If you think you’re paying a little more at the pump this week, you’re right. And you will be for a little while longer. While a winter gas price bump is normal, February has seen a higher spike than usual. The reason? Many refineries are in Texas, and Texas is frozen.
Power outages, damage to equipment caused by extreme cold, and lack of water at facilities mean about a fifth of U.S. oil refining capacity is offline, according to Reuters. Normal production may not resume for weeks.
AAA reports the national average cost per gallon of gas is up six cents last week and by nine cents in February. Expect the supply to fall further for the next several weeks, pushing prices higher.
Andrew Lipow, president of Houston-based consultancy Lipow Oil Associates, says America’s oil industry is “two-and-a-half to three weeks away from restoring most operations.”
While the refiners can restart operations fairly quickly after disruptions due to summer weather events like hurricanes, these winter storms may cause more significant delays, Lipow says. Operators will need to repair equipment damaged by the cold and restart slowly to safely find undetected leaks and cracks.
Check out our list of the most fuel-efficient cars in every class.
