Gas prices to change as energy board invokes interrupter

CITYnews halifax/ By Chris Halef

The price of gas is expected to change again Monday night as the Nova Scotia Energy Board invokes its interrupter.

The NEB said the price of all grades of gasoline will be adjusted, adding that this change is necessary due to significant shifts in the market price.

The board did not indicate whether or not the price would be higher or lower, but the current market prices are up, as of Monday afternoon.

The current price for regular self-serve gas is 152.7, while diesel is 216.4. This will be the third time the interrupter has been used since the U.S.-Israel war on Iran was launched.

The first two impacted only diesel oil, seeing prices at the pump skyrocket by 33 cents in a week.

Pipelines, refineries and world’s gas at risk

The Iran war has put at risk some of the world’s most critical oil and gas infrastructure — the pipelines, refineries, and shipping terminals that keep energy flowing from the countries around the Persian Gulf to the global economy.

Strikes by Iranian drones have disrupted operations, while the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz choke point for shipping due to risk of Iranian strikes has left some 20 per cent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas with nowhere to go. Oil fields in countries including Iraq have cut back output as storage fills up. Qatar, a major supplier of liquefied natural gas, has shut down its exports as well.

“A lot of very critical energy infrastructure has been either forced to shut down because of direct damage from drones and missiles,” said Torbjorn Soltvedt, principal Middle East analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, “or because production is effectively being shut in as a result of shipping grinding to a halt. We’re already starting to see some of the global ramifications of that.”

All that has sent prices soaring, raising the cost of everything that needs fuel: flying, running factories, transporting goods, and farming. International benchmark Brent crude has risen from $72.97 the day before the war started to almost $103 on Monday.

With files from David Mchugh, The Associated Press.