US petrol price at all-time high

There are differences in prices between states

US petrol pump costs have hit an all-time high as prices reached an average of just over $3 a gallon.

Self-serve regular petrol has gained nearly two cents a gallon in the last two weeks to reach $3.015 a gallon.

Political uncertainty over oil imports from Venezuela has combined with persistent pressure on refining capacity to keep US pump prices high.

The bad news for US motorists came less than a year after the previous record of $3.011 was set in September 2005.

National differences

A specialist market analyst group, Lundberg Survey, announced the fresh high in prices after it polled 7,000 gas stations across the US.

There is significant variations between states, with residents of Charleston, South Carolina, paying just $2.77 a gallon while drivers in San Diego, California, are being charged $3.28.

The US gallon is smaller than the UK gallon, and in price per litre the US price is still under $1 per litre.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has threatened to cut off oil supplies to the US in response to alleged interference in his country.

Fear of a showdown with President Chavez prompted Richard Lugar, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, to warn that the US needs contingency plans for disruption to its regular oil supplies from Latin America.

President Chavez is pursuing a policy of reducing Venezuela's exposure to the US market, and oil exports to the US fell by 6% during the first four months of 2006.

Hard-pressed plants

A long-term decline in the number of oil refineries in the US is another factor in high gas prices.

The last new refinery built by a major was opened 30 years ago, and since 1976 the total number of operational refineries has been halved, dropping from 300 to less than 150.

The catastrophic Hurricane Katrina in summer 2005 damaged refineries in the Gulf of Mexico and underlined the fact that US refining capacity is at full stretch.

The shut-downs helped drive crude oil prices to record highs.