Experts weigh in on carbon tax and price jump for drivers

Some people filling their vehicles Monday may have gotten a shock: the cost of a litre of gas shot up, as the federal government implemented its new carbon pricing.

Experts say the consumer carbon levy, which impacts fossil fuel purchases, is just the beginning. It’s not an April Fools joke -- the carbon price on a litre of gasoline is now 17.6 cents, up 3.3 cents.

One motorist filling up at a station on Barrydowne Road in New Sudbury said he knew about the April 1 price jump, but still needed to fill up to drive home to Timmins.

“Not only is the carbon tax changing today but also stations may have been selling below cost, they may be using this to get back on the right side of things,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.com.

“The price of oil has also risen to its highest level last week since October. So there are a lot of different factors that may go into why a station or gas bar suddenly raises its price more than the increase in the federal carbon tax.”

GasBuddy.com has become a popular source for drivers to find out which gas station in their community has the lowest price.

Some people filling their vehicles Monday may have gotten a shock: the cost of a litre of gas shot up, as the federal government implemented its new carbon pricing. (Photo from video)

Despite the price increase, the three gas stations near a busy intersection in Sudbury still had drivers filling up, many mentioning they weren’t aware of the increase.

Gas expert Dan McTeague, with Canadians for Affordable Energy, said he is most concerned with diesel prices since those will inadvertently add to the country’s affordability crisis.

“There is nothing that we use, utilize or our economy relies upon that is more important than diesel, and so it’s the global workhorse. It’s the national, regional, northern Ontario, global workhorse,” McTeague said.

Makes everything more expensive

“So when you start messing around with the price of diesel, it affects the cost of mining, it affects the cost of agriculture, it affects the cost of forestry, it affects the cost of manufacturing, and ultimately raises the cost of living for everyone.”

Once summer demand kicks in later this month, McTeague expects gas prices could climb as high as $2 per litre.

“This is not going to end well for consumers and I think summer is going to be the proverbial summer of our discontent,” he said.

As part of carbon pricing, the federal government deposits the Canadian carbon rebate to households four times a year.

The next payment is due April 15.

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