Metro Vancouver gas prices could rise another 5 cents Friday: analyst

Gas prices have surged again, and analysts expect the increases to keep coming.

Gas prices in Metro Vancouver surged to 217.9 cents a litre Thursday, and some analysts believe a further five cent hike could be in play before the weekend.

“I can’t see anything stopping it going up about five cents a litre,” said Roger McKnight, En-Pro International chief petroleum analyst. “That’s the facts of life right now. This is going to be a pretty rough couple of months.”

The latest spike comes with no end to the U.S.-Iran conflict in sight, and the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

“I can see this whole scenario stretching right through into the early part of 2027,” McKnight told CTV News. “And I don’t know what you can do about it.”

Asked about whether drivers can expect anything in terms of provincial support, Jobs and Economic Growth Minister Ravi Kahlon said the government is looking into what’s possible.

“We have nothing at this point that we can announce,” Kahlon told reporters in Victoria. “We have met – the premier put a cabinet committee together to look at the challenges. We’re looking at everything. Short term, medium term, long term, structural changes so that we can ensure that we’re not in a vulnerable situation like this ever again.”

But the B.C. Conservatives argue a lack of investment in oil and gas infrastructure has exacerbated this crisis.

“We should have a pipeline, we should be looking at refineries, we should be doing all those things and we’d be in a much better place than we are today,” interim B.C. Conservative leader Trevor Halford said at the provincial legislature.

McKnight said even in the event the Strait of Hormuz was opened immediately, gas prices would likely remain elevated for a minimum of two months.