Hold on to your wallets; gas prices in B.C. and Vancouver are set to jump next month, but we probably won’t be breaking any records anytime soon.
Even though gas prices have jumped heavily in Metro Vancouver, we’re still not near the record we set back in 2022.
Across Metro Vancouver, retail gas prices reached around 216 cents per litre (cpl).
According to data from Kalibrate, in May of this year, national prices peaked at 198.4 cents per litre. Historically, gas prices reached an all-time national high of 215.2 cents per litre back in June 2022.
“In late July (24), pump prices were at a high of 188.6 cents per litre. Today’s survey (Aug. 24) shows pump prices at 182.5 cents per litre,” Suzanne Gray, a consultant with Kalibrate, told Daily Hive.
Gray said that crude is making up about 44 per cent of the pump price and taxes are making up about 18 per cent.
“Compared to a year ago, crude oil prices are higher – due to the ongoing war in the Middle East constricting flows of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz. Also, taxes are lower, due to Federal relief. In just a few short weeks, on Sept. 8, federal taxes are set to return, adding 10 cpl plus GST/HST/QST depending on which province you are in.”
B.C. happens to be one of those provinces.
Metro Vancouver drivers are used to paying exorbitantly high prices for gas compared to the rest of Canada. The removal of the carbon tax helped a little, but it was followed by the tensions and war in the Middle East, which essentially nullified the breaks we got from the carbon tax no longer applying.
As of Sept. 8, regular gasoline will increase by 10 cents per litre, while diesel will go up by four cents per litre.
Gray says that the crack spread, or the price difference between a barrel of crude oil and gasoline, will soften, thanks to a busy summer driving season ending, leading to a decline in demand.
“Refiners will switch to winter-blended fuel, a cheaper blend to produce. However, the return of federal gasoline taxes may erase some of these savings. Crude oil futures indicate markets still expect the conflict in the Middle East to settle, with crude flows resuming and lower crude oil prices over the next year. However, this all depends on the U.S. and Iran reaching a deal. At this time, there are no indications this will happen,” Gray added.