A fire at Chevron’s El Segundo refinery, the second-largest in California, is expected to impact gasoline prices across Southern California.
While the blaze’s full impact remains unclear, as Chevron has not yet disclosed how much of its operations were disrupted, the refinery supplies roughly 20% of Southern California’s gasoline and 40% of the region’s jet fuel.
David Lazarus, KTLA’s consumer reporter, said that higher prices at the pump will be inevitable after the fire. He mentioned that gas prices rose by more than $1 per gallon after the Torrance refinery fire a decade ago.
Lazarus noted that GasBuddy warned West Coast pump prices could climb by nearly $1 a gallon, though he expects an increase of 35 to 50 cents.
“For what it’s worth, AAA says the California average is now $4.60 a gallon, so we could be seeing prices getting closer to $6 a gallon very soon,” Lazarus said.
The fire and potential price impact came after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation allowing another gasoline blend to be sold in California, a move aimed at lowering fuel prices.
The measure, Assembly Bill 30, authorizes the sale of E15 fuel, a gasoline blended with 15% ethanol, while the California Air Resources Board reviews whether it meets the state’s air-quality standards.
Since California requires unique gasoline blends to meet environmental standards, the state has limited ability to replace lost production.
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