Thompson-Okanagan could see a spike in gas prices heading into the weekend

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Increases in gas prices could be coming to the Southern Interior as early as this afternoon.

Senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy, Dan McTeague, says due to an increase in gasoline pricing this week, gas stations in Kamloops, Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon will see a slight spike at the pumps.

In Kamloops, McTeague says the average gas price is currently sitting at $1.104 but it could jump to as much as $1.16 as early as this afternoon.

"If I'm a gas station owner in Kamloops today, it’s costing me a little less than $1.06 per litre (to purchase gas)," McTeague says. "This is probably as good as it's going to get, $1.104 is a really good price."

He says that means gas station owners are receiving a very small profit if they don't raise their prices, which means cities across the Thompson-Okanagan will need to bump up the prices at the pump to stay afloat.

McTeague says the average price of gas in Kelowna earlier today was $1.129, but according to GasBuddy's website, some prices have reached up to $1.199 at the time of publication.

According to GasBuddy, most stations in Vernon are sitting at $1.089 while the average price in Pentiction is $1.149. McTeague says it's possible that the five- or six-cent increase in the region will hold off until after the weekend but is expected to last for some time.

"Brace for a small increase that will hold for at least the next couple of weeks," McTeague says, adding that summer-blend gasoline will be introduced Canada-wide soon.

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