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Analysts Say May's Record-High Gas Price Could Soon Be Topped

 Apr 02, 2007

Gas prices in San Diego hit an all-time high last May at $3.43 cents per gallon. Now analysts say current prices are on track to beat that record. Full Focus reporter Heather Hill has more on the trend that has some San Diegans running on empty.
The average price of gasoline in San Diego on April 2nd last year was $2.77. Now, one gallon is up to $3.28, even though the price of a barrel of oil has dropped. And gas pump prices are fueling consumer frustration.

Chet Bowie just moved to San Diego from a small town in Arizona. He's noticing prices at the pump here aren't quite what they were at home.

Bowie: Well, it's probably about 75 cents higher here, I mean, we're probably thinking like the $2.50's there -- $2.60 at the highest. So, it's quite a bit different.

So why the dramatic difference in California? Charles Langley is a gasoline analyst from UCAN, the Utility Consumers Action Network. He says it boils down to a system that isn't competitive enough.

Langley: We've got seven companies controlling 12 refineries -- there's a couple little independent refineries out there -- and these seven, these seven sisters, control 92 percent of the supply of gasoline in the state.

Langley says he's concerned refineries may be limiting supplies to drive prices higher and higher. He says the problem is that refineries aren't monitored to make sure they're not being shut down just to panic the market.

Langley: Recently, Exxon had to shut down their refinery. We saw skyrocketing gas prices on the wholesale market, and then it was revealed that a raccoon had gotten caught up in some power equipment and taken down a whole refinery essentially.

But high prices aren't just raising the cost of filling your vehicle. Langley says it's important to see the bigger impact for consumers.

Langley: Gasoline is the foot on the accelerator of the American economy. When I call you on the phone, the little plastic hand-set is made from oil. The carpet I'm sitting on right now is made from oil. The fabric in this chair is made from oil. Crops are grown with pesticides and fertilizers made from oil. Then it has to be shipped to market using what? Oil. So, our entire economy depends on oil and it has a very strong effect over the long run of dampening economic growth.

Meanwhile, sky-high prices don't seem to be keeping motorists off the road. American drivers are using more gas than ever. Many we talked with today say they can only stand by and watch as the dollars accumulate at the pump.

Lewis Meleka: I have to go with it. I work five to six days a week at work and I go 40 miles each way. So, yeah, it goes pretty quick.

Langley estimates the oil refinery profit margin is about 50 cents per gallon more now than it was in 2001. For a person who buys a tank of gas per week for a vehicle with a twenty gallon tank, this amounts to an extra $1,000 paid over the course of a year