COLUMBUS, Ohio – Refinery problems and maintenance at supply facilities in the Midwest are being blamed for the high gas prices Columbus motorists are paying, even while prices across the country are dropping, according to the AAA.
Average retail prices have dropped in 42 states and Washington, D.C., over the past two weeks, but have increased in eight states, including Ohio, where the price at the pump has climbed 13 cents, according to public relations manager Michael Green’s weekly commentary on the AAA’s national website.
The average price in Columbus Tuesday morning was $3.55 a gallon, according to the daily survey by the AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and WEX, Inc. That is 8 cents higher than a week ago and 8 cents higher than the national average. The statewide average of $3.51 is 9 cents above last year’s level.
The increases were caused by refinery problems and maintenance at four facilities that supply the region with gas. They are the Holly Frontier facility in El Dorado and Coffeyville plant, both in Kansas, BP’s refinery in Whiting, Ind. and ExxonMobil’s refinery in Joliet, Ill., all of which the auto cliub’s analysts say are running at reduced rates
Prices elsewhere in the nation have declined despite high-profile conflicts in Libya and Iraq and between Russia and Ukraine.