A bewildered Trail resident recently filled up his diesel-run vehicle in Grand Forks and noticed a dramatic drop in the price compared to the fuel pumps in the Silver City.
On Aug. 11, the lowest price for diesel in Grand Forks was 184.9 cents per litre at the Super Save gas pumps on Central Ave., with the highest price topping up at 190.9 cents.
Meanwhile on the same day in Trail, just 119 km away, the lowest price for diesel rings in at 207.9 at the Petro Canada on Schofield Hwy in Warfield, and the highest rate rang in at 215.9 at the Glenmerry Husky — a full 31 cents more per litre than at the Super Save in Grand Forks.
The Times contacted Gas Buddy’s dependable field of experts who said the reasons could be a combination of many factors.
“With wholesale prices on the way down, if one station in Grand Forks made the decision to drop diesel prices, the other stations nearby likely would have followed suit in order to not lose out on business,” said Gas Buddy representative Nicole Peterson. “The stations 100 km away in Trail would not have been subject to the same pressure, so stations there may remain at a higher price.”
As of Monday, Aug. 15 the price of diesel fuel was down to 207.9 at all gas stations in Trail indicating that other stations came down to compete with the lower price. However, in Grand Forks, the prices varied from a low of 186.9 at Canco to a high of 196.9 at Super Save where the price rose 12 cents per litre in four days.
“Locally, stations generally have contracts with suppliers,” said Peterson. “Stations buy fuel every 3-5 days and the world market can change wildly over those days, resulting in stations all paying a different price. Then local factors like competition can also play a role in what a station wants to charge.”
Regular gas prices remained comparable with Trail and Grand Forks gas stations between 185.7 and 198.9 cents per litre.
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