Why eliminating carbon tax made gas cheaper — and where to find it in Saskatoon

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Saskatchewan drivers are seeing savings at the gas pumps after the federal government scrapped the carbon tax as of April 1.

The elimination of the federal fuel charge, which was 17.6 cents per litre for gasoline, means consumers will potentially save around eight or nine dollars when filling up their vehicles, says Bob Klein, who owns Checkers Gas in Regina.

However, it does take a bit of time for that price drop to trickle down to consumers. So far, prices have dropped by an average of around eight cents per litre — not the 17.6 cents that the carbon tax represented.

“We had an order come in on (April 1) early in the morning so we could fill back up again, but at the new price, so we’re supposed to take a little bit of a loss on the gas we had in the tanks (from before). But that’s just business,” said Klein, whose station is independently owned.

Here are a few things to know when you’re behind the wheel and needing to fill up …

WHAT HAVE PRICES DROPPED TO?

In Saskatoon on Thursday, prices at Firecreek Gas and Grill, several Petro-Canada outlets and multiple Gas Plus venues were between $1.33 and $1.35 per litre of regular fuel.

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In Regina, some of the cheapest fuel in the city was $1.29 per litre at Regina Discount. Fas Gas on Edward Street was selling for $1.33 per litre, according to GasBuddy.

Across the province, a Shell and Esso in Weyburn were duelling at around $1.28 per litre, Petro-Canada in North Battleford and a Husky-Tempo in Maidstone were each around $1.31 per litre, and Gas Plus locations in Humboldt and Rosthern were around $1.33.

Klein, whose prices are typically lower than bigger stations, said he was selling regular gas last Friday at $1.45 and diesel at $1.59.

WHAT WAS THE FEDERAL CARBON TAX?

The consumer-facing federal carbon tax, introduced by the Liberal government, has been in effect for the past six years, collecting almost $45 billion in tax revenue.

The carbon pricing was a national initiative to help reduce pollution by placing a disincentive on carbon-intensive products like fuel, according to information from the federal government’s website. All tax collected was then returned back to the province from which it was collected.

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Premier Scott Moe has been vocal against carbon pricing. Saskatchewan removed its industrial carbon tax effective the same date. Moe had said he was proud that the province would be the only place in Canada to become “carbon-tax free” as of April 1.

HOW DID IT IMPACT GAS PRICES?

Klein says he adapts prices based on the cost from suppliers, and he often goes with whichever one has the lower offer on a given day.

He says the cost of purchasing from his supplier “dropped significantly” on Tuesday morning, though he didn’t reveal the exact amount.

Before the tax was eliminated and he was drawing down his tanks, Klein says he saw some big gas stations raise prices, likely to recoup part of their anticipated losses.

“They jumped their prices seven cents that day to $1.59. (At Checkers) we were at $1.45, but we left our price at $1.45,” he said. “It’s just like they want to make up some extra money because they know they might lose some money.”

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Average retail prices in Saskatoon and Regina were between around $1.50 and $1.56 per litre in the days leading up to the elimination of the tax, according to price tracker GasBuddy.

Those Regina prices took a dip to around $1.43 on Thursday. In Saskatoon, the average price was around $1.36.

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