Fuming about gas prices
<p>Kent Peach of Medical Lake fills his car up with gas costing $2.15 a gallon on Wednesday in Coeur d'Alene. Although the price of gas is rising, he still buys his gas in Idaho whenever he can.</p>
COEUR d'ALENE - Pamela Johnson knew something was up when she rolled into a Coeur d'Alene gas station on Wednesday.
The Coeur d'Alene woman took a glance at the cash price for gas — $2.09 per gallon - and reflected on how she paid 50 cents less just a month ago.
"I knew those prices that we had were just too good to last," said Johnson while filling her tank. "I suspected that they'd head back up, but was hoping they wouldn't for a while longer."
An ExxonMobil refinery fire and explosion in Torrance, Calif., on Feb. 18 ignited a sharp increase in gas prices, and the effect rippled to Idaho, said Dave Carlson, AAA Idaho spokesman.
"We would characterize the run-up in Idaho prices as part of the ripple effect caused by a big rock being tossed into a quiet pond," Carlson said. "In this case, the big rock was the temporary loss of a refinery responsible for about 20 percent of the fuel used in Southern California."
The shutdown of the third-largest refinery in Southern California, an important source of gasoline and distillate fuel in the region, caused wholesale prices for gasoline to spike immediately, before spreading up the West Coast into Nevada and ultimately into Idaho, Carlson said.
The average price in Coeur d'Alene on Wednesday increased to $2.08, from $1.59 a month ago, according to AAA. In Post Falls, the average is $2.16, from $1.69 a month ago.
Idaho's average is $2.15 and the nation's $2.45. The Idaho price is up 17 cents in just the past week.
"(The Idaho price is) nowhere near California's $3.43 average mark," Carlson said. "Already experiencing the nation's most expensive gasoline, the West Coast states of California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington felt the first wave resulting from the refinery shut down."
The average price in the West Coast region on Wednesday was $2.98. On Tuesday, AAA Oregon reported that state's average fuel price had spiked 35 cents in the past week.
In Idaho, there was a 36-cent average price range among seven cities on Wednesday. Coeur d'Alene was the third-lowest with Idaho Falls being the lowest at $1.90 and Nampa being highest at $2.26.
"Prices are increasing at a reasonable pace for this time of the year," Carlson said. "I would expect we'll see a couple of runs and sustained drives in prices, though nowhere near Idaho's $3.40 average for 2014."
Expect a seasonable increase in prices during the next two months, and then again starting in June and holding for four to six months, Carlson said.
"Those projections are based on recent historical trends," he said. "Obviously, disruptions in supply and demand can influence prices. Oil supplies are strong and that helps mitigate the upward influence on prices."
Gas prices typically rise between 30 to 50 cents during late winter and early spring as refineries conduct seasonal maintenance in order to prepare for production of summer-blend fuel as required by the Environmental Protection Agency, Carlson said.
"We suspect product intended for distribution in the Idaho market is being diverted to fill the gaps of tight supply regions and places like Las Vegas where there is more profit potential for wholesalers and retailers," Carlson said. "That ripple effect of higher prices then shows up in Idaho markets."