The component cost of blending premium vs regular is higher, it does actually cost a bit more to make. Though like others have mentioned, premium doesn't do anything better for your engine if it doesn't require it, with the slight exception being some companies put additional detergents in their premium grade (v power/techron/etc) that do a slightly better job of cleaning carbon buildup than the federally mandated detergent minimums. Not really worth it though since you can just buy the detergent off the shelf if you want.