage for an even more unpredictable summer market.
Prices in the Greater Toronto (GTA) area, for example, will jump on Saturday, jumping from an average of $ 173.9 to $ 185.9 at most gas stations – a jump of 23 cents in just 72 hours.
“An increase of 23 cents per liter over the last 72 hours… this is a percentage I’ve never seen before, it’s unprecedented and doesn’t bode well for summer,” said Dan McTieg, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, CP24 on Friday.
McTeague says the jump is due in part to the shift from winter to summer petrol, an annual event that usually raises prices.
Winter gasoline uses butane, which is cheaper to produce and starts engines faster at lower temperatures. Summer blends, on the other hand, use alkylates, materials that are more common in premium gas.
This switch usually costs consumers five to eight cents more per liter.
“The type of gasoline you receive tends to change from April 15 to September 15. It has existed for the last 30 years. There’s always a seven- or eight-cent premium associated with it, “McTeague said, noting that regions like GTA are likely to receive an average of $ 1.80 to $ 1.90 per pump in the summer months.
“We’ll see, mind you, $ 2 a liter every few days this summer.”
McTeague says many factors complicate the price of pumps, from the weak Canadian dollar and less investment in traditional fuel sources.
But he warns that summer prices could rise further if there are other disruptions in global fuel production or distribution, such as hurricanes or pipeline disruptions.
“We are in a new era,” he said. “The Canadian dollar is not responding to higher oil prices, which is a function of the fact that we are not building pipelines to markets that are in desperate need of Canadian oil and have a tax on the tax it has accumulated… all these things contribute to aggravation of the bad situation. “
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