Alberta drivers face another jump at the pump after Illinois refinery outage

Gas prices have increased in Alberta, but while disruptions around the world have kept costs high this summer, that’s not the cause of the recent spike.

When pumps rolled over, the prices jumped by as much as $0.30 in some locations.

In Edmonton, some gas stations were seeing a $1.81 cost per litre, while Calgary sat at $1.84.

This latest price jump isn’t the first this year, as the ongoing war in Iran and blockage of the Strait of Hormuz are causing costs to soar. The cost for gas has ranged between $1.80 in the spring to $1.50 in July.

But Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, told Global News this latest jump isn’t due to global pressures but a recent power failure at a refinery in Illinois.

“We’re seeing the effects of what amounts to net $0.18 for gasoline and about roughly $0.24 to $0.25 for diesel,” McTeague said.

The Exxon Mobil Joliet refinery in Channahon, Ill., lost power on Sunday and as of Tuesday afternoon had not yet come back online.

The jump may be short-lived as the plant is slowly brought back online, but even if it sees prices drop, McTeague added the focus should centre around the price of diesel.

According to McTeague, diesel is already double what it was at this time last year and could make things more expensive and less affordable in the weeks to come.

“Think of trucks, transportation, construction, municipal vehicles,” he said. “Think of trains, think of jets.”

He warned another spike in gas prices could come sooner rather than later, though he did not specify how soon.

—with files from Global News’ Gates Guarin