Motorists can expect to pay more at the pumps in Metro Vancouver this week.

GasBuddy senior petroleum analyst Dan McTeague says the price of gasoline could reach $149.9 per litre by Wednesday (February 28).

That's up from yesterday's average of $1.43.9 per litre yesterday and $1.46.6 per litre as of this writing.

Higher prices are due to the closure of the region's only refinery in Burnaby for routine maintenance.

Parkland Fuel Corp. bought the Chevron facility last year and is planning a $100-million upgrade.

The refinery processes 55,000 barrels of light and sweet crude oil per day, supplying nearly a quarter of B.C. demand for gasoline and diesel.

Last year, the average price of gasoline in Metro Vancouver was $1.27.5 per litre, according to GasBuddy.