Greater Victoria gas prices are expected to drop 26 cents by Thursday, according to the fuel-price-prediction website Gas Wizard, in what one energy analyst described as a “historic” one-day drop.
On Wednesday, gas was selling for $2.25 to $2.30 a litre at most area gas stations.
Metro Vancouver’s gasoline prices, meanwhile, were set to fall 35 cents, with the average cost of a litre of regular gasoline in the area expected to sink to $1.93, down from an average of $2.28 in recent days.
That would put B.C.’s biggest urban area in line with other cities across the province.
Gas Wizard analyst Dan McTeague said gasoline prices are falling because the Phillips 66 refinery in Ferndale, Washington, is set to restart production after scheduled maintenance.
The arrival of gasoline cargo from Italy is further bringing the two B.C. urban areas closer in line with other jurisdictions across North America’s west coast.
“The shortage is therefore over and new prices reflect that,” said McTeague.
Metro Vancouver and Greater Victoria have had some of the highest gasoline prices in North America in recent weeks after refineries in Edmonton, Washington and California shut for scheduled maintenance.
On Oct. 7, average prices climbed to a North American record of $2.42 per litre in the Vancouver area.
