Correction: This story has been updated to clarify Gov. Jared Polis’ actions. He issued an Executive Order. Decisions on the shutdown of the plant are being made by Suncor.
DENVER (KDVR) — Colorado isn’t the only state that has seen gas prices rise, but prices here have risen faster and higher.
Gasoline prices had eased from record highs last summer, but the Suncor refinery shutdown is taking a toll on local gas prices. Suncor’s refinery in Commerce City is expected to stay closed for months, possibly through March. The Canadian petroleum company announced the closure after a Dec. 24 fire at the refinery hurt two workers. Gov. Jared Polis this week extended a disaster emergency Executive Order enacted after the shutdown.
Since a large bulk of Colorado’s gasoline is supplied by the refinery, prices at the pump have been starting to respond. The average weekly gasoline price in Colorado has shot up more than a dollar from the low point around Christmas.
On Dec. 26, 2022, Colorado gasoline was $2.87 per gallon. By Jan. 30, the average gallon price has jumped to $3.94 all but erasing the relief in pump prices that had taken place since late summer.
U.S. Energy Information Administration records track some increases in gasoline prices in other states but none as high as Colorado’s.
Colorado’s gas prices have risen 37% since Christmas, the only state the EIA tracks where prices have risen more than a dollar. Prices have risen in the other eight states the EIA tracks, but by an average of 12%. At most, pump prices have only risen by half as much as Colorado’s in states such as Ohio, Florida and Texas.