Cost of diesel, home heating fuel up in surprise price change
Diesel up 6 cents per litre
The cost of diesel fuel and home heating oil is up across Newfoundland and Labrador on Wednesday, a day ahead of the regulatory board's usual weekly changes to the prices of fuels in the province.
The Public Utilities Board deviated from its usual weekly schedule — prices usually change on Thursdays — because of what it calls a "significant upward shift" in the benchmark prices used to set maximum prices. A release from the board says the increase is considered "extraordinary" and warranted the early adjustment.
The price of diesel is up six cents per litre in the province. A litre of diesel now costs $2.13 on the Avalon Peninsula and is more than $2.20 in other parts of the province, including Churchill Falls, where it costs $2.23 per litre.
Furnace oil also rose 6.33 cents per litre to $1.46 on the northeast Avalon and costs at least $1.50 per litre in parts of central and western Newfoundland, not including taxes. At $1.50 a litre, a standard 950-litre oil tank now costs over $1,600, including tax.
Stove oil increased by 5.53 cents per litre. The price of gasoline and propane weren't changed Wednesday, but the PUB says the regular weekly price-setting will happen Thursday.
The prices last changed on Saturday, the third straight day of changes, two of them interruptions to the PUB's usual schedule.