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February 17, 2021 - 1:05 PM
Fuel market analysts are recommending Thompson-Okanagan motorists top up their gas tanks sooner rather than later as oil prices are set to climb.
The price for a litre of regular gas is up on the Lower Mainland already. It costs anywhere from 135.9 to 142.9 in Vancouver today, Feb. 17, but projections are for prices on the coast to rise over the coming days.
Kent group managing director Jason Parent says markets everywhere will soon see rising price pressures.
“The likelihood of an increase in prices is related to a recent increase in crude pricing that is North America-wide,” Parent says.
He says higher crude prices don't always mean a rise in the price at the pump everywhere, but if crude prices remain where they are at, or continue to rise, expect to see that increase at Kamloops and Okanagan gas stations.
Parent says the price of crude has been rising steadily for a couple of months now, but more recently prices have risen due to a fall off in U.S. domestic crude production.
"Facilities have been shuttered or forced to shut down in the past week due to the extreme weather conditions they've had down there,” he says. “On the other side of that is increased demand for home heating fuels. That's also a draw on petroleum products."
Dan McTeague with Canadians For Affordable Energy says Kamloops and Okanagan residents should top up their tanks before Friday.
"I'm expecting increases. By Friday it is going to cost gas stations $1.24 a litre for regular fuel," he says.
McTeague says Kamloops and the Okanagan should see prices between $1.30 and $1.32 per litre in the next couple of days.
"The Texas freeze has made a bad situation worse, and the U.S. rollout of vaccines is causing an increase in demand. Saudi Arabia has cut production. The reality is, demand is starting to pick up, and gas prices, among other commodities, is going to start to roar," Mcteague says.
According to GasBuddy.com here are the prices for a litre of regular gas as of 11:30 a.m. today, Feb. 17:
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119.9 to 124.9 in Kamloops
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120.9 in Vernon
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122.9 to 126.9 in Kelowna
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126.9 to 130.9 in Penticton
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119.9 to 130.9 in Merritt
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126.9 in Princeton
— This story was updated at 3:30 p.m. Feb. 17, 2021 to add information provided by fuel analyst Dan McTeague.
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