SALT LAKE CITY — You may have been shocked last week when gas prices in Utah jumped to nearly $4 per gallon and one expert is weighing in on why the increase may have happened and when things are expected to cool down.
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As of Tuesday morning, the average for a gallon of gas in Utah was $3.92, about 40 cents above the nationwide average which sits at $3.53 a gallon.
"Gas prices across Utah have definitely jumped up quite a bit in just the last week," Julian Paredes, spokesperson for AAA explained. "The statewide average went up about 13 cents in the last week."
Paredes said one reason why Utah may be experiencing a spike is because of our southern neighbor, Arizona.
"Arizona is really hurting for supply for gasoline because two refineries in the region have had to shut down for maintenance, and Arizona has seen some of the most expensive gas prices in the country because of that," he explained. "Now normally, that wouldn't affect Utah, but it's possible that some gas from Utah has been diverted South to help alleviate some of the pressure and with that comes higher gas prices."
In Arizona, the average for a gallon of gas rested at $4.69 per gallon as of Tuesday morning.
High gas prices always hit especially hard ahead of travel season, with the kickoff to summer, Memorial Day, right around the corner. Paredes warns that you shouldn't count on a sudden drop in prices.
"As far as the next couple weeks, especially for Memorial Day, there's not really a whole lot of reason to feel optimistic right now," he explained. "Gas prices have been high for the last couple of weeks, for the last couple of months in fact...there is some relief possible, but there are more reasons to believe gas prices might stay expensive."
What are some of those signs of relief? Well, when refineries come back online in Arizona, it could help supply.
"Demand for gas has been pretty consistent year-round...so there's really no good time to do this maintenance," Paredes said. "It's usually for a few weeks, and the good news is these refineries are expected to come online relatively soon."
The other good news is that Utah is nowhere close to the record highs that were seen in June 2022 and the refineries are close to reopening.
"When those refineries come back online, we'll definitely see a benefit, but the problem with that is the timing. It comes right before Memorial Day weekend and summer travel," Paredes said. "If the demand for gas remains high, those refinery issues really might not have as big as an impact as we might hope."
While gas prices may be hurting your wallet right now, Paredes reports there are still reasons to hold on to hope that things may cool down soon.
"If there's any good news," he said, "the nationwide average for gas has actually been dropping for the last two weeks so it's definitely possible that these higher gas prices will only be temporary."
