Fuel price behaviours in Powell River have been investigated by the provincial ministry of energy, mines and low carbon innovation, prompting further investigation by the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC).
“Residents of the Sunshine Coast have every reason to resent our gas prices being so high, and while our jurisdiction doesn’t allow us to set them, it allows us to ask for transparency, which is what we’re doing,” said Powell River-Sunshine Coast MLA Nicholas Simons. “I hope people who are concerned make their perspectives known by providing their input to the BC Utilities Commission.”
According to notes supplied to Simons by the ministry, since 2019, the government has taken a series of proactive steps to provide a greater level of transparency to how fuel prices are set around the province.
The Fuel Price Transparency Act (FPTA) aims to look behind the curtain of the market for gasoline and diesel by collecting information and publishing from companies selling fuel in the province, the ministry stated.
As administrator of the FPTA, BCUC has launched and maintains an open and transparent website, gaspricesbc.ca, that provides insights into the various components that make up fuel prices, including the price of crude oil, wholesale margins, retail margins and taxes, according to the ministry.
In addition to gathering data directly from fuel retailers and wholesalers, BCUC initiated data collection projects in response to public requests for information about fuel prices in select BC cities. Exploration project one looked at fuel price behaviours in 11 BC cities, including Powell River.
BCUC staff provided their observations on exploration project one in a fuel market report, wherein the data agrees with Simons’ assessment of comparatively high gasoline prices in Powell River, according to the ministry’s findings.
Exploration project three continued data collection from wholesale fuel marketers and retail stations where high retail margins were observed, including in Powell River. Exploration project three observed that the sampled retail gas stations in Powell River appeared to earn higher margins on gasoline sold than in Metro Vancouver and across BC, according to the findings.
Given the significance of the data findings, BCUC is undertaking an expanded data collection and review of all retail stations in specified cities, including Powell River, according to the ministry. The project includes a request for three years of cost, revenue and fuel volume data.
BCUC will provide its findings in a final report later this year, along with any recommendations it may have, the ministry stated.
“We believe information behind fuel pricing should be available to British Columbians,” the ministry stated to Simons. “By pulling back the curtain, companies will be publicly accountable for unexplained markups and cost increases.”
Concerns regarding fuel prices can be submitted to the BCUC on their website at gasprices.bc/ReportConcerns.
The ministry statement concluded by indicating that if BCUC identifies any egregious market behavior, government will review the evidence and take appropriate action to protect British Columbians.
