Listen to this article
Estimated 3 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.
The price of gasoline has lowered across Newfoundland and Labrador for the first time since late-February.
The Public Utilities Board lowered gas prices by 10 cents per litre on Wednesday, marking the first time gas has decreased in price in Newfoundland and Labrador since Feb. 20.
In a news release on Wednesday, the board said a large decrease in market pricing on Monday resulted in an extraordinary pricing adjustment being required.
It comes a day after another extraordinary adjustment, which saw prices rise based on market performance from the end of last week due to the war in the Middle East.
The change puts maximum prices for gas between $1.82 and $1.98 per litre in Newfoundland, and between $1.60 and $1.93 per litre in Labrador.
Diesel and home heating fuels also saw a large decrease.
Diesel saw the largest drop of any fuel Wednesday, down almost 22 cents per litre in Newfoundland and 21.5 cents per litre in Labrador West and Churchill Falls. The change puts maximum prices between $2.35 and $2.48 per litre in Newfoundland and between $1.75 and $2.48 per litre in Labrador.
The price of furnace oil decreased by just over 19 cents per litre, meaning customers in Newfoundland will now pay between $1.84 and $2.04 per litre depending on their location.
Stove oil also decreased across parts of Labrador, down over 18.6 cents per litre in Labrador West and Churchill Falls. Maximum prices now range between $1.28 and $1.94 per litre across the Big Land.
Residents want transparency, price sharer says
While prices have dropped for the first time in weeks, an avid price watcher says he expects things to further get worse before they truly get better.
Terry O’Neill runs the NL Fuel Price Stand Facebook page. The page shares updates on fluctuating fuel prices to over 45,000 people — people he says are fed up with what they pay at the pumps.
“It’s got to be a strain on just about everybody,” O’Neill told CBC News on Tuesday afternoon, before the latest price fluctuation was made.
Terry O’Neill, owner of the NL Fuel Price Stand Facebook page, said residents he’s heard from want greater transparency from the PUB around when prices could go up. (Garrett Barry/CBC)
“A lot of them are saying, you know, enough is enough, right? They’re sort of demanding that the Public Utilities Board or the government step in and stop this ridiculous [instability].”
O’Neill said he and other residents hope the PUB can improve transparency around price fluctuations, and when they’re expected, to help people better plan and budget for them.
He’d also like to see the PUB move away from different pricing zones across Newfoundland and Labrador — which exist to reflect the additional costs required to distribute fuel across different parts of the province — into a uniform price that can be locked for a period of time.
“When [ an increase] happens, there’s a snowballing effect. Everything else increases,” he said. “The price of groceries, I’m sure, is after skyrocketing.”
Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Sign up for our daily headlines newsletter here. Click here to visit our landing page.