Indiana gas refinery running again; gas prices expected to drop

The restarting of this unit will increase the refinery’s fuel production and BP hopes it will ramp up its output over time. “In the meantime, the company continues to meet its contractual fuel supply obligations”, a statement from BP spokesman Brett Clanton said.

Politicians throughout the Midwest, including Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, had demanded explanations from BP about the sudden price hike and called for a formal investigation.

As a result, the statewide average for a gallon of regular gas is down 19.2 cents over the last week – second only to Indiana’s 19.8 cent reduction.

“Gasoline price trends finally aligned last week across all areas of the country”, DeHaan said.

“Because oil prices have fallen pretty dramatically, gas prices have stabilized across the region”, Mosher said.

On futures markets Tuesday morning, crude oil prices were up about 3%, but the price was still below $40 a barrel.

“Should this eventually be confirmed, prices could fall through at least Labor Day in the Midwest”.

Motorists can expect local gas prices to drop 20 to 50 cents in the next two weeks as a refinery in Whiting, Indiana, has been restarted.