Gas priclimbed at the pump compared to a week ago. Georgia motorists are now paying an average price of $3.88 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline. Monday’s state average was 38 cents more than a week ago, 64 cents more than last month and $1.30 more than this time last year.

It now costs motorists $58.20 to fill a 15-gallon tank of regular gasoline.

“Georgia gas price average is approaching $4 per-gallon statewide,” said Montrae Waiters, AAA-The Auto Club Group spokeswoman. “Pump prices sharp rise is primarily due to the Ukraine-Russia conflict, which is causing crude oil prices to climb above $100 per barrel.”

Expensive Oil Pushes Pump Prices to New Heights

Since last Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has increased by 40 cents to $4.00. Crude prices continue to surge as the conflict between Ukraine and Russia continues to bring uncertainty to the market. To help counter the impact of rising oil prices, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has coordinated a release of 60 million barrels of crude oil from its 31 member countries’ strategic reserves, including the U.S., Germany, Canada, South Korea and Mexico. The announcement of the release did not detail the amount of each contribution from each country, but half of the release – 30 million barrels – is expected to come from the U.S. However, the pricing impact from the announcement has been limited given that the amount of oil is small in comparison to the amount of oil that flows daily from Russia around the globe. According to IEA, Russia exports approximately 5 million barrels a day of crude oil, representing about 12 percent of global trade. The market will likely continue to increase the price of oil as more sanctions are imposed on Russia. A potential ban of crude imports from Russia to the U.S. or other countries will likely cause prices to continue to rise to reflect more risk of disruption to tight global oil supplies.

Regional Prices

Atlanta ($3.87)

Most expensive Georgia metro markets – Brunswick ($3.94), Macon ($3.91), and Valdosta ($3.90).

Least expensive Georgia metro markets – Rome ($3.77), Gainesville ($3.79), and Dalton ($3.81).

Area gas price averages – Chattooga ($3.89), Floyd ($3.83), Walker ($3.83), Gordon ($3.95), DeKalb, AL ($3.88), Cherokee, AL ($3.96)