Natural Gas Week articles from January 2007

Natural Gas Week archives from January 2007

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
January 1, 2007... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 12/26-1/1 Avg. Avg. Jan. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg....

North American prices said to be near point of collapse.
January 1, 2007... Logic would suggest the natural gas market's hitting its highest prices of the year in the coming days and months, but intemperate weather has a habit of being maddeningly illogical. Warmer-than-normal temperatures across much of North America...

Bearish balance-of-winter forecasts; $4 NatGas looming.
January 1, 2007... There's a bit of weather-related deja vu currently happening in the natural gas industry, which has eerily similar overtones to the no-show 2006-hurricane season. Except this time it's all about the no-show of old man winter. If recent...

Amid short week, February NatGas slated to drift lower.
January 1, 2007... Like a broken record, near-term weather forecasts and storage data are once again going to be the main thrust that gas traders will be focusing on when the market returns to work following the long holiday weekend. Unless an unforeseen cold...

Anadarko sheds Louisiana gas fields in $1.6 billion deal.
January 1, 2007... Anadarko Petroleum continues to shed what it now views as non-core assets in the wake of its $23 billion, one-day spending spree that landed it Kerr-McGee and Western Gas Resources earlier this year. The Houston-based super-independent is...

Fund proposed.(Late news)
January 1, 2007... Fund proposed: According to congressional sources, House Democrats have indicated that in the first weeks of the new Congress, they plan to establish a dedicated fund to promote renewable energy and conservation, using money from energy...

Plants under fire.(Late news)
January 1, 2007... Plants under fire: The Sierra Club last week joined in a lawsuit filed by Environmental Defense against the State of Texas's permitting process for coal plants and against Dallas-based TXU Corp., individually, for its plans for 11 brownfield...

Rig damaged.(Late news)
January 1, 2007... Rig damaged: Houston-based Todco is trying to determine the extent of damage to its rig, THE 205, after it was hit by a cargo vessel off the coast of Veracruz, Mexico. The rig had just completed a drilling contract for Pemex and was being...

Exxon asks Court to reverse ruling on Point Thomson.
January 1, 2007... Exxon Mobil is asking the Alaska Supreme Court to reverse or remand for further review decisions taken in November by the Alaska Department of Natural Resources (DNR) regarding the undeveloped Point Thomson unit (PTU) on the North Slope. ...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
January 1, 2007... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 12/26-1/1 Avg. Avg. Jan. Daily Daily Bid Price Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low...

US environmentalists react to drilling plan for Pinedale.
January 1, 2007... Pinedale, Wyoming's mule deer herds may put the brakes on some proposed year-round drilling plans, but they haven't stopped the government from considering nearly tripling the amount of drilling activity in the area over the next twenty years....

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
January 1, 2007... PRICES AND DIFFERENTIALS FOR MAJOR HUBS AND SELECTED CITY GATES January 1, 2007 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 12/25 12/26 12/27 12/28 12/29 HH-NY +0.58 +0.43 +0.50...

California's Clean Energy Fuels moving NGV growth nationwide.
January 1, 2007... Ethanol is hardly the only alternative fuel for transport vehicles. Natural gas is fueling a growing number of light and heavy-duty trucks, taxis, transit buses and other vehicular fleets, said Andrew Littlefair, president of Clean Energy...

NGV point man: gas-fueled trucks gaining on diesel fleet.
January 1, 2007... Ron Gulmi is a busy man. As natural gas vehicle (NGV) program director, he is responsible for NGV market development on behalf of New York-based KeySpan Energy. Even busier than just last year? "Oh yeah," he responds as he reels off one...

Natural gas futures.
January 1, 2007... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: December 26--December 29, 2006 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Last Volume Last Volume...

Lumbering garbage trucks could allow NGV use to sprint forward.
January 1, 2007... Natural gas vehicles (NGVs) now have a foothold in the US garbage truck market, according to Inform, a national non-profit environmental organization. Inform estimates that NGVs now constitute about 1% of the 136,000-vehicle garbage truck...

