The Northwest Power and Conservation Council publishes a forecast of oil prices for every power plan. For the 2021 Power Plan, the forecast was based on the EIA AEO 2019 Oil Forecast. The forecast is used in Council planning models such as Energy2020, and by regional stakeholders.
There are many different types of crude oil pricing points – based on individual characteristics.
- WTI – West Texas Intermediate – high quality crude oil, primarily refined into gasoline for the Midwest US
- Brent – North Sea oil
- OPEC Basket – OPEC nations oil
- IRAC – Imported refiners acquisition cost
For the power plan, we include a forecast for 4. IRAC.
There are 4 primary products contained in the forecast:
- Crude Oil - $/barrel – IRAC Historic and Forecast
- Distillate Fuel Oil – delivered $/gallon for residential, commercial and industrial users
- Transportation $/gallon – for gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel
The forecast and collected historic data may be found here.