Utah gasoline prices 5th highest in US

SALT LAKE CITY — Regular gasoline was selling at an average price of $3.78 a gallon in Utah last week, according to the American Automobile Association’s State Gas Price Average survey.

That was the fifth highest average price in the nation, behind California, Hawaii and Nevada, but higher than Oregon, Idaho and even Alaska. AAA’s Aldo Vazquez says prices have been rising faster in Utah and the West than in many other parts of the United States.

“Since last Thursday, 10 states saw the largest increase in their averages, and Utah was first on that list with about a 10-cent increase,” Vazquez told KSL Newsradio.

Texas and other states across the South have the lowest prices in the country. In Mississippi, the average price was $2.78 per gallon — a full dollar lower than in Utah.

“That has a lot to do with the fact that there aren’t as many refineries on the West Coast as there are on the East Coast and especially the South,” Vazquez said.

Utah is sensitive to national and regional fuel price fluctuations, even though the market here is somewhat unique. Most of the gasoline sold in Utah is refined in Utah and western Wyoming from crude produced within the region.

The national average price of gasoline was $3.16 a gallon last Friday.

Read more:

• Gas prices on the rise in Utah and across the nation, likely to stay that way
• Where to find the cheapest gas prices in Utah ahead of holiday weekend