Natural Gas Week articles from February 2006

Natural Gas Week archives from February 2006

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
February 6, 2006... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 1/31-2/6 Avg. Avg. Feb. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg....

Bargain basement: falling gas prices spark industrial demand.
February 6, 2006... For the past several months, demand destruction seemed inevitable in the natural gas industry as gas prices soared to more than $15/MMBtu in late 2005. However, since the start of the year, natural gas prices have fallen nearly 50% to a...

Once oil center, Pennsylvania sees renewed activity with gas.
February 6, 2006... In 1859, Edwin Drake drilled the first commercial oil well in Titusville, Pennsylvania. From that first well, the state's infrastructure grew to produce half of the world's oil until the East Texas oil boom in 1901. But recently,...

Blast of arctic air to chill down February; Bears go on defensive.
February 6, 2006... Badly burned by waffling forecasts over the last six weeks, including the call for a very cold January, wary energy traders seemed hesitant last week to jump in front of predictions for a frigid February. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] But with...

Shales remain hot as companies report progress in new gas plays.
February 6, 2006... Shales have become a hot item in the US exploration and production business during the last couple of years and two big independents have helped to keep the buzz alive with recent updates on nascent shale plays in Oklahoma and West Texas. ...

Capacity increase.(Late news)
February 6, 2006... Capacity increase: High capacity requests from potential shippers have prompted CenterPoint Energy and Duke Energy to set the size of their proposed Southeast Supply Header natural gas pipeline at 1 Bcf/d. Originally, the sponsors were...

ETP IPO.(Late news)
February 6, 2006... ETP IPO: The initial public offering of Energy Transfer Equity LP priced at $21/share on Thursday, at the top of a $19 to $21 forecast, according to an underwriter. The IPO shares represent a limited partner interest in Dallas-based Energy...

Partnership formed.(Late news)
February 6, 2006... Partnership formed: Houston-based Petrosearch Energy announced Friday it has entered into an agreement with the Harding Co. to enter the Barnett Shale play in Texas. The working interest partners have committed nine drilling rigs over a...

Contract signed.(Late news)
February 6, 2006... Contract signed: Transocean Inc. announced that Devon Energy has awarded the company's ultra-deep-water drillship Deepwater Discovery a minimum $520 million three-year contract for drilling operations offshore Brazil, with an option to extend...

Ships, crews stumbling blocks in developing LNG supply chains.
February 6, 2006... One of the most obvious parts of the LNG supply chain is usually the one that rarely gets mentioned. "Many times I think that the developers of these terminals have neglected a central part of the LNG chain--the ship," said Tony Bingham,...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
February 6, 2006... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 1/31-2/6 Avg. Avg. Feb. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low...

Politics may be key to opening up arctic reserves, LNG routes.
February 6, 2006... A new frontier may be opened soon in an effort to get LNG from Russia to North American markets. That new frontier is one of the most inhospitable places on the planet--the Arctic Ocean. With an average temperature of 55 degrees F, the...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
February 6, 2006... PRICES AND DIFFERENTIALS FOR MAJOR HUBS AND SELECTED CITY GATES February 6, 2006 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [GRAPHIC OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 1/30 1/31 2/1 2/2 2/3 HH-NY ...

Storage-challenged UK looks to adopt US salt cavern expertise.
February 6, 2006... Houston-based Conversion Gas Imports (CGI) is negotiating a technology license with Stag Energy Development of Edinburgh, Scotland, for CGI's patented Bishop LNG revaporization process and salt-cavern storage for use in a project in the Irish...

Modern technology seen as vital link to Russian industry growth.(Industry Overview)
February 6, 2006... Russia isn't about to emerge as a major player in the world's energy markets. "It's already there," IBM executive Robert R. Gruman told Natural Gas Week during a recent interview in Houston. Gruman is the Russia oil and gas leader for IBM...

Composite spot wellhead price.
February 6, 2006... COMPOSITE SPOT WELLHEAD PRICE January 2002 to Present ($/MMBtu) Year Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept. Oct. 2006 8.20 2005 6.05 5.99 6.77 6.99 6.26 6.91 7.50 8.99 11.24 12.32 2004...

