New Brunswick has been overestimating the cost of federal clean fuel regulations on oil companies and have allowed consumers to be overcharged by millions of dollars since last July as a result, two expert witnesses have told the Energy and Utilities Board.
If the more bullish forecasts prove accurate, a return to triple-digit oil prices could be just around the corner, as Canadian consumers struggle to keep pace with sharply higher prices for many essentials, including food.
A barrel of the North American oil benchmark is changing hands for about $90 US a barrel right now, but the heavy crude that comes from Canada's oilsands is fetching $30 less because of a perfect storm of imbalances between supply and demand.
The price of a barrel of oil has fallen by about 20 per cent in the past month, a situation that would normally result in a comparable decline in the price consumers see when they fill up their cars with gasoline. But it hasn't.