With files from Discover Moose Jaw
Saskatchewan residents may see some relief at the pumps in the coming weeks, as GasBuddy Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan explains.
“I do sense a little bit of relief is on the way, I think Saskatchewan may go back under the $2/litre mark,” said DeHaan, “It’s not a guarantee, things could change, but I’m hopeful for now."
Most West Central gas stations are sitting with a price over $2/L, though surprisingly enough Kindersley is staying steady at around $1.97/L.
Last week the provincial average was 204.9 cents per litre, and DeHaan did want to stress his forecast is only a prediction, with many volatile factors coming into play that may take a part in fuel price spikes, and drops.
“What’s actively steering things is government data that comes out on a weekly basis, the demand which continues to be high. It’s been very challenging to predict where we’re going because of all the complications, how motorists are responding, government data on inventory, and refineries.”
He did mention that the crisis in Ukraine and COVID-19 are still having impacts on the price of fuel across the country. In saying that, currently, the price of oil is trending downward DeHaan notes.
“We were at about $120/barrel back on June 9, now we're down to about $105/barrel. A lot of that is occurring because of the possibility of the economic slowdown.”
DeHaan says that the unpredictability of the stock market has caused difficulty in the long-term forecast of fuel prices.
Alberta currently has the lowest provincial average price for fuel at 188.6 cents per litre, and British Columbia is the highest with 215.4 cents per litre.