Drivers cash in on gas price showdown in Blaine Lake

It’s been a painful summer at the gas pumps, but a few drivers in the province were lucky enough to find themselves caught in the middle of a gas war.

The price showdown between the the Gas Plus and Esso stations in Blaine Lake, about 80 kilometres north of Saskatoon, started Monday afternoon as people were coming home from the lake. By the evening, the price of gas had fallen below $0.95 per litre.

“It just continued going back and forth,” said Melissa Johnson, who manages the Esso. “People were excited, especially with the prices we’ve had over the summer.”

Johnson wasn’t working that day, but stopped in to see how her staff were coping with the influx of customers looking to cash in on the low prices.

She said her staff not only had to manage the huge number of vehicles pulling off the highway, but their phone was also ringing off the hook as word spread over social media.

“The line-ups were crazy on both pumps,”  Johnson recalled. “We had people filling up slip tanks and jerry cans. I’m sure we had people coming from far distances.”

Johnson, who has worked at the Esso for 17 years, described the competition between the two stations across the highway from each other as a friendly rivalry.

“The understanding has always been where we stay two cents different, but lately … they keep moving three or four cents or more, so we now watch it and we follow suit.”

While customers were happy with the savings, Johnson said the owner estimated they lost $4,000 to $5,000 during the competition.

Both stations have since returned to normal prices.