Statewide average gas prices fell 13 cents in the week to $4.51, while the national average rose about 3 cents in the week to $3.57 a gallon, according to the report. AAA.

Average gas prices in Tucson dropped 27 cents this week to $4.38 a gallon on Friday.

Scottsdale had the highest average gasoline price in the state at $5.05 per gallon, while the Sierra Vista Douglas market had the lowest average gasoline price at $3.77 per gallon.

Nationwide, demand has increased at the start of the summer driving season, driving prices higher, according to AAA.

“However, the rise has been moderated by low oil prices, which are hovering in the low $70s per barrel. If this long weekend appears in your rearview mirrors, pump prices will stabilize or fall. AAA spokesman Andrew Gross said.

The story is a little different in Arizona, where a switch to cleaner summer blended gas in parts of Arizona, strong demand, and a long period of tight gas supply combined to push prices above the national average. are doing. Maintenance halted at refineries in New Mexico and El Paso, Texas.

These refineries supply Arizona with cheaper gas than California gas piped to the Phoenix area.

AAA Arizona spokeswoman Julian Paredes said an El Paso refinery has resumed production, helping to boost prices in Arizona, especially in southern Arizona.

It’s unclear when the Artesia, New Mexico, refinery will return to operations, and work there could be delayed until June, but reopening will also help keep prices in check, Paredes said.

Meanwhile, gas prices in some rural areas remain much lower than in Tucson, which has historically been one of the cheapest areas in the state.

Prices in markets like Sierra Vista, Benson and Safford were more than $1 cheaper than Tucson over the past month, even though the gap has narrowed.

AAA’s Paredes said demand in these small markets is much lower than in metropolitan areas like Tucson and much closer to refineries.

“It’s faster and more efficient to get fuel to Benson and Sierra Vista, and gasoline will last longer in those areas, making it cheaper,” Paredes said. “We can’t make big predictions, but I think Pima County gas prices will be more in line with the eastern counties in the coming weeks. takes.”

Patrick de Haan, Head of Oil Analysis for Online Gasoline Price Tracking Site gas buddyagreed that not having to refill tanks immediately by retailers could reduce demand in local markets and help keep prices down.

De Haan said local gas station retailers could also truck cheap gasoline out of New Mexico, but that wouldn’t work in a large market like Tucson.

“If you have a small area, you can send trucks and take advantage of a pretty big (price) difference,” De Haan said. “We’re talking about Tucson, a lot of trucks need to get to New Mexico and other places.”

The Arizona Petroleum Dealers Association, a statewide trade group representing oil retailers, convenience stores and related industries, declined to comment on recent gasoline price trends.

Arizona’s major metropolitan areas may also get more expensive gas blend stocks, or base refinery fuels, that comply with California’s stringent emissions standards.

In March, the state began allowing Arizona fuel distributors to use California Reformulated Gasoline Blendstock (CARBOB) standard compliant fuels as the basis for finished gasoline.

Kevin Allen, associate director of services for the Arizona Department of Weights and Measures, said more expensive California-certified gas blends may have flowed into Arizona, and if suppliers use cleaners, He pointed out that there was no need to notify the state. A fiery California blend stock.

Allen said the unusually high prices in Tucson are likely related to a loss of supply from closed refineries in New Mexico and El Paso, where cheaper gasoline is available for trucks in smaller markets. He said it may have been brought in.

High gasoline prices often trigger consumer complaints about price gouging by gas retailers and distributors, but state attorneys general’ offices say they have little power under state law to stop price gouging. .

“In the absence of evidence of fraud, collusion, or other anticompetitive behavior, the Attorney General’s Office will take legal action against retailers who may legally claim amounts they believe the market will bear. We cannot take action,” the agency said. Web page about gas prices.

Prices within a geographic market move more or less simultaneously because firms move independently and interdependently, but such “parallel pricing” is not illegal unless there is evidence of collusion or an agreement to fix prices. AG said.

In 2006, an investigation by then-Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard into the rise in gasoline prices after Hurricane Katrina found that profit margins had risen significantly, but no state law violations had occurred.