California Gas Prices

[Rich Riddle]

An article online indicates that California gas prices are about $1 a gallon higher than much of the country. That seems like a price gas station owners would set more than oil companies. Any of you members living out there care to tell us what you are paying a gallon for gas? Her in the Fort Wright, Kentucky area regular is going for about $3.80 a gallon.

[Caspar Hauser]

I filled up the other day in Great Barrington Ma at $3-89, it was $4-09 or thereabouts in Lakeville Ct 20 miles away.

CH

[Walter Plummer]

It is$3.66 at Sam's club here in northern VA. most other stations still in $3.84 range.

[Tim Boger]

What I wonder is, where's the real reason behind the huge variation in gas prices from state to state, city to city and even off ramp to off ramp ?

Without considering any negative aspects of this concept, I ask ...... should a commodity such as gasoline, which plays such a pivotal role in our lives be cost regulated ? Why should it be acceptable that gas costs $1.50 more a gallon in California cities that here in the southeast?

Is there a legitimate reason ...... distance from the refineries? Perhaps what the market bear?

I hope my post contributes to Rich's and not hijack it.

Tim

[Jason Roehl]

Different formulations, different refineries, different market sizes, different costs of living where the workers in the supply chain live, different wage expectations, different supply lines TO the refineries, different state/county/city taxes.

I do imagine the station owners make a little more per gallon in high-cost-of-living areas, but it's still a minimal amount. Around here, typical is 2-4 cents per gallon, which is an incredibly tiny margin--there's a reason the smaller stations are constantly changing hands.

[Damon Stathatos]

The California 'blend,' mandated by the California Air Resources Board is a unique blend and as such adds up to $.30 per gallon. I believe that our state taxes are higher here than the average as well. There have been no new refineries built here since 1980. There have been three refinery 'issues' recently (one had a fire, had to shut down, etc.) creating a shortage of gasoline that can be supplied to the gas stations. If we didn't have this special blend, we could tap from other states' supplies. Lastly, the 'summer blend' is set to be changed to the 'winter blend' at the end of October so the remaining refineries are trying to time the switch accordingly, so as not to be stuck with excess inventories of 'summer blend.' Not trying to spin this, but all of this is at least some result of excess regulations, par for the course here on the 'left coast.'

The prices here are just under $5 and expected to continue to rise at least for the next couple of days. They've been jumping up ten to twenty cents per day for the last three or four days.

[Greg R Bradley]

I paid $4.659 yesterday for regular.

[Brian Elfert]

One blend of gasoline for the entire USA would help with prices. A refinery in Utah or some other nearby state could then ship their fuel to California and sell it if there was a shortage. Refineries in the USA are shipping gasoline overseas because demand is down in the USA. Exporting gas is keeping our prices up.

Diesel prices here in Minnesota are going through the roof. Many stations are now at $4.49 when $4.09 was the norm on Thursday or Friday. Gasoline prices are actually going down and oil prices are going down so no idea why diesel prices are spiking.

[Stephen Cherry]

Just one word, and I hope I don't get into trouble:

REGULATION.

[Greg Peterson]

It wasn't all that long ago that a governor was recalled in California thanks to the market manipulations of Enron. While a myriad of legitimate factors exist that explain the current pricing in California, I remain skeptical of any explanation that tries to paint big oil as somehow a sympathetic entity. Oil futures are currently trading in the $88-$91 range. In February, it was trading for $110 and started trending down until it bottomed out around $77 in early July. Yet gas prices during this time have remained relatively unaffected, moving within a twenty cent a gallon window.

Aside from the consumers, the independent seller is getting crushed under these circumstances. Their margin is even slimmer than the corporate stations. One independent interviewed on NPR said he was loosing $.40 gallon and had to close early so as not to get completely wiped out. When asked why he even bothered to be open, he said he had regular customers and did not want to lose them.

[Darcy Forman]

5 dollars a gallon is still cheaper than we are paying in Canada right now.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

5 dollars a gallon is still cheaper than we are paying in Canada right now.

Gas in the USA costs about half of what the rest of the world pays. We are hooked on it and until we get off it, we're financing these airplanes flying into buildings.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

4 years ago while on vacation in New Zealand, a Kiwi friend and coworker was giving us a personal tour of Christchurch and the surrounding area. He is in the US periodically going to school and is quite familiar with the gas situation here. He and I share the same first name. My wife commented as we passed a gas station "Oh! You pay the same price for gas that we do." To which my Kiwi friend Ken knowingly asked "Oh....you buy by the liter too?".....My wife said "Oops....!"......

[ray hampton]

what are the cheapest and most expensive gas in California

[Brian Elfert]

Gas in the USA costs about half of what the rest of the world pays. We are hooked on it and until we get off it, we're financing these airplanes flying into buildings.

When taxes are stripped off, we actually pay MORE than those in Europe. The wholesale price of gasoline before taxes is typically less in Europe.

Europeans charge a lot of taxes on fuel to discourage consumption. They also charge high fuel taxes to pay for their social programs. The European government model is a lot different than the US government model. Taxpayers pay more taxes in general, but they also get more in general too. I believe every European country has national healthcare, plus they typically have more generous retirement and better unemployment benefits too.