N.L. officially cuts gas tax, dropping prices across province
Gas tax reduced by seven cents per litre until end of 2022
A cut to Newfoundland and Labrador's provincial gas tax has officially come into effect, temporarily lowering the price of gasoline and diesel across the province until 2023.
The province announced it would reduce the gas tax last week as a temporary measure to help residents with the rising cost of living.
The tax was reduced by seven cents per litre — from 14.5 cents to 7.5 cents for gas, and 16.5 to 9.5 cents for diesel. Thursday's prices reflect the tax change, but are also impacted by changes to the average benchmarks prices used to calculate the price of fuel, according to the Public Utilities Board, which is the province's fuel regulator.
As a result of the changes, the price of gasoline dropped 5.1 cents per litre across much of the province Thursday morning.
The change puts the price of fuel at $2.17 per litre on the Avalon Peninsula and in the Corner Brook area, $2.19 per litre in central Newfoundland, and ranging from $2.19 to $2.21 per litre on the island's northern peninsula.
Diesel also dropped Thursday, down 8.1 cents per litre in most parts of the province. Prices range from $2.17 per litre on the Avalon to $2.28 on Change Islands. Furnace oil and stove oil saw no change, while propane decreased by 0.8 cents per litre across the province.
The price drops are slightly higher in Labrador, as much of the region isn't impacted by a change in the pricing benchmark.
The price of gasoline dropped 8.1 cents per litre in the Labrador Straits, the south coast between Cartwright and Lodge Bay and the north and south coasts. That means gas in the Straits now costs more than $2.35 per litre and $2.39 per litre on the south coast.
Diesel dropped by the same amount in the region.
Prices for diesel and stove oil in western Labrador and Churchill Falls also see differing costs as a result of tax and benchmark price changes, lowering 4.9 cents per litre and 4.92 cents per litre respectively.
