Gasoline prices soaring

If you think gasoline prices are high today, just wait.

According to a new survey, nearly three out of four Americans expect prices to reach $3.50 a gallon this summer, and more than one in four (28 percent) foresee prices at $4 a gallon in the next few months, according to the Civil Society Institute, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit group supporting greater fuel efficiency.

Gasoline prices in Utah already are averaging more than $3 a gallon. On Friday, Utah gas prices hit $3.05, the highest recorded average for the state and four cents higher than the national average of $3.01, according to AAA.

Francine Giani, executive director of the Utah Department of Commerce, said she believes gasoline prices in Utah could hit $4 by Labor Day.

"I hope not," Giani said. "But we've been seeing gas prices rise all through the month of April, and last year it started after Memorial Day."

A report in April by the U.S. Energy Information Administration predicted that gasoline prices nationally would hit a peak average of $2.87 per gallon in May, as the start of the summer driving season began.

Yet on Friday national prices averaged $3.01 for a gallon of regular unleaded.

According to the CSI report, 83 percent of Americans think big oil companies are gouging consumers at the gas pump.

Public sentiment is similar to the findings of a Utah state investigation last fall, which found that retailers were gouging consumers — but that they were not breaking any state laws.

How high prices go this summer depends largely on what happens to the refineries that crank out the nation's fuel, according to a recent Wall Street Journal story. Refinery outages, the Journal said, are part of the reason fuel prices have rocketed up.

Utah's five refineries currently are operating near capacity but have experienced some "minor operational concerns," according to Lee J. Peacock, president of the Utah Petroleum Association.

Over the past two months, at least two Utah refineries have been down for significant maintenance and repair, said Peacock, who added that the shutdowns have contributed to Utah gasoline inventories at below-normal levels.

"Such 'turnarounds' are a critical and necessary requirement to keep refineries running optimally and safely," Peacock said. "We're experiencing short supplies and very healthy demand as Utah enjoys a booming economy with near full employment."

The recent local refinery shutdowns do not appear to be a deliberate attempt to drive up gasoline prices, according to Laura Nelson, energy adviser to Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.