Gas prices expected to jump in Edmonton

Gas prices expected to jump in Edmonton Alberta customers can expect to feel the pinch at the gas pump in the coming days due to tensions in the Persian Gulf.

Alberta customers can expect to feel the pinch at the gas pump in the coming days due to tensions in the Persian Gulf.

The average price in Edmonton Tuesday morning was around 95 cents per litre. Analysts expect that to jump a few cents over the next few days and as much as ten cents more per litre in the coming weeks.

"Something like this is going to have an impact not just in terms of gasoline," petroleum analyst Dan McTeague told CTV News. "It means jet fuel, trains, transportation."

A drone attack on the world's largest oil processing plant in Saudi Arabia has dealt an unprecendented blow to the world's energy supply. More than half of Saudi Arabia's oil production is offline and global energy prices have spiked by 14 per cent.

Iran-backed rebels in Yemen have claimed responsibility, but the U.S. and the Saudis believe the Iranians are solely to blame. There are concerns the tensions could escalate into an all-out war.

Premier Jason Kenney said this incident highlights a deeper problem of instability and unpredictability from OPEC countries, and that Alberta energy is a safe alternative for the United States.

"If they don't want to pay a security premium for energy and then they should be operating more and investing in more in Alberta and importing Canadian energy," Premier Kenney told BNN Bloomberg Monday.  "We can do that by getting some of these pipelines completed including line 3 replacement and Keystone XL."

Kenney is in New York on a tour aimed at boosting investor confidence in Alberta energy.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nahreman Issa