Ohio gasoline prices lowest in 12 years

VW independent/submitted information

The cheapest gasoline prices in over 12 years are showing up in some lucky states in the heart of the nation, with previously unthinkable 99-cent gasoline becoming a strong possibility as wholesale gas prices plunge amidst growing supply.

GasBuddy reports that nine states in the nation are currently witnessing the lowest average gasoline prices since early 2004: Oklahoma ($1.37), Indiana ($1.45), Kansas ($1.46), Ohio ($1.47), Michigan ($1.49), Minnesota ($1.52), Wisconsin ($1.54), Illinois ($1.57) and North Dakota ($1.63) as oil refiners offer bargain basement prices to rid themselves of winter-spec gasoline ahead of a pending shift to cleaner burning fuel.

Even Chicago’s notoriously high gas prices stand a record 8-cents per gallon under the national average and have spent a record 12 consecutive days under the national average, a testament to the oversupplied status of winter-spec gasoline seen throughout the region.

“As gasoline supply continues to bulge, prices continue to shrink,” says Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy. “Wholesale gasoline prices in the Midwest have lost more than half of their value since the beginning of the year and prices at the pump haven’t fully reflected that yet. Incredible as it sounds, we wouldn’t be shocked to see a few stations in these states as low as 99 cents a gallon.”