Gas prices in Los Angeles set a record on Thursday when the average cost of a gallon rose to $6.49, as tight supply worsened by refinery shutdowns, the ongoing war in Ukraine and high state taxes drove up prices on the West Coast.
The price of gas has gone up on the West Coast this month.
The average price of a gallon of gas in California went from $6.18 last week to $6.42 on Thursday, a 24 cent increase.
Los Angeles set a record this week with a gallon costing $6.49 on average, a 38 cent increase from a week ago, and San Francisco and Mono County have the highest prices in the state.
California is unable to rely on its neighbors for more gas as a result of the state's law requiring the use of a type of fuel blend to reduce air pollution, according to the director of the University.
The California Air Resources Board approved the sale of cheaper winter blend gas one month ahead of schedule, a sign of optimism for analysts.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said in a post on Monday that prices could go a bit higher before cooling off, following a plea to state regulators for the cheaper gas blend and a decline in wholesale spot prices.
Lindsay Buckley, director of communications for the California Energy Commission, told Forbes that the cut in oil production by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is equivalent to a 1% reduction in supplies.
55 cents. California taxes gas at the second highest rate in the country, behind Pennsylvania, according to Igen data. Alaska's taxes are the lowest in the country.
The average cost of gas in five other states has gone over $5 in the last two weeks, but California has the most expensive gas. The price of gas fell for nearly 100 days after hitting a record high. Analysts attribute the surge to a sharp rise in crude oil prices in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and threats to the global energy market. The recent decline in prices came to an end last month, and since then prices have increased towards a $4 national average. The national demand for gas increased from 8.32 million barrels per day to 8.83 million barrels per day.
The cheapest gas is found in the southeast and New England. Mississippi has the cheapest gas at $3.15 a gallon, followed by Georgia, Louisiana, Texas and Florida.
In an effort to curb the state's dependence on fossil fuels and cut damaging gas emissions that have been found to accelerate the effects of climate change and cause air pollution that can be harmful to humans, California officials last month approved an ambitious plan to ban gas-powered vehicles in favor of electric The plan calls for a third of new vehicles to be zero emissions by the end of the decade. California is the first state to impose such a ban.
Here is where gas prices are the most expensive.
Gas prices are going up for the second week in a row.
California gas prices hit a record high.
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