North American weekly gas storage.
January 1, 2007... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Dec. Dec. 22 15 Weekly Year Yr. Ago 5-year 5-year Region Week Week Change Ago Change Average Change...

Natural gas bidweek prices.
January 1, 2007... NATURAL GAS BIDWEEK PRICES Flow Dates: 1/1-1/31 January Chg. Prev. Price Avg. from Bid- Point $/MMBtu Prev....

Ex-Russian icebreaker to become Arctic 'flotel' for E & P industry.
January 1, 2007... A ship that once flew the Russian naval ensign is getting a $100 million makeover in an Alabama shipyard and, when completed, it will be among a handful of multi-service support vessels that can operate anywhere in the world, especially in the...

Australian independent finding Gulf of Mexico to be profitable.
January 1, 2007... Mobile Bay and the Gulf of Mexico continue to pay off for Petsec Energy and because of that success, the Australian-based independent is boosting its 2007 drilling program in the Gulf. The latest success was in the form of the company's...

NGW's monthly weighted averages.
January 1, 2007... NGW'S MONTHLY WEIGHTED AVERAGES $/MMBtu Price Point Dec-06 Nov-06 Oct-06 Sep-06 Aug-06 Jul-06 Gulf Coast ANR SE 6.53 7.32 6.19 4.65 7.25 5.85 Col. Gulf--Erath 6.67 7.32 ...

A mighty wind blowing in Texas, but gas king.(CURRENT)
January 1, 2007... The adage "everything's bigger in Texas" fits the Lone Star State when it comes to wind farms: in number, megawatt production, and sometimes even the velocity of the wind itself. One wind farm operating along the Guadalupe Peak in far West...

Third time's a charm for pricing plan?(CURRENT)
January 1, 2007... Anyone who's ever been told "Why can't you be more like your brother?" can empathize with the disparate network of electricity providers in the West, who for years have been more or less told just that by the feds striving to push a standard...

New coal blend complies with federal emissions standards.(CURRENT)
January 1, 2007... While the country is abuzz with various movements to put a cap on power generators' greenhouse gas emissions and/or trade offsets, one mining company says it is working on a solution to help the environment. Denver-based Buckeye Industrial...

Spot electricity trading.(CURRENT)
January 1, 2007... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: December 26-December 29, 2006 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Avg. Price Avg. Price This Last Year Month POINT...

Comparative fuel prices.(CURRENT)
January 1, 2007... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) January 1, 2007 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $39.75/ton $5.80/MMBtu $1.66/MMBtu EAST COAST...

Nabors Industries begins review of its stock option procedures.(Regional Market Roundup)
January 1, 2007... Officials with Nabors Industries said the Houston-based company will launch a review of its stock option-granting practices following an article in the Wall Street Journal that questioned the timing of grants to its chief executive. In a...

Baker Hughes rig count.(Regional Market Roundup)
January 1, 2007... BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT Week Ended Dec. 17 Rotary Rigs Current Previous Year Week Week Ago Total US 1,710 1,723 1,471 Land ...

Gas price trends.(Regional Market Roundup)
January 1, 2007... GAS PRICE TRENDS TEXAS CALIFORNIA ROCKY NEW Gulf Coast Gulf Coast ($/MMBtu) South North MTNS MEXICO Offshore Onshore Jan 1, 2007 ...

Canadian government clarifies proposed trust tax changes.(Canadian Markets)
January 1, 2007... The Canadian government finally has offered some clarification of the terms of its proposed changes to the income trust taxation issue that will permit the oil and gas production and development vehicles to maintain a respectable level of...

Talks fail between Russia, Belarus over oil, natural gas agreement.(World Roundup)
January 1, 2007... Russia and Belarus appear to have failed in a fresh attempt to iron out the terms of a cooperation agreement covering oil and gas, following a meeting in Moscow early last week between Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller and Belarusian Deputy...

