Drop in gas prices not nearly enough

Despite lower prices at the pump, there’s still a long way to go. Retail margins remain high and difficult to justify. Consumers have the right to object, since the industry is always much quicker to raise prices than reduce them.

Petroleum price indicators have fallen drastically since Friday, November 26, 2021. The sudden decline is mainly due to uncertainty about the new Omicron variant of COVID-19 and the fact that many countries, including the US, will use their strategic oil reserves to increase the supply of crude oil.

A price drop out of sync with the acquisition cost indicator

Prices in the province since November 26 do not reflect the sharp fall in petroleum price indicators. This is especially true in Quebec, where the retail margin is about 15.7 cents/litre (price at the pump of 149.9 cents/litre), whereas the average annual provincial margin is 5.5 cents/litre.

Drivers have the right to expect a bigger decrease in prices at the pump, since service stations quickly raised prices the moment various petroleum price indicators went up recently. The slow reaction of services stations gives cause for thought, especially as current retail prices are too high.

For more information on how gas prices are determined

Our Gasoline Watch tool lets you compare realistic gas prices calculated by CAA-Quebec and average pump prices based on data provided by the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS).

This page also explains gas price components.