- April 25, 2024
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by: Mark Jenkins
Spokesman, AAA - The Auto Club Group
Holiday travelers found the most expensive Labor Day gas prices in seven years. Prices at the pump are now averaging $3.02 per gallon, in Florida. That's 83 cents more than last year's holiday, and 58 cents more than what drivers paid during the 2019 holiday weekend.
Florida's gas price average shot up 8 cents last week, after Hurricane Ida's impact on the gulf coast left nine crude oil refineries offline. This resulted in an outage of about 13% of total U.S. refining capacity.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, four of the nine refineries have begun the process of restarting. Three of those are located in Baton Route, the other is near New Orleans. The DOE says it could take several days for those refineries to produce at full rates.
Meanwhile, five refineries near New Orleans remain shut due to issues including power outages. These plants account for 6% of total U.S. refining capacity.
"News that refineries are working to restore operations is a positive sign for motorists," said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA - The Auto Club Group. "As refineries get back up and running, prices should begin to slide lower; especially now that the summer driving season has come to a close."
Regional Prices
Ways to Save on Gasoline
Enroll in savings programs. AAA Members who enroll in Shell's Fuel Rewards program can save 5 cents per gallon when they fill up at Shell. Members who enroll between July 1 and August 31, 2021 can save 30 cents per gallon on their first fill up. Click here for more information.
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