Local & State Headlines

Gas prices 'not rocket science'

• An Albany gas station chain owner explains the process of setting pump prices.

Joshua Brown

ALBANY — With gas prices rising almost daily, some Albanians might wonder how pricing is determined. One local gas station owner says it’s “not rocket science.”

Brooks Woodall, co-owner of Woodall’s gas stations, explained the process Wednesday as gas prices continue to rise and Memorial Day weekend comes and goes.

Simply put, gas prices for consumers are dependent upon local gas stations’ suppliers — whether they be BP, Shell or otherwise — he said.

“We get a price sheet every night with gas prices and we buy gas. It’s not rocket science,” he said during an interview in his North Slappey Boulevard office Wednesday.

The store fills up its gas storage tanks daily, he said, and the price charged to the consumer reflects the price charged by the station’s supplier, plus enough to make some profit, said Woodall, who has been in the gas business since 1961.

Regular was $3.82 per gallon Wednesday at his North Slappey store. Other stations in town ranged from $3.74 at a North Jefferson Street store to only a few pennies short of $4 per gallon at some service stations. Most stations were at $3.88 to $3.90 on Friday.

According to a daily AAA report released early Friday, gas prices in Metro Albany had hit their highest recorded prices, at $3.85 per gallon for regular gas. The state average, according to AAA, was $3.86 for a gallon of regular.

The process for setting prices may vary slightly from station to station, but it largely remains the same.

At the BP on North Slappey Boulevard, manager Sunil Kumar said he usually gets a phone call from his owner telling him when to raise or lower gas prices, which he does.

“From there, it will go to your pocket,” he said after explaining the process.

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