Metro Vancouver’s gasoline prices are set to fall 35 cents over the next 24 hours in what one energy analyst described as a “historic” one-day drop.
By Thursday, Oct. 13, the average cost of a litre of regular gasoline in the Metro area is expected to sink to 192.9, down from an average of 227.9 in recent days. That would put B.C.’s biggest urban area in line with other cities across the province.
Gas stations in B.C.’s capital, Victoria, are expected to fall 26 cents by Thursday, according to the fuel price prediction website Gas Wizard.
Gas Wizard analyst Dan McTeague said gasoline prices are falling because the Phillips 66 refinery in Ferndale, Wash., is set to restart production after scheduled maintenance. The arrival of gasoline cargo from Italy is further bringing the two B.C. urban areas closer in line with other jurisdictions across North America’s West Coast.
“The shortage is therefore over and new prices reflect that,” said McTeague.
Metro Vancouver has had some of the highest gasoline prices in North America in recent weeks after refineries in Edmonton, Washington and California shut for scheduled maintenance.
On Oct. 7, average prices climbed to a North American record of 241.9 per litre in the Vancouver area.
