Hurricane Harvey may cause boost in price of gas

Officials say to expect increases of up to 15 cents

With Hurricane Harvey barreling toward the energy- rich Texas Gulf Coast, gasoline prices are expected to tick upward as some refineries shut down capacity to brace for its impact at the end of the summer driving season.

Experts are expecting anywhere from a 5- cent to 15- cent increase in the price of a gallon of gasoline over the next several days as Harvey forces refineries in its path to take precautionary measures to prevent damage.

The storm would have to be extremely severe to do much damage to gasoline refineries, analysts said.

But predicted refinery closures in places such as Houston are still expected to have an impact, potentially disrupting supplies and increasing prices.

For example, the Flint Hills Resources plants in Corpus Christi, Texas, which collectively produce nearly 300,000 barrels per day, are shutting down while the storm passes.

Nationally, the average price of gas was $ 2.35 per gallon on Friday afternoon, up 2.2 cents from a week ago and up 15.2 cents from a year ago, according to consumer information site GasBuddy. com.

“Obviously if a refinery is underwater it can’t do a whole lot to produce gasoline,” GasBuddy petroleum analyst Patrick DeHaan said. “It’s just a matter of time before they start curtailing production at those refineries.”

About one- third of the nation’s gasoline refining capacity is located in the Gulf Coast region.

Increases will likely be highest in the Gulf states and lowest in western markets and states in the nation’s heartland.