Canadian price report.(World Roundup)
January 1, 2007... CANADIAN PRICE REPORT ($U.S. per MMBtu/$Can per Gigajoule) BRITISH COLUMBIA Huntingdon/ Kingsgate/ Total Sumas Eastport...

We thought we had it figured out, but 2006 set us straight.
January 1, 2007... Events of 2006 will reverberate for years to come, but how the market reacted to fundamental developments last year should have particular impact in the coming year, as they challenge long-held assumptions. For instance, the notion of a...

Gas price report.
January 1, 2007... GAS PRICE REPORT ($/MMBtu--Spot) January 1, 2007 Interstate Intrastate Delivered Delivered Wellhead Wellhead To Pipeline To Utility Bid ...

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
January 8, 2007... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 1/2-1/8 Avg. Avg. Jan. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg....

Forced gas storage withdrawals begin; threatening price collapse.
January 8, 2007... Large operators of natural gas storage, particularly ones located in the Northeast, started setting off warning alarms of potential storage integrity issues last week and serving notice that customers will have to begin take minimums out of...

Raging LNG safety debate snares emergency services in the middle.
January 8, 2007... Is LNG safe? That depends whom you ask--or whom is asking the question. Ask a company involved in the LNG business, such as Royal Dutch Shell, and you might discover that because of its physical properties, "LNG cannot explode," so...

Shift to cold weather may spark sharp gas short-covering rally.
January 8, 2007... Dueling weather forecasts calling for either notably warmer weather or possibly below-freezing temperatures in the Northeast could give natural gas market bulls a stage to launch prices stoutly higher or push them into a classic bear trap as...

Feds cite national security in OK'ing Gulf Main Pass Energy Hub.
January 8, 2007... Citing its importance to national security and America's energy future, McMoRan's planned Main Pass Energy Hub in the Gulf of Mexico got a ringing endorsement from the US Maritime Administration. In issuing its approval, the Maritime...

ANWR bill.(Late news)
January 8, 2007... ANWR bill: Democrats in the US House of Representatives wasted little time reversing efforts to open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling. Rep. Ed Markey (D-Maryland) has introduced legislation extending permanent protection to...

Land acquired.(Late news)
January 8, 2007... Land acquired: TrueStar Petroleum of British Columbia has entered into an agreement with C & D Exploration of Colorado to acquire a large oil and natural gas lease position in the southwestern portion of the Williston Basin with portions in...

Wind farm.(Late news)
January 8, 2007... Wind farm: Puget Sound Energy has brought on line its 229-MW Wild Horse Wind Project in Kittitas County. Together with the Hopkins Ridge Wind Project that PSE built in 2005 near Dayton in southeast Washington State, Wild Horse makes PSE the...

MoBay Storage Hub called player in new Alabama economic growth.
January 8, 2007... With an eye toward regional economics, Falcon Gas Storage is moving ahead with plans for its 50 billion cubic foot capacity MoBay Storage Hub in southern Alabama. The company is moving forward after getting approval from the Federal Energy...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
January 8, 2007... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates:1/2-1/8 Avg. Avg. Jan. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low...

Industry moves to staunch Demo effort to roll back energy tax breaks.
January 8, 2007... As Democrats put the finishing touches on an energy legislative package that would roll back tax breaks for the energy industry, industry trade groups are in overdrive to explain the downsides. Officials at the American Petroleum Institute...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
January 8, 2007... PRICES AND DIFFERENTIALS FOR MAJOR HUBS AND SELECTED CITY GATES January 8, 2007 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [GRAPHIC OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 1/1 1/2 1/3 1/4 1/5 HH-NY ...

2006: the year Louisiana drew a line across the Gulf of Mexico.
January 8, 2007... Energy news made a lot of headlines in 2006 in Louisiana, but the biggest news may have been when the energy-friendly state drew a line in the Gulf of Mexico over LNG terminals and faced off against the federal government over offshore...

North American weekly gas storage.
January 8, 2007... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Dec. 29 Dec. 22 Weekly Year Yr. Ago 5-year Region Week Week Change Ago Change Average US East 1740...

