Arizona drivers should buckle up for higher gas prices in coming weeks, expert says

PHOENIX — Gas prices in Arizona could increase by 15-30 cents per gallon over the next few weeks, according to an industry expert.

As of Friday morning, the statewide average sat at $3.33, about 18 cents more than the national mark, according to AAA. The average for metro Phoenix, meanwhile, was $3.49.

While local prices have ticked lower over the last week, it might not last for long, according to Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

De Haan said the seasonal switchover to more expensive summer gasoline, coupled with a shortage of fuel to keep up with spring demand, will cause prices to rise.

‼️The pain from refinery maintenance this morning is now spilling over to SoCal a bit more- revising the predictions:
NorCal (Reno) +25 to 35c/gal
SoCal (AZ/LV) +15 to 30c/gal
OR/West WA +15 to 25c/gal
over the next ~5-15 days https://t.co/UVKXdtvC8v

— Patrick De Haan (@GasBuddyGuy) March 28, 2025

“We’re again getting into supply issues, [with] refineries in California not running smoothly and still with the outage of a refinery in northern California because of fire over a month ago,” he said.

Is there any good news about gas prices?

De Haan said it’s hard to predict exactly how far Arizona gas prices will climb, but it’s possible refinery issues could worsen in the coming days.

Still, he said it’s not all bad news.

“Phoenix’s average price is 36 cents below where it was last year, so while you can’t stop refiners from doing maintenance, and outages do happen, at least we’re already starting quite a bit below where we were a year ago,” De Haan said.

He added that prices may not go as high as previously expected and could avoid the dreaded $4 mark because of new White House economic policies, such as tariffs, potentially slowing the economy and fuel demand.

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