Montreal | Gasoline prices at historic high

The price of gasoline continued to climb in Montreal to reach $2.15 per liter at several service stations on Sunday, a hitherto unseen in the metropolis, according to an expert.

Vincent Larin
The Press

After crossing the symbolic mark of $2.00 recently, the price of a liter of gas, far from decreasing, continued its momentum in southern Quebec. In Montreal, several stations posted prices between $2.05 and $2.15 per litre, depending on what was observed.

At the Esso station, at the corner of rue Ontario and avenue Papineau, in Montreal, several motorists testified to their dismay in the face of this situation.

Barack, a driver for Taxi Champlain, said he prefers to stay parked between calls rather than walking around looking for customers, in order to save gas. “It’s simple, we drive at a loss,” he complained, confiding that he no longer filled his car full and instead limited himself to spending “by $5” at the gas station.

Jean-Claude Lapalme, a former “snowbird”, also says he is forced to make choices when planning his trips. “We no longer have the pleasure of being able to go where we want,” the man said with a sigh.

Mathieu Bigeon, originally from France, points out that these are normal prices… for Europe. With the exception of a few trips, especially to get to the gym, he says he is now limiting his trips by car.

More records to come

At $2.15 per litre, as several gas stations displayed on Sunday, this is an all-time high for the price of gasoline in the metropolis, underlines the president of the group Canadians for Affordable Energy, Dan McTeague . However, this record could still be beaten in the coming days, according to him, until it reaches $2.30 per litre.

” That [2,30 $ le litre] is likely to be the maximum we will reach. But more than $2 is now the new reality to get used to,” says the expert.

This is due to a multitude of factors, including the severe confinements in China due to the rise in COVID-19 cases which are slowing the country’s economy, as well as an increase in demand for fossil fuels in Europe due to the war in Ukraine.

“We are also starting the hurricane season [aux États-Unis] and that always causes a lot of trouble,” he adds.

Dan McTeague suggests to motorists looking for savings to always fill up in the middle of the week, when gas is cheaper, or to go to the suburbs of Montreal, where it is possible to save 5 to 6 cents per liter.

The PQ proposes a ceiling of $1.60 per liter

Under these circumstances, the Parti Québécois (PQ) is proposing to temporarily limit the cost at the pump to $1.60 per litre, and that the price difference be borne by oil producers, a measure which would however have the effect of maintain Quebecers’ dependence on oil, according to an expert.

Faced with the rise in gas prices, the PQ leader, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, protested to see the oil companies raking in record profits, speaking of “robbery”.

“It is neither normal nor acceptable that 85% of the increase in the price at the pump goes directly into the pockets of the oil companies and their refineries. Experts expect a liter of gasoline to exceed $2.20 shortly. There comes a time when you can no longer sit idly by, it takes a contingency plan,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

Pierre-Olivier Pineau, professor at HEC Montreal and holder of the Chair in Energy Sector Management, fears, however, that the PQ’s proposal will have the long-term effect of less encouraging consumers to quickly get out of oil.

With The Canadian Press