The first fuel barge of the season arrived in Bethel on Monday, June 7. Rick Meidel, vice president and general manager of Crowley Fuels, said that 300,000 gallons of heating fuel and 150,000 gallons of aviation fuel arrived Monday, with unleaded gasoline expected later in the week.
Fuel prices have been rising around the nation for months as people have started to resume their pre-pandemic levels of activity. The first fuel barges of the season arriving in Bethel mean that people in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta will soon be paying more to fill up their tanks.
Meidel was not yet able to provide exact figures on how much the fuel would cost, but he did say that an increase would occur.
“I can tell you that, you know, the markets moved up significantly from last year,” Meidel said.
He said that the new fuel prices would be reflected in Bethel within a week, and in the neighboring villages shortly after.