Composite spot delivered-to-pipeline price.
February 6, 2006... COMPOSITE SPOT DELIVERED-TO-PIPELINE PRICE January 2002 to Present ($/MMBtu) Year Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept. Oct. 2006 8.28 2005 6.94 6.17 6.98 7.14 6.39 7.00 7.45 8.96 11.48...

Russia may be key to filling shrinking ranks of engineers.
February 6, 2006... Russia may soon be a key player in helping reverse the worldwide shortage of trained personnel and engineers for a 21st century energy industry. "Their schools and universities are continuing to produce quality applicants, and I think a...

Natural gas futures.
February 6, 2006... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: January 30-February 3, 2006 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Last Volume Last Volume Last ...

NatGas powered cars expected to roll despite recent high price.
February 6, 2006... Richard Kolodziej, president of the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition (NGVC), sees more reason to be optimistic about the future of natural gas vehicles (NGVs) than otherwise. "No one is going to have 100% of the answer [to our energy...

North American weekly gas storage.
February 6, 2006... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Jan. 27 Jan. 20 Weekly Year Yr. Ago 5-year 5-year Region Week Week Change Ago Change Average Change US East 1349 ...

Natural gas bidweek prices.
February 6, 2006... NATURAL GAS BIDWEEK PRICES Flow Dates: 2/1-2/28 February Chg. Prev. Price Avg. from Bid- Point $/MMBtu Prev....

Citygate prices.
February 6, 2006... CITYGATE PRICES February Chg. Prev. Price Avg. from Bid- Point $/MMBtu Prev. High Low Vol. Deals Week Austin, Tx. ...

Coast Guard's LNG role changing with heighted duties, oversight.
February 6, 2006... As more and more companies launch plans to open LNG terminals in the US, the US Coast Guard has seen its regulatory role continue to grow as well. The Coast Guard is now involved, in one way or the other, with the permitting process for...

NGW's monthly weighted averages.
February 6, 2006... NGW'S MONTHLY WEIGHTED AVERAGES $/MMBtu Price Point Jan.'06 Dec.'05 Nov.'05 Oct.'05 Sep.'05 Gulf Coast ANR SE 8.40 12.72 9.33 13.24 11.46 Col. Gulf--Erath 8.69 13.46 ...

Biofuels at top of Shell's green energy strategy.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... Shell said last week that its alternative energy strategy will increase focus on biofuels for transportation and make at least one other alternative energy source a key Shell business. Shell has spent more than US$1 billion on alternative...

LNG to fuel 530-MW progress power plant.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... Progress Energy Florida (PEF) has broken ground for a new 530-MW natural gas combined-cycle (NGCC) unit, called Hines 4, at its existing 1,498-MW Hines Energy Complex, located about 50 miles east of Tampa. The new Hines 4 unit will use LNG...

AEP celebrating centennial by proposing power superhighway.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... American Electric Power (AEP), the nation's largest generator with more than 36,000 MW of capacity, is celebrating its 100th anniversary by once again, thinking really big--$3 billion big. Last week, AEP filed an application with the...

Calpine restructuring; Cuts jobs, units.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... Calpine will cut 300 jobs and reduce or eliminate certain business units as an initial part of its restructuring to save $50 million, including its business development, construction, turbine, marketing and sales, and power services units. ...

Deregulated markets continue evolving.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... Whether a complete makeover, or just a nip and tuck, most US deregulated power markets continue to overhaul or tweak rules to ensure adequate and reliable capacity, and efficient market operations. PJM recently held a technical conference...

Spot electricity trading.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: January 30-February 3, 2006 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Avg. Price Avg. Price This Last Year Month POINT ...

Comparative fuel prices.(CURRENT)
February 6, 2006... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) February 6, 2006 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $57.00/ton $8.78/MMBtu $2.38/MMBtu EAST...

Florida senators preparing bill opening part of Lease Sale 181.(Regional Market Roundup)
February 6, 2006... Florida's two senators are preparing compromise legislation to allow opening parts of Lease Sale 181 to producers while protecting the state's coastline. Senators Bill Nelson (D) and Mel Martinez (R) said their proposal will also set aside...

Baker Hughes rig count.(Regional Market Roundup)
February 6, 2006... BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT Week Ended Feb. 3 Rotary Rigs Current Previous Year Week Week Ago Total US 1,513 1,487 1,248 Land ...

Gas price trends.(Regional Market Roundup)
February 6, 2006... GAS PRICE TRENDS ($/MMBtu) ROCKY NEW CALIFORNIA MTNS MEXICO TEXAS Gulf Coast Gulf Coast South...

Minister: Nova Scotia working to increase offshore drilling.(Canadian Markets)
February 6, 2006... The Atlantic Canada province of Nova Scotia hasn't enjoyed many oil or natural gas exploration successes recently, but provincial officials believe that would change if industry would drill more wells in the largely untested region of Atlantic...

Chevron outlines LNG strategy, denies Greater Gorgon problems.(World Roundup)
February 6, 2006... During last week's Oil and Gas IQ LNG conference in Houston, Audie Setters, vice president of LNG Marketing and Trading for Chevron Global Gas refuted published reports out of Australia that the planned Greater Gorgon project had run into...

BG inks Nigerian deal for US-bound LNG.(World Roundup)
February 6, 2006... BG has signed a memorandum of understanding to buy more than 265 MMcf/d of LNG from Nigeria's Brass LNG venture, a 1.3 Bcf/d project backed by Eni, ConocoPhillips, Chevron and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. Deliveries to BG are...

Marathon buys interest in Seven Heads.(World Roundup)
February 6, 2006... Marathon has purchased 86.5% interest in Ireland's Seven Heads gas project from UK independent Ramco Energy $10.1 million. Seven Heads came on stream in December 2003. But after peaking at 76 MMcf/d gas output more than halved to 35.8...

Canadian price report.(World Roundup)
February 6, 2006... CANADIAN PRICE REPORT ($U.S. per MMBtu/$Can per Gigajoule) BRITISH COLUMBIA Huntingdon/ Kingsgate/ Total Sumas Eastport ...

Bush speech shifts focus from greater access to conservation.
February 6, 2006... Here's the curious thing. In Tuesday's State of the Union address, Bush spoke about weaning the nation off an addiction to oil, especially the Middle Eastern variety. But when it came time to explain how, not a hint of ANWR or any other...

Gas price report.
February 6, 2006... GAS PRICE REPORT ($/MMBtu--Spot) February 6, 2006 Interstate Intrastate Delivered Delivered Wellhead Wellhead To Pipeline To Utility Bid...

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
February 13, 2006... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 2/7-2/13 Price Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low Avg. Avg. Feb. Daily Daily Bid ...

New CME futures initiative May offer Chicago Citygate contract.
February 13, 2006... With reports that the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the largest US futures exchange, is preparing to launch new energy futures contracts in June after failing to buy a 10% stake in the New York Mercantile Exchange, (NGW Jan.23,p1) many physical...

Siren song of expanding access echoes through Washington, D.C.
February 13, 2006... A wide range of political muscle pushed "access" into the limelight last week in an all-out assault to break down restrictions. From the Bush budget including revenues gained from lease sales in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR),...

Advantage bears: fading bulls eye swelling storage, weather.
February 13, 2006... Despite a weekend blizzard bearing down on the Northeast and below-normal temperatures enveloping most of the US, bears remained in full control of the market last week, while any lingering market bulls couldn't catch a break. This week,...

Bush FY07 budget full of reruns from FY06; ANWR, OCS on board.
February 13, 2006... There were few surprises for the natural gas industry in President Bush's $2.77 trillion 2007 fiscal year budget that was highlighted by some reruns of failed FY06 requests. Specifically, despite being mum about it in his State of the Union...

Production increasing.(Late news ...)
February 13, 2006... Production increasing: Bentek Energy, a Denver-based energy market information company, says in a report released Friday, titled "US Natural Gas Supply/Demand 2004-2006," that while natural gas production declined slightly in 2005, it...

Gulf shut-ins.(Late news ...)
February 13, 2006... Gulf shut-ins: The federal Minerals Management Service has released the latest update on shut-ins of oil and natural gas in the Gulf of Mexico caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The MMS reported that since Aug. 26, a total of 631.3 Bcf of...

US dependence on LNG imports to see huge spike over next decade.
February 13, 2006... While President Bush told Americans they need to reduce their reliance on Mideast oil, he didn't mention the growing dependence on international natural gas suppliers in general and the Mideast state of Qatar in particular. Speakers at last...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
February 13, 2006... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 2/7-2/13 Price Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low Avg. Avg. Feb. Daily Daily Bid ...

Speakers: LNG needed for Mexico to keep pace with natgas demand.
February 13, 2006... Mexico's natural gas imbalance will continue to grow, but coming LNG imports could help lessen the country's dependence on the US and Canada supply. "Supply simply hasn't kept up with demand," said Veronica Vazquez Hurtado, one of the...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
February 13, 2006... February 13, 2006 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 2/6 2/7 2/8 2/9 2/10 HH-NY +0.85 +0.93 +1.09 +0.88 +1.58 HH-Chicago -0.39 -0.29...

North American weekly gas storage.
February 13, 2006... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Region Feb. 3 Jan. 27 Weekly Year Yr. Ago 5-year 5-year Week Week Change Ago Change Average Change US East 1319 1349...

Noble adds Rockies holdings to E&P portfolio in $411 million deal.
February 13, 2006... Noble Energy has struck again in the Rocky Mountain region, announcing a deal last week to acquire privately held United States Exploration for $411 million. The acquisition makes Noble a much bigger player in the Wattenberg field, located...

CBM producer CNX gains options; sees double-digit output growth.
February 13, 2006... Coalbed methane producer CNX Gas is forecasting annual production growth of 15% or more over the next three years after events beyond its control conspired to keep output flat in 2005. CNX was stymied last year by a fire at a Virginia coal...

Warm January impacts EIA STEO; price forecasts fall for 2006, 2007.
February 13, 2006... The Energy Information Administration's Short-term Energy Outlook (STEO) for February 2006 contained an expected split decision between crude oil and natural gas--this, as the weather and politics of January sent crude oil price estimates up...

Natural gas futures.
February 13, 2006... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: February 6 - February 10, 2006 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Last Volume Last Volume...

Pipeline capacity utilization.
February 13, 2006... PIPELINE CAPACITY UTILIZATION Pipeline Point Name Capacity Jan-06 Dec-06 Colorado Interstate Cheyenne 590,000 82% 94% Gas Columbia Gas Leach ...

Hydrogen growth spurring gasification projects.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... BP Alternative Energy believes coal could be an important fuel for its hydrogen power business, with further development likely to be announced in the near future. "Our hydrogen power business is actively working now to commercialize...

Bush budget funds technologies promoting clean nuclear power.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... President Bush has requested $250 million under the Fiscal Year 2007 budget to launch the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership being created to demonstrate and deploy new technologies to recycle nuclear fuel, minimize waste and to improve ways to...

Toshiba buys Westinghouse nuclear unit.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... Japan's Toshiba Corp. is buying British Nuclear Fuels' US Westinghouse nuclear division for $5.4 billion. The acquisition gives Toshiba a leg up in capturing a global market share amid a nuclear renaissance that Toshiba expects will triple its...

Alberta to lead Canada in IGCC growth.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... Albertans will soon hear Premier Ralph Klein detail why he believes a new day is dawning for coal in Alberta. Just a few doors down, Alberta's neighboring province Ontario is seeking to shut down all its coal plants. Meanwhile, the Canadian...

Spot electricity trading.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: February 6-February 10, 2006 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) POINT Avg. Price Avg. Price Change Year Month This Week Last Week ...

Largest solar PV project planned in Nevada.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... Powered by Renewables (PBR) of Nevada and SunEdison of Maryland will jointly develop what could become the world's largest solar photovoltaic (PV) project in Nevada, an 18-MW project with construction set to start in July. One of the...

Comparative fuel prices.(CURRENT)
February 13, 2006... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) February 13, 2006 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $54.50/ton $8.29/MMBtu $2.27/MMBtu EAST COAST ...

Partnership's 1 Bcf/d pipeline to target West Coast markets.(Regional Market Roundup)
February 13, 2006... Northwest Pipeline, Pacific Gas and Electric Company and Fort Chicago Energy Partners have agreed to jointly develop of a major new gas transmission pipeline that could deliver 1 Bcf/d of natural gas supplies to the West Coast. The three...

Baker hughes rig count.(Regional Market Roundup)
February 13, 2006... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT Week Ended Feb. 10 Rotary Rigs Current Previous Year Week Week Ago Total US 1,532 1,513...

Gas price trends.(Regional Market Roundup)
February 13, 2006... GAS PRICE TRENDS ($/MMBtu) CALIFORNIA ROCKY NEW MTNS MEXICO South North Feb 13, 2006 Inter (well) - - 6.42 6.40 ...

British Columbia seeing boom in natgas exploration and production.(Canadian Markets)
February 13, 2006... While Alberta has been the center of Canada's natural gas sector since the first discovery was made at Turner Valley in 1924, British Columbia offers equally good, if not better, opportunities for future gas exploration and development, says...

Leftist Bolivian state sending foreign producers mixed signals.(World Roundup)
February 13, 2006... Conflicting signals were coming out of Bolivia last week about the government's intentions, as the recently elected leftist president Evo Morales denounced a plan by multinational energy companies to destabilize his government on the heels of...

Canadian price report.(World Roundup)
February 13, 2006... CANADIAN PRICE REPORT ($U.S. per MMBtu/$Can per Gigajoule) BRITISH COLUMBIA Total Huntingdon/ Kingsgate/ Province Sumas ...

Economist: energy bubble could be perilously close to bursting.(World Roundup)
February 13, 2006... Last week's Energy Information Administration storage report will certainly cinch it. End-of-winter storage is going to be high enough that a real possibility exists that the refill may come very, very early. Even if the most bullish...

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
February 20, 2006... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 2/14-2/20 Price Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low Avg. Avg. Feb. Daily Daily Bid ...

Playing corporate chess with pipelines involves Canadian giants.
February 20, 2006... Let the games begin. No, not the Olympic Games, now in their second week at Torino, Italy. This is more of a high-stakes corporate chess game that involves two giant Canadian-based pipeline companies. They are vying for control of the...

Earthquakes more a menace than Gulf energy industry may realize.
February 20, 2006... If forecasts for another hyperactive hurricane season weren't enough for the Gulf of Mexico oil and gas industry, evidence now suggests that a key production area in the Gulf of Mexico has become more seismically active making it more prone to...

Market bears ignore return of very active old man winter.
February 20, 2006... Despite the return of bitterly cold weather and record-breaking blizzards, natural gas prices slipped lower again last week as the current glut of gas storage kept bears in firm control of the market. However, some industry participants say if...

MMS royalty programs again causes stir in Washington, D.C.
February 20, 2006... Dust clouds were kicked up again in Washington, D.C. this week as legislators were quick to clutch another article that attacked the Minerals Management Services' (MMS) royalty program, accusing the agency of getting ready to give away more...

System to be expanded.(Late news ...)
February 20, 2006... System to be expanded: Teppco Partners LP and energy company Enterprise Products Partners LP on Friday said they signed an initial joint venture agreement to construct a $200 million expansion of the Jonah Gas Gathering System. Located in...

Merger discussed.(Late news ...)
February 20, 2006... Merger discussed: Officials with KeySpan confirmed Friday that discussions about a merger or takeover with multiple companies are under way. In published reports, company officials said they couldn't discuss details until KeySpan's board either...

No trade.(Late news ...)
February 20, 2006... No trade: Rona Ambrose, Canada's new environmental minister, said she will not support trading emissions credits with other nations or any international agreement that does not directly have a direct environmental benefit for Canadians. "On...

Many different factors helping keep crude market red hot.
February 20, 2006... Oil prices have gotten off to a blazing start this year, with US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) flirting with $70 per barrel and trading above $60/bbl consistently. This is reflected in the upward price adjustments for the first...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
February 20, 2006... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 2/14-2/20 Price Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low Avg. Avg. Feb. Daily Daily Bid ...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
February 20, 2006... February 20, 2006 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 2/13 2/14 2/15 2/16 2/17 HH-NY +1.04 +0.75 +0.60 +0.64 +1.59 HH-Chicago -0.28 -0.22...