PORTLAND, Maine — The state average price for a gallon of regular gasoline continued a slow rise last week in line with 47 other states and a global rise in the price of crude oil.
The price tracking website Gasbuddy.com and AAA reported the statewide average stood at about $2.54 per gallon Monday, up about 7 cents from $2.47 per gallon one week ago. The Maine average on Monday was the same as the national average, which was up about 8 cents from one week ago.
The average Maine price remains about $1.20 lower than one year ago.
“A rebound in crude oil prices has fueled up gasoline prices in the last week across the United States, with even bigger spikes in the West Coast, where refinery problems have returned,” Patrick DeHaan, a senior petroleum analyst with GasBuddy, said in a news release.
One California refinery — Tesoro Corp.’s Golden Eagle in Martinez — halted production due to a labor strike and an ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance cut production following an explosion at the plant in February.
Gas prices typically rise in the weeks before the summer travel season as refineries switch over to producing a blend of fuel with lower emissions. DeHaan said last week that the summer blend is starting to hit retail outlets in the Northeast.
Prices have been on a steady rise through April after two weeks of decline mid-March. Still, analysts at GasBuddy project retail gas prices will remain at least $1 lower per gallon through the summer, compared with one year ago.
GasBuddy reports indicated the cheapest gallon of regular gas in Maine on Monday was priced at $2.29 at Fieldings Gas & Oil in Scarborough. The highest price recorded was $2.79 per gallon at the Citgo station in Eagle Lake.