The Senior Petroleum Analyst for Gas Price Wizard has responded to the BC Government’s legislation to force oil and gas companies to reveal how prices are set.
Monday’s announcement follows an investigation by the B.C. Utilities Commission that found a 10- to 13-cent-per-liter premium charged to drivers the industry couldn’t answer.
Dan McTeague says if the government is able to regulate fuel prices, it could mean bad news for drivers in PG and across Northern BC.
“Of course, if that happens, not a problem, but it does mean that the days of lower prices depending on what that regulation would look like, we’ll never see the kind of prices we currently do in Prince George and that’s because all of the gas stations will be required to charge at least six to eight per litre instead of zero to three cents.”
Bill 42 will require companies to share data on refined fuel imports and exports, fuel volumes at refineries and terminals, as well as wholesale and retail prices.
McTeague isn’t so sure this is the best approach.
“You can’t walk into a company and say hey, reveal all of your stuff unless of course, you have the ability to regulate and I think again, that’s where the provincial government wants to go. Mr. Horgan and the NDP and people of that ilk tend to think that the only solution is to regulate everything and of course, we know that is not only costly, but it also can make quite a mess.”
He places all the blame on the NDP government and not the BCUC for this entire predicament.
“I can’t blame the BCUC for coming to its conclusion on not being able to find anything, it kind of reminds me of the old Hogan’s Heroes where Sgt. Schultz goes, I know nothing, I see nothing, I hear nothing.”
“I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist to figure out the government’s attempt here to sort of ignore the government’s regulations in terms of its environmental standards on gasoline and it has everything to do on why you are paying as much as you are, there’s no mystery thirteen cents here.”
Prince George has among the lowest gas prices in the province with most stations at 114.9 cents a litre while Costco is at 109.9.
The provincial average is fifteen cents more at 129.3.