Did California gas prices just jump? Here’s why fuel costs more right now, experts say
California is ringing in 2024 with a gallon of regular gas priced almost 30 cents higher than it was this time last year.
From California’s statewide average of $5.89 per gallon in September, the average price for a gallon of regular gas dropped more than a dollar (to $4.62) by the end of the year. But now, the state is up about 8 cents from last week for a gallon of regular gas, according to AAA.
“Am I crazy or did gas prices shoot up today?,” a Reddit user, who uses the name Tronvillain, posted to the the r/Sacramento thread on Monday, New Year’s Day.
“There’s a station near my place that was like in the $3.96 range, but I just passed by it this morning and now it’s $4.29. What happened!?” the Reddit user wrote.
John Treanor, a spokesperson for AAA, said the average price for a gallon of gasoline has gone up across the country since the end of the holiday season.
“In California, we’re going to see prices fluctuate up and down until about mid-February,” Treanor said in a phone interview.
But why do gas prices seem so much higher now?
Why are gas prices rising in California again?
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said fuel prices are being affected by issues with California’s oil refineries.
“We started seeing gas prices rise right after Christmas,” De Haan said in a phone interview. “That was in response to several different refinery issues in both Southern and Northern California.”
There are currently 15 oil refineries across California. Three of them are having issues and outages, De Haan said Tuesday.
“Two refineries are experiencing unexpected outages in Southern California. In Northern California, PBF Energy, Martinez Refinery has had periodic issues with health inspections,” De Haan said.
While gas prices had continuously been dropping since September, De Haan said these issues have pushed gas prices back up during the start of the new year.
“It has nothing to do with the new year,” De Haan said. “It just happens to be that a lot of California refineries are having outages and issues at the same time.”
Within the next couple of weeks, De Haan said prices could drop again.
What are other factors on California gas prices?
What else could affect what you pay for gas this year?
“There are a lot of factors in play when it comes to gas prices,” Treanor said. “There’s things like supply, demand and the global oil market.”
While people typically stop traveling after the holidays because of winter conditions, Treanor said more people are expected to hit the road once temperatures start to rise.
“When demand increases, prices increase as well,” Treanor said.
During the springtime, Treanor said heavier road traffic could increase California’s gas prices even more.
How much is gas in California right now?
As of Tuesday, the current average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas is $4.71, according to AAA.
During this time last year, the statewide average was about $4.42.
Here are the average prices for regular gas around California’s metropolitan areas:
Bakersfield: $4.79
Chico-Paradise: $4.54
El Centro: $4.45
Fresno: $4.61
Hanford-Corcoran: $4.59
Los Angeles-Long Beach: $4.76
Madera-Chowchila: $4.61
Merced: $4.60
Modesto: $4.48
Napa: $4.80
Oakland: $4.76
Orange County: $4.66
Redding: $4.49
Riverside: $4.60
Sacramento: $4.67
Salinas: $4.90
San Bernardino: $4.58
San Diego: $4.78
San Francisco: $4.94
San Jose: $4.74
San Luis Obispo-Atascadero-Paso Robles: $4.99
San Rafael: $4.88
Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Lompoc: $4.75
Santa Cruz-Watsonville: $4.80
Santa Rosa: $4.89
Stockton-Lodi: $4.55
Vallejo-Fairfield: $4.71
Ventura: $4.81
Visalia-Tulare-Porterville: $4.70
Yolo: $4.60
Yuba City: $4.30
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