Diesel prices continued to climb Wednesday, Sept. 28, as oil prices surged on news that U.S. supplies of crude oil were lower than expected, even though supplies overall are 11 percent higher than they were a year ago.

According to AAA, the average price for diesel on Wednesday, Sept. 28, was $2.876 per gallon, up a penny from the day before.

Light, sweet crude oil surged above $67 a barrel in midday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange before falling back down close to the $65 mark.

The U.S. Department of Energy issued its weekly report on Wednesday showing that crude oil stocks were down by about 2.4 million barrels, though supplies overall are 11 percent higher than they were a year ago.

Meanwhile, in some bad news for the oil industry, drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico took a big hit from Hurricane Rita, though refineries on land remained relatively intact.

The Financial Times reported that nine submersible rigs in the Gulf broke free from their moorings and were adrift. Some reports said numerous rigs were missing, destroyed or suffered serious damage.

Meanwhile, officials in Saudi Arabia said on Sept. 28 that the country would soon nearly double its existing reserve base.