Gasoline Prices Are Affected by Changes in Refinery Output
September 14, 2015
Most of the nation has enjoyed average gasoline prices below $3.00 per gallon since the beginning of 2015. California and the rest of the West Coast, however, have experienced higher gasoline prices than the rest of the nation. Although gasoline price changes are caused by a myriad of factors, the likely cause for the high West Coast prices is an explosion and fire at a California refinery in February of 2015. The sudden decrease in refinery output resulted in tight supplies on the West Coast. In addition, few refineries outside of California are equipped to produce the gasoline formulation that can be sold in California, which is different than the rest of the nation due to State regulations.
Weekly Average Gasoline Prices by Region
Notes
- Weekly average prices of all formulations of gasoline.
- West Coast includes the states of Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, California, Hawaii, and Alaska.
- New England includes the states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
- Central Atlantic includes the states of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland.
- Lower Atlantic includes the states of West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
- Midwest includes the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.
- Gulf Coast includes the states of Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and New Mexico.
- Rocky Mountain includes the states of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah and Colorado.
Source
Energy Information Administration, Weekly Retail Gasoline and Diesel Prices, accessed August 14, 2015.