Gasoline Prices Expected to be Stubbornly High for the Foreseeable Future

“SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The recent spike in gasoline pricesaround the nation is expected to wane slowly in coming weeks, butCalifornia may not be so lucky due to supply challenges fueled by refinery issues and pipeline outages, analysts said.

Throughout the state, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline jumped 8 cents Thursday to $4.32 and was up 18 cents during the past week, according to AAA’s Daily Fuel Gauge.

Analysts said the average price of regular gas was poised to quickly soar past $4.37 a gallon — the high so far this year — after refinery outages and pipeline problems left California short on supplies.

The highest average price ever for regular gasoline in the state was $4.61 in 2008.

Among the recent disruptions, an Aug. 6 fire at a Chevron Corp. refinery in Richmond left one of the region’s largest refineries producing at a reduced capacity. A power failure in Southern California has affected an Exxon Mobil Corp. refinery, and a Chevron pipeline that moves crude to Northern California also was shut down.”

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