Gas Prices Continue To Increase

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Gasoline prices have increased 17 cents a gallon in Oklahoma in less than two weeks, AAA Oklahoma said Friday. <br/><br/>On Aug. 27, the statewide average for a gallon of regular unleaded

Friday, September 7th 2007, 12:45 pm

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Gasoline prices have increased 17 cents a gallon in Oklahoma in less than two weeks, AAA Oklahoma said Friday.

On Aug. 27, the statewide average for a gallon of regular unleaded was $2.80. AAA Oklahoma said that price now is $2.97.

The statewide average in Texas for self-serve regular gasoline is $2.70 per gallon, Arkansas is at $2.75 and Missouri's average is $2.78.

A dozen states have higher statewide gas price averages than Oklahoma and they are all in the nation's midsection, excluding Hawaii and Alaska. Michigan and North Dakota are highest at $3.19, followed by Illinois at $3.12, Wisconsin at $3.09 and three states at $3.08: South Dakota, Indiana and Nebraska.

``We're being told the rapid increase in pump prices is due to Coffeyville, Kansas, refinery problems and other supply disruptions in the upper central U.S. states,'' said Chuck Mai, spokesman for AAA Oklahoma. ``The Group 3 market refining center in Tulsa supplies fuel to most of the Midwest, primarily through the Magellan pipeline system, and it's struggling to meet the demand.â€

``There just doesn't seem to be much of the summer grade fuel available in these states,'' said Mai. ``Refiners tell us they are reluctant to make more because in a week, they'll be switching to production of winter fuels.''

AAA said these late summer supply problems once again reflect the price and supply pressures created by environmental requirements for different mixtures of fuels for different regions of the country and a lack of refining capacity.

Oklahoma's gasoline price average was 15 cents above the national average Friday, and 49 cents higher than the state average a year ago.