The Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission announced today the following petroleum pricing decisions, effective February 15, 2007:
Gasoline prices will increase by 4.0 cents per litre (cpl).
Furnace fuel and stove oil prices will increase by 1.0 cpl.
Diesel prices will increase by 3.0 cpl.
Current propane prices will remain in effect.
In announcing the changes, the Commission noted that significant increases in the market prices of both crude oil and refined products over the past two weeks have necessitated price adjustments at this time. The delayed arrival of winter 2007 combined with OPEC production cuts and renewed geopolitical tensions relative to the oil producing states of Iran and Nigeria have significantly influenced market pricing in recent days. As indicated below, compared to the last two weeks of January, average crude prices have climbed by over $4.00 per barrel while refined product average spot market prices for gasoline, furnace oil and diesel have increased by 4.8 cpl, 5.5 cpl and 4.8 cpl respectively.
Average NYMEX reported pricing:
Crude ($/barrel) / Regular Unleaded Gasoline(cpl) / Furnace Oil(cpl) / Diesel(cpl)
Jan 16–Jan 31: $53.97 / 43.1 / 46.9 / 48.9
Feb 1-Feb 13: $58.63 / 47.9 / 52.4 / 53.7
Difference: $4.66 / 4.8 / 5.5 / 4.8
The Commission’s next scheduled price adjustment will be on March 1, 2007.