‘Highest I’ve seen’: Gas prices up a nickel in Bend to over $4 gallon, first time in nearly a decade

(Updated: adding video, comments from Bend drivers)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ)-- Russia's invasion of Ukraine rocked the global oil market, and Central Oregon is feeling the impact. The average price of gas in Bend is $4.11 per gallon, the first time it's been past $4 in nearly a decade.

Marie Dodds, director of government and public affairs for AAA Oregon-Idaho, tells NewsChannel 21 Oregon is seeing gas prices rise dramatically.

"Our prices are usually more expensive than other parts of the country because we are geographically isolated," Dobbs said Tuesday. "But this situation can help us, when it comes to geopolitical situations like we're seeing now."

Dobbs added that Oregon ranks in the lower tier of states nationwide that are seeing increases.

"So yeah, Oregon is seeing prices rise by a nickel this week -- other states are seeing double-digit increases," she said. "So it is bad but it could be even worse here."

Ninety percent of refined petroleum used in Oregon comes from Washington. So why are Oregonians seeing gas prices increase if it's not coming from Russia?

Dodds says gas prices are rising because oil is a global product.

"There are a lot of moving pieces, when it comes to getting oil and gas distributed," she said. "When there's a hiccup in any of those mechanisms, it can lead to higher prices."

A major geopolitical event with one of the world's top oil producers, like Russia, will impact the product everywhere. Russia is one of the top three oil producers in the world, along with the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. Russia produces about 10 million barrels a day.

Crude is about $105 per barrel today, about $44 higher than a year ago. On average, about 53% of what we pay for in a gallon of gasoline is the price of crude oil, 12% is refining, 21% distribution and marketing, and 15% are taxes, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

For Lisa Gettig, a Sunriver resident, higher prices mean planning when she'll go to the pump.

"I don't think I've ever seen it too much higher than over $4 -- and with the discounts, it helps, because I have 40 cents off today," Gettig said. "But I purposely try to arrange that, to come to the stations I can do that at."

Adam Braziel, a Bend resident, says he takes these high prices with perspective.

"I've been in Bend for about a year and I've still got to love that prices are so much cheaper than back in Northern California," he said. "There's a location that was 90 cents more expensive for Regular than here -- so that's almost a dollar more, and that's pretty insane."

"That was probably the highest I've seen in Bend," Braziel added.

Dodds says that for every gas station, there's a corresponding business plan.

"There are no laws on the books saying how much gasoline can be sold for -- it's capitalism," she said. "And it's owners and operators looking at their individual markets and figuring out, you know, what they paid for the product and what they need to sell it for, in order to keep the lights on in their business."

Location, services provided, and even the bag of chips sold inside all impact a station's prices. However, the price per barrel -- is outside the local gas station's business plans.

There are concerns that with the severe economic sanctions that the U.S. and other western nations have imposed on Russia, it could retaliate by withholding oil from the global market. Europe, in particular, depends on oil from Russia.

The world oil market is facing the same factors as many other industries – tight supplies and higher demand, AAA said, as economies around the world emerge from COVID-related economic slowdowns.

U.S. gasoline demand rose slightly from 8.57 million b/d to 8.66 million b/d. Total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 600,000 bbl to 246.5 million bbl last week, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The increase in gas demand and a reduction in total supply contribute to rising pump prices. But increasing oil prices play the lead role in pushing gas prices higher. Pump prices will likely continue to rise as crude prices continue to climb.

Travel continues to be impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Find AAA’s latest COVID-19 information for travelers here.

You can also check the latest citizen-reported gas prices around the region on KTVZ.COM's Pump Patrol page, fueled by GasBuddy