Yellowknife (May 19/04) - The Co-op has re-filled its tanks and is thanking its customers for their patience through a temporary price break.

While many of its competitors are selling gas for 99.9 cents a litre, the Co-op is planning to sell regular gasoline at 92.9 cents a litre until at least Friday, said Bob Orr, assistant manager of the Co-op.

Kevin Armstrong fills up his tank at the Co-op while regular gasoline is still 92.9 cents a litre. The Rae resident says he gets his gas at the Co-op whenever he comes into town because of the good price. - Brent Reaney/NNSL photo

"At the present time, we're going to hold it until the weekend and then after that we're likely to see an increase," Orr said.

The Co-op ran out of gas last Wednesday. Orr said the price break at the pump is to thank customers and the Co-op's approximately 3,900 members for their patience.

"We just want to recognize the fact that the Co-op is owned by the members and give them a little bit of a break," Orr said.

Some of the regular customers appreciate the discount, even if it is only temporary.

"I'm pretty happy. The price of gas has been going up for the last year or so," Co-op customer Kevin Armstrong said while filling up his truck on Tuesday morning.

Armstrong lives in Rae and says he drives into Yellowknife once every week or two to take care of errands.

He estimates that with the increased price of gas, he pays between $40 and $50 for every trip from Rae, so he tries to keep the frequency of trips to a minimum.

"I usually have a list of everything I want to do because I don't want to turn around and have to come back every couple of days," he said.

The Co-op seemed well prepared for the period before the Merv Hardie ferry started running, bringing in seven trailers of gas compared to only three last year, Orr said.

But demand kept increasing, leaving the Co-op without gas for nearly five days, Orr said.

It's hard to tell what caused the increased demand for gas, but Orr said the new gas bar put in last October might have helped.

"It's just a nicer place to be than where we were last year," Orr said.