Gas price expert predicts 11 cent/litre drop

A gas price expert is predicting an 11 cent per litre drop at the pump.

Dan McTeague, the president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, believes the drop will kick in for Saskatchewan Sunday or early in the week.

“It’s great news, because I’m a little depressed with having spent months reporting on increased prices,” he said in an interview with 980 CJME.

He explained that the drop in wholesale prices would kick in at midnight Sunday, but it’s possible that there’s a bit of a delay.

“Here in the province, we often see that they lag behind. Some gas stations hold off a little longer, but one way or another, you’re looking at, beginning (Sunday) at a pretty substantial decrease,” he explained.

But, why?

McTeague points the finger at the massive drop in oil prices, which he blames on “politely speaking, overreaction to this latest variant of COVID.”

He’s referring to the Omicron variant, reaction to which caused huge losses in the stock market and lowered the price of a barrel of oil by more than $10 on Friday.

While the lower prices will benefit drivers, he said it’s not a great economic sign overall.

“It doesn’t help the economy. Worse, it masks over the reality that supply of oil is not adequate enough to meet global demand. While I appreciate the medical urgency of ensuring that economies respond nimbly to threats that could … create a lockdown situation, I also need to be mindful of the fact that the world doesn’t have enough oil to go around,” he said.

“A drop in oil prices and gas prices may be a bit of a head fake, and it may very well lead to much higher prices once calmer heads review the fundamentals of supply and demand, and realize that the world, rather than getting more oil, is getting into a situation where there’s less oil being produced.”

He also points to the importance of the oil and gas sector to Canada’s economy, and how a shake-up like this could affect it in the long run.

“The oil and gas sector is Canada’s number one wealth creator, like it or not … I think this creates some uncertainty that prices could drop dramatically, suddenly, and for all intents and purposes, without much legitimacy.”

He also believes it’s possible prices at the pump could rise a bit later in the week if the price of oil rebounds. He said gas should reach $1.34/litre at its lowest point.