Fuel is about to get more expensive across parts of Labrador, as PUB approves markup hike
Higher wholesale and retail markups on gas, diesel, stove oil and propane
The Public Utilities Board is making changes to its pricing model for fuel in Labrador, allowing higher wholesale and retail markups in most areas on gas, diesel, stove oil and propane.
The board's review of petroleum pricing, released Thursday, says markups will happen over the next several weeks to avoid sticker shock.
"This will limit the weekly impact on consumers so that the increases are no higher than 1 cent per litre per week," the review said.
The board will also make tweaks to how it sets fuel prices for western Labrador, and when prices there will change.
Starting March 21, the PUB will adjust fuels prices in Wabush and Labrador City on Fridays, instead of Thursdays.
Most areas of the region will see markups on gasoline jump between 2.11 and 4.5 cents per litre. Diesel markups will rise 4.5 cents and stove oil markups will jump 2.49 cents per litre across Labrador.
The regulator is also turning Cartwright into its own pricing zone starting March 21, and raising the wholesale markup, the zone differential and the retail markup.
Under the current model, the area has a wholesale markup of 22.85 cents and a retail markup of 10.28 cents per litre. Under the new model, there will be a wholesale markup of 26.38 cents and a retail markup of 14.28 cents per litre.
But while wholesale and retail markups are increasing, the zone differential is decreasing. The 26.38 cents per litre for wholesale, for example, is combined with the zone differential. The combined changes to the benchmark prices, markups and zone differentials will result in a net decrease for gasoline, diesel and stove oil prices for Cartwright.
As for propane, the PUB is hiking markups in the Straits, central and western Labrador, and dropping the markup price on the north and south coasts.
The review comes three years after Service N.L. requested that the regulator look at its pricing formula for Labrador.
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