Prowling the Pumps – May 6, 2008
May 6, 2008
On the case, lurking at service stations across the country to find the lowest and highest gasoline prices in Canada.
Average across Canada
| This week: | $1.245 per litre |
| Last week: | $1.245 per litre |
No change from last week, but with oil prices climbing (soaring? skyrocketing?) to more than $120 per barrel, big changes in gas prices are on the horizon.
Least Expensive Gasoline in Canada (per litre)
| Excluding Taxes | Taxes | Total | |
| Kingston, ON | $0.855 | $0.302 | $1.157 |
| Sault Ste. Marie, ON | $0.878 | $0.304 | $1.182 |
| St. Catharines, ON | $0.886 | $0.304 | $1.190 |
| Windsor, ON | $0.901 | $0.305 | $1.206 |
| Peterborough, ON | $0.912 | $0.305 | $1.217 |
The five cities boasting the least expensive gas in Canada are all in Ontario — seems to be THE province to live in for cheap gas! Kingston tops our list for the third week in a row, and for the first time, Edmonton is out of the running. And to make matters worse for the rest of us, prices actually declined slightly in St. Catharines, Windsor and Peterborough.
It’s all a matter of throughput efficiencies. Gas prices will be lower where the most gas is sold, and southern Ontario has a sizeable population (+5.1 million) as well as proximity to refineries. And with so much gas being sold, local price wars could also benefit the consumer.
Most Expensive Gasoline in Canada (per litre)
| Excluding Taxes | Taxes | Total | |
| Yellowknife, NT | $1.136 | $0.275 | $1.411 |
| Labrador City, NL | $0.984 | $0.427 | $1.411 |
| Whitehorse, YT | $1.142 | $0.227 | $1.169 |
| Gander, NL | $0.932 | $0.421 | $1.353 |
| Fort St. John, BC | $1.042 | $0.310 | $1.352 |
Once again, Yellowknife and Labrador City tied for the most expensive gas in the country, and Whitehorse claimed third spot despite prices remaining unchanged from last week in all three cities. Fort St. John and Gander are new to the pricey five.
Again, high taxes hurt Labrador City and Gander. Interesting to note Whitehorse has the lowest taxes in Canada. But small populations and isolation don’t make for cheap gas.
One analyst is predicting $200 per barrel oil within the next two years; but seeing as prices have almost doubled since this time last year, I’m thinking two years is optimistic. Time to take transit, or move to Kingston!
Prowling the Pumps – April 15, 2008
April 15, 2008
Lurking at service stations across the country to find the lowest and highest gasoline prices in Canada
Average Canadian Gasoline Price: 116.9 cents per litre
Least Expensive Gasoline in Canada (cents per litre)
| Total | |
| Kingston, ON | 114.7 |
| Edmonton, AB | 115.0 |
| St. Catharines, ON | 116.8 |
| Red Deer, AB | 118.3 |
| Sussex, NB | 118.3 |
Gasoline prices vary from place to place primarily because of market size, throughput efficiencies and local price competition. Being close to refineries helps keep prices low, as is the case with Edmonton (three refineries with a total throughput of 477,000 barrels per day), St. Catharines (one refinery at Nanticoke with a throughput of 120,000 barrels per day) and Sussex (near the largest refinery in Canada at Saint John with a throughput of 300,000 barrels).
Kingston, on the other hand has no refineries. It does, however, boast two universities and six prisons, so maybe the throughput efficiency is extremely high on visitor days.
Most Expensive Gasoline in Canada (cents per litre)
| Total | |
| Yellowknife, NT | 138.2 |
| Labrador City, NL | 135.9 |
| Montréal, QC | 130.4 |
| Gander, NL | 130.1 |
| Gaspé, QC | 129.9 |
Obviously, Yellowknife and Gander are about as far away from refineries as you can get. But Montréal? Well, to every rule, there is an exception. In this case, a 41.6 cent cent per litre gas tax (second highest in Canada) cancelled out the low prices that should have resulted from Montreal’s close proximity to, three refineries. Labrador City is hit doubly hard with distance and the highest gasoline taxes at 42.1 cents per litre.
