Although the price at the pump these days is about 50 cents less per litre than the record-high prices we were dealing with a year ago, it still stings whenever you need to fill'er up. As of Saturday, the sting may hurt a touch more as the increased carbon tax will kick in. Among other things, this will impact the price of fuel.

The increase will be 3.26 cents plus GST for regular fuel and 4.01 cents plus GST for diesel. This is expected to put the price around $1.56 per litre for regular gas at most Portage la Prairie stations if things stay the same between now and the weekend. 

It may not be the only increase we see over the next few weeks either. In mid-April, Manitoba stations traditionally switch from winter blends of fuel to summer blends. Although this does not guarantee a price increase, the summer blends cost about 4.5 cents more per litre to produce and most years, that cost is usually passed on to consumers.