The average cost of a litre of gas in Ontario will set a new record on Friday, and at least one industry analyst is warning that "it is going to get a lot more painful for drivers" over the coming weeks.
Gas is currently priced at an average of 190.9 per cent per litre at most gas stations, which equals the previous all-time high reached back on March 10.
But Dan McTeague, who is the president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, told CP24 during an interview that he is expecting prices to rise by about a nickel on Friday, to either 194.9 or 195.9 cents per litre.
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"This is going to get a lot more painful and it is going to be a lot more long-lasting. There really isn't anything in sight that would cause these prices to drop," he said. "It is a very serious situation, it is going to continue to add inflationary pressures on everything and I think it is high time we started to take this issue seriously; not just inflation but energy affordability in particular."
WHY IS GAS SO EXPENSIVE RIGHT NOW?
McTeague said that a decision by the European Union to ban the purchase of Russian oil by the end of the year is likely to push costs higher, as will the eventual lifting of COVID-19 lockdowns in China which have supressed demand.
He said that an ongoing diesel shortage in the U.S. northeast is also perhaps "the most worrisome" thing right now, as it could some refineries "to think twice about producing gasoline" so that they can concentrate on diesel production.
"It creates a scenario for an escalating spiralling price in energy which unfortunately our politicians in Ottawa seem to be completely oblivious to," he said.
Gas prices have risen by about 50 per cent since last May, when drivers were paying around $1.30 per litre to fill up.
