Section 9. Energy prices - petroleum and natural gas products - Statistical Data Included

Monthly Energy Review, April, 2002

Crude Oil. The average price of domestic crude oil at the wellhead was $15.86 per barrel in January 2002, 35 percent below the level of January 2001. The refiner acquisition cost of imported crude oil in January 2002 was $16.93 per barrel, 31 percent below the January 2001 level. The average cost of domestic crude oil in January 2002 was $17.85, 33 percent less than the January 2001 average.

Motor Gasoline. The national city average retail price of unleaded regular gasoline at all types of stations was $1.13 per gallon in February 2002, 24 percent lower than the price in February 2001. The price of unleaded premium gasoline averaged $1.33 in February 2002, 20 percent lower than the price in February 2001.

Residual Fuel Oil. The average price, excluding taxes, of residual fuel oil sold to end users in January 2002 was 45 cents per gallon, 6 percent higher than the previous month's price but 28 percent lower than the January 2001 average. The average resale price, excluding taxes, of residual fuel oil in January 2002 was 39 cents, 7 percent higher than the December 2001 price but 31 percent lower than the price 1 year earlier.

Aviation Fuel. The average price, excluding taxes, of aviation gasoline sold to end users in January 2002 was $1.21 per gallon, 5 percent higher than the previous month's average but 6 percent lower than the January 2001 average. The average price, excluding taxes, of kerosene-type jet fuel sold to end users in January 2002 was 58 cents per gallon, 4 percent higher than the previous month's average price but 34 percent lower than the January 2001 average price.

No. 2 Distillate Fuel Oil. The January 2002 national average price, excluding taxes, of heating oil sold to residential customers was $1.10 per gallon, 2 percent higher than the December 2001 price but 21 percent lower than the January 2001 price. The average price of No. 2 fuel oil sold to all end users was 64 cents per gallon in January 2002, 1 percent higher than the December 2001 price but 36 percent lower than the price 1 year earlier.

Electricity. The average price of electricity sold by electric utilities to all ultimate consumers in the United States in December 2001 was 7.12 cents per kilowatthour, 7 percent higher than the December 2000 mean price. The price of electricity sold to residential consumers in December 2001 averaged 8.50 cents per kilowatthour, 9 percent higher than the December 2000 price. The price of electricity sold to commercial consumers averaged 7.73 cents per kilowatthour in December 2001, 7 percent higher than the December 2000 price. The price of electricity sold to other consumers was 6.27 cents per kilowatthour, 1 percent lower than the December 2000 price. The price of electricity sold to industrial users in December 2001 averaged 4.81 cents per kilowatthour, 4 percent higher than the price 1 year earlier.

Beginning with January 1986, new series of national average price estimates were based on a statistically derived sample of both publicly and privately owned electric utilities. Previously, average price estimates were derived from selected privately owned electric utilities and were not national averages.

Natural Gas. The average wellhead price of natural gas for February 2002 was estimated as $2.14 per thousand cubic feet, 63 percent lower than the February 2001 price.

The average price of natural gas delivered to electric utility plants was $3.30 per thousand cubic feet in November 2001 (latest date for which data are available), 39 percent lower than the November 2000 price. The average price of natural gas used by residential consumers in December 2001 was $7.36 per thousand cubic feet, 14 percent lower than the December 2000 price. The average price of natural gas used by commercial consumers in December 2001 was $6.42 per thousand cubic feet, 22 percent lower than the December 2000 price. The average price of natural gas used by industrial consumers in December 2001 was $3.39 per thousand cubic feet, 49 percent below the December 2000 price.

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