Pump prices rose in several states the past week as maintenance at refineries slowed gasoline production, creating temporary shortages that forced motorists to shell out more to fill their tanks. The national average for regular gas increased 2 cents the past week to $2.31 a gallon, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report. Prices rose more sharply in several states, and by double digits in some Midwestern and Great Plains states.
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In Nebraska, regular gas jumped 11 cents to $2.47 a gallon; 12 cents in Missouri to $2.23; 16 cents in Kansas to $2.33; and 23 cents in Minnesota to $2.51. The Energy Information Administration said that because of scheduled and emergency maintenance, refineries in the Midwest operated at only 79 percent of their capacity the past week, while on the East Coast they were at 80 percent, crimping gasoline supplies.
GasBuddy.com said that a dozen refineries in an area stretching from Oklahoma to Ohio were undergoing maintenance that could "last several weeks or longer" and cause pump prices to rise across the central states. Nevertheless, GasBuddy and AAA remained confident that prices will fall later this year because of an abundant supply of cheap oil during a period when demand for gas declines. GasBuddy noted that prices have risen during October only once during the past five years, in 2011, so the pattern is lower prices.
AAA said in its monthly report on gas prices that refineries typically conduct maintenance in the autumn and spring, when demand for gasoline, diesel and heating oil is relatively low.
"More refineries than typical have scheduled maintenance for the next few weeks, but much of this maintenance should wrap up by December, which would allow a steady decline in gas prices later in the year," AAA said in its report. The report added that "a seasonal decline in driving this winter should help push gas prices below $2 per gallon in most parts of the country by the end of the year as long as crude oil costs remain steady." The last time the national average fell below $2 was in 2009 during a recession.
Despite recent price increases, AAA said the national average of $2.31 for regular is the lowest it's been at that time of year since 2004 and 49 cents cheaper than the $2.80 peak for 2015, set on June 15. Regular gas is $1.06 cheaper than it was a year ago; premium is 86 cents lower than a year ago at $2.79; and diesel fuel is $1.20 less at $2.51.
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