(WWJ) Drivers filling up their cars in Southeast Michigan this week suffered some sticker shock — after a pretty big jump at the pump.
Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy.com, says he's seeing prices as high as $2.65 per-gallon and even $2.75 in the Metro Detroit area on Thursday, which is up around 20 to 30 cents since the start of the week.
"It's been pretty fast and furious here. Detroit has seen an average jump, actually staring about Valentine's Day. Shortly thereafter on Monday, stations started raising their prices," he told WWJ Newsradio 950's Sandra McNeill.
While it may be tempting to blame this on politics, it's actually about the weather.
The problem, DeHaan said, is that an unexpected extreme cold and snowy snap stopped 11 Texas oil refineries in their tracks.
"The cold weather in the south has shut down 20% of all U.S. refining capacity. That is not an insignificant figure, because Texas is the nation's refining capital."
Thursday afternoon, the best price spotted in metro Detroit was $2.07 a gallon, at the Marathon station on Van Dyke at Denwood Dr. in Sterling Heights. The highest reported price was $2.89, at the Mobil on West Rd. and Fort St. in Trenton.
If you do need to gas up, DeHaan said you might want to wait just a day or two.
"With a little bit of breathing room now, prices may fall slightly over the weekend," he said. "But don't be duped. They could go up again next week."
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Gas Buddy says the national average has been rising for six straight weeks and could jump another 10 to 20 cents in the next two weeks.
"When weather in the south is supposed to go above freezing again this weekend, refineries will likely restart their facilities, and by next week hopefully they'll be back on line." DeHaan said. "But we're still talking about potentially 50 million gallons of gasoline that weren't produced by the cold weather... And that's why the impact won't immediately go away."
Looking further ahead, GasBuddy expects the national average could rise closer to $3 per gallon closer to Memorial Day weekend. There's typically a rise in gas prices this time of year due to refineries switching over to EPA-mandated cleaner summer fuels.
Find the best local price near you at DetroitGasPrices.com.
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