PUB Calling For Widespread Input to Inform Fuel Price-Setting

Everyone with a stake in how fuel prices are set will have a say in changes that go before the government for approval later this year.

On Thursday, the Public Utilities Board released its early findings from a review ordered by the province two years ago.

Recommendations include changing the source of data from one provider to another, and changing the day of the week when regular price adjustments are made — from Thursday to Friday — same as New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

But the guessing game on the day before the changes would likely continue, according to the PUB’s executive director, Jo-Anne Galarneau.

“Often times you will hear the gas wizard on a Wednesday, what they think the prices will be. You will probably have them on a Thursday now, guessing our gas prices for Friday,” she said, noting the review is all in the interest of better communicating how prices are set, and why they go up and down when they do.

She says while they’ve collected a lot of data to date through two outside consultants, they still want to fill any gaps that exist.

“We did spend quite some time in data collection, going to industry and stakeholders to get data to support or come up with some conclusions,” she said. “And that’s what this consultation report is indicating — that data is saying this, but we may still have gaps in data that we want.”

The deadline for input through formal presentations is July 15 while letters will be received until August 16th.

The final report will then go to government in the fall for rejection or adoption.