COLUMBUS – Ohio’s gas price discounts have evaporated because of supply disruptions and drivers in Columbus and other locations are paying more per gallon this weekend than they were last year, according to the auto club AAA.
A daily survey from the AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and WEX, Inc. shows the average price for regular gasoline in Columbus Monday morning was $2.75 a gallon, 5 cents more than on Friday and 9 cents higher than last Monday.
The statewide average price spiked to $2.84 a gallon on June 13, 2015, AAA Ohio spokeswoman Kim Schwind said, and some locations saw higher prices than that. The average price Monday was $2.68, 43 cents higher than May 13.
Higher crude oil prices and tight supplies in the wake of regional refinery issues and pipeline delivery disruptions are the main factors behind increase, she said.
Ohio’s gas prices are largely tied to the notoriously volatile Chicago market, where Schwind says spot prices increased by 42 cents last week, but backed down by about 12 cents on Thursday.
Refinery production slowed because seasonal maintenance season in March but there have also several unplanned upsets and pipeline logistics have not allowed for new supplies to be shipped into the region in a timely fashion, she said.
The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil soared above $50 per barrel this week for the first time in 11 months because attacks by an insurgent group on Nigerian oil facilities threatened the country’s oil infrastructure and led to a decline in production, Schwind said.
As of Friday morning, Schwind says, Chicago spot prices appeared to be on the way down again, which could signal some relief at the pump.
But it’s too early to tell, she added.