Local gasoline prices soar as U.S. sets new record high

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - The national average price of gas hit a new record high Tuesday of $4.36 per gallon, rising just above the previous record set in March, according to GasBuddy.

Georgia prices aren’t far behind, rising from $3.73 a gallon a week ago to $3.90 Tuesday.

Prices are even higher in Augusta, averaging $3.91 per gallon Tuesday, up from $3.77 a week ago and $3.72 a month ago.

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Across the Savannah River, the average price Tuesday is $4.08 per gallon in South Carolina, up from $3.87 a week ago and $3.76 a month ago. In Aiken and Edgefield counties, the average price is $4.07 per gallon, up from $3.90 a week ago and $3.81 a month ago.

In just the past seven days, the national average price of fuel rose over 15 cents per gallon.

Experts said they believe costs could continue to climb through Memorial Day as summer road trip season begins and oil prices remain volatile.

“There’s little, if any, good news about fuel prices heading into summer, and the problem could become worse should we see an above-average hurricane season, which could knock out refinery capacity at a time we badly need it as refined product inventories continue to plummet,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

The national average for diesel hit another record of $5.54 a gallon Monday, which is up 22 cents in a week and 49 cents in a month, according to AAA.

The diesel increase will likely leading to further increases in the cost of goods as those costs are ed to consumers.

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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February sent prices surging as investors braced for oil supply disruptions caused by the war and embargoes on Russian energy.

The Biden istration responded by unleashing a record amount of oil from U.S. emergency oil stockpiles, announcing March 31 that 1 million barrels a day would be released for six months.

The ongoing effort helped cool oil and gasoline prices off for a bit, but the relief was fleeting and relatively minor.