Gas prices up this week, on average, due to Midwest refinery fire

Motorists are paying on either side of $3 a gallon for gas, per data from GasBuddy, which has the average price of a gallon of gas in Virginia well below that mark, at $2.84 a gallon, as of the opening of the work week on Monday.

The average for a gallon of unleaded nationally is $3.00 even, and diesel is $3.64 per gallon, up 4.7 cents over a week ago.

The bump nationally is due to a refinery fire in the Midwest. The Whiting refinery, owned by BP, caught on fire on Oct. 16 due to an operational incident.

The Whiting refinery, located 17 miles from Chicago, processes about 440,000 barrels of crude oil daily.

“While the spike in prices in affected areas was significant, relief is likely in the weeks ahead as the situation stabilizes,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “For now, the possibility of a U.S.-China trade deal could lift oil prices on optimism that it would increase trade and reduce tariffs, potentially keeping the national average slightly above the $3-per-gallon mark for a couple more weeks before slipping back below $3 ahead of Thanksgiving.”