If you’re from BC, you’ve heard and seen how gas prices have fluctuated wildly this year, reaching record high levels of $1.70+ per litre for regular gas in Greater Vancouver and Victoria this past summer. Now BC has introduced legislation that, if it becomes law, would require oil and gas companies to disclose supply and pricing data to the province.
Some of the information required to be turned over will include refined fuel imports and exports, fuel volumes at refineries and terminals, as well as wholesale and retail prices. There will also be regular audits to ensure the data being provided is accurate.
If passed into law, it would make BC the first province in Canada to require such information disclosure from oil and gas companies, but not the first in North America, according to a report from CBC. If the track record of those other jurisdictions with similar laws (like Washington State) is anything to go by, there are no guarantees it will reduce the price of gas at the pump. A big portion of gas prices in BC are taxes, and with no changes to all the taxes added on, there is likely to be any reduction in prices.
While many Tesla owners obviously don’t have to worry about heading to gas stations anymore, many others still have ICE vehicles as their second or third vehicle. And gas prices impact everything in our day to day lives as transportation costs are embedded in the purchase price, like the price we pay for food. Anything that can be done to reign in the extremely high gas prices in BC will be welcomed news.