Natural gas futures.
January 8, 2007... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: January 3--January 5, 2007 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Last Volume Last Volume Last Volume ...

Pipeline capacity utilization.
January 8, 2007... PIPELINE CAPACITY UTILIZATION Location FlowDate Flow Jan. (2007) Month-to-Date Transco Zone 6 NY 1/3/2007 1,761,802 1,726,444 Niagara 1/3/2007 573,438 572,047 FGT Mkt Area Del. 1/3/2007...

New England's gas-fired reliance, rates soar.(CURRENT)
January 8, 2007... Q. What do New England and Texas have in common? A. Funny accents and an over-reliance on natural gas to produce electricity. While Texas has the hands-down lead on any other state or region in the nation, regarding natural gas usage,...

Nerc gains clout in North American grid.(CURRENT)
January 8, 2007... There's a new sheriff in town overseeing electricity reliability--and it's not the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Actually, FERC is more like the mayor who deputized the sheriff, aka the North American Electricity Reliability Council...

Duke Energy spins off NatGas; keeping power as a 'pure play'.(CURRENT)
January 8, 2007... Duke Energy of Charlotte, North Carolina, said its spin-off last week of its natural gas businesses makes the utility one of the largest "pure play" electric businesses in the country. Its former gas businesses are now a stand-alone...

Spot electricity trading.(CURRENT)
January 8, 2007... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: January 2-January 5, 2007 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Avg. Price Avg. Price This Last Year Month POINT Week...

Comparative fuel prices.(CURRENT)
January 8, 2007... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) January 8, 2007 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $39.25/ton $5.75/MMBtu $1.64/MMBtu EAST COAST...

The Times: MMS Western royalties program head under investigation.(Regional Market Roundup)
January 8, 2007... The US Justice Department is investigating whether the director of a multibillion-dollar oil-trading program at the Interior Department has been paid as a consultant for oil companies hoping for contracts, according to an article in The New...

Baker Hughes rig count.(Regional Market Roundup)
January 8, 2007... BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT Week Ended Jan. 5 Rotary Rigs Current Previous Year Week Week Ago Total US 1,695 1,710 1,464 Land 1,588 1,604 ...

Gas price trends.(Regional Market Roundup)
January 8, 2007... GAS PRICE TRENDS ($/MMBtu) TEXAS CALIFORNIA ROCKY NEW Gulf Coast Gulf Coast South North MINS MEXICO Offshore Onshore Jan 8, 2007 ...

Canadian gas market striking out in new direction for 2007.(Canadian Markets)
January 8, 2007... Canada, as the never-ending source of limitless supplies of natural gas to fill the ever-widening gap between US production and demand, is no more. The country that occupies a vast swath of territory between the 49th parallel and the North...

Second gas crisis averted as Russia, Belarus ink rushed pact.(World Roundup)
January 8, 2007... European consumers breathed a sigh of relief last week as Russia and Belarus agreed a new natural gas deal just two minutes before a midnight deadline, narrowly averting a potential rerun of supply disruptions to Europe one year ago. ...

Canadian price report.(World Roundup)
January 8, 2007... CANADIAN PRICE REPORT ($U.S. per MMBtu/$Can per Gigajoule) BRITISH COLUMBIA ALBERTA Huntingdon/ Kingsgate/ Total Sumas Eastport Total ...

Trouble ahead: it takes two to contango and sellers not buying.
January 8, 2007... Something abnormal is going on in energy futures that became much more apparent with the advent of true winter. While natural gas and crude oil futures prices should be showing signs of backwardation, the contango that has recently prevailed...

Gas price report.
January 8, 2007... GAS PRICE REPORT ($/MMBtu--Spot) January 8, 2007 Interstate Intrastate Delivered Delivered Wellhead Wellhead To Pipeline To Utility Bid ...

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
January 15, 2007... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates:1/9-1/15 Avg. Avg. Jan. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg....

Gulf weather, strained resources hampