Decrease in production spikes gas prices

Jessica Smith

Prices at the pump jumped for the fifth straight week in a row. Arizona drivers are now paying on average $1.942 a gallon to fill up, despite the price of crude oil remaining stable at around $40 a barrel.

In Arizona, unleaded gasoline spiked 4.5 cents this week alone, making the average gallon roughly 32 cents more expensive than last month.

According to Linda Gorman, the Public Affairs Director for AAA in Arizona, the primary factor contributing to an increase in price is a decrease in production by refineries.

“Cuts in production and output have led to an artificial tightening in supplies and therefore higher pump prices in large part as an attempt to boost profit margins,” Gorman said.

“It’s difficult for consumers to hear about refiners trying to capitalize on consumers in the current economy,” she added.

Mesa Community College economics professor, Harold Cranswick also pointed to refineries as a possible culprit for rising costs, when questioned about the issue.

“When the economy goes into a recession, when people lose jobs, they cut back on a lot of things and gasoline is one of them. Unless there is something going on that I’m not aware of, I don’t see the consumers driving the price up.”

“It’s not like we’re on the verge of summer and we expect a lot of driving. Or that there is a boom going on and we see a huge demand for gasoline because there is a lot of construction happening.”

” Or that the airlines are profitable and lots of people are flying. None of that’s going on. So the explanation has to be found somewhere else, more than likely it’s going to be on the oil company’s side of the picture,” Cranswick added.

Internet sites like GasBuddy.com are a great resource for drivers looking to save. Type in a zip code and the site shows a map of all the area gas stations and the current rate, allowing consumers to find the cheapest place to buy gas.

Other site features include fuel saving tips and a trip calculator.

In early May gas stations in western states, including Arizona, will shift to more eco-friendly warm weather blends of gasoline to adhere to federal air quality standards.

Unfortunately, according to Beth Lucas, Public Affairs Specialist for AAA Arizona, this is unlikely to lower prices at the pump since the summer blend costs more to produce.

  • Mesa Legend Staff

    These are archived stories from Mesa Legend editions before Fall 2018. See article for corresponding author.

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