CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Gas prices continue their climb in West Virginia and around the country and Patrick DeHaan of Gas Buddy says the Mountain State prices will not drop off any time soon.
DeHaan, who is the head of petroleum analysis, appeared on MetroNews ‘Talkline’ Thursday to discuss the latest developments as gas in the Mountain State is averaging $4.11 per gallon on Thursday.
“We could see $4.25, maybe $4.35 in the next couple of weeks in West Virginia,” DeHaan said.
DeHaan added he expects prices to continue to rise in part because of the U.S. banning imports of Russian fossil fuels. He noted the United States gets its heavier oil from Russia and that yields to heavier products such as diesel and heating oil.
President Joe Biden announced the ban on Russia on Tuesday as the Russian military has invaded Ukraine.
“Yeah, I think prices will go up a little bit more. Part of it will be because of sanctions on Russia. I think at this point it may be a necessary evil,” DeHaan said.
Luckily, DeHaan said he does not see West Virginia ever reaching $5.00 per gallon, stating the worst-case scenario would be between $4.50 and $4.75. DeHaan said the worst case for gasoline prices in the United States would be if Russia cuts off Europe’s oil supply or Europe sanctions Russia’s energy, causing oil to rise.
WTI crude oil prices fell by 10% mid-week to around $108 per barrel but are back up $4 to $112 per barrel on Thursday. DeHaan said it’s been a volatile week for energy prices as the wholesale price of diesel fuel rose 50 cents a gallon on Tuesday before plummeting 99 cents on Wednesday.
When asked how the oil companies will respond to everything going on including the bans, DeHaan said there are logistical challenges to increase production of oil including lack of oil heads and manpower.
“I’ve been told be one driller in Canada that a part he needed to drill was not six to eight days, not six to eight weeks but six to eight months away. Those are the types of bottlenecks that are holding back our ability to increase output,” DeHaan said.
Gas prices continue to rise locally and nationally. The average price for gas in West Virginia is $4.11. @GasBuddyGuy explains the recent increases in gas to @HoppyKercheval. WATCH: https://t.co/yCFQ3nDJuy pic.twitter.com/HWI0FlPa4J
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) March 10, 2022
The national average of a gallon of gasoline in the United States on Thursday is $4.31, per AAA. Pennsylvania is the most expensive state for gas that neighbors West Virginia, the average price per gallon there is $4.43.
DeHaan said he is not telling people to stop driving but said there are decisions motorists can make to impact the prices at the pump.
“If we drove just a little bit fuel efficiently, if we went 5 to 10 miles per hour slower on the interstate, we could do some meaningful damage to bring our consumption down which would allow prices to go down,” DeHaan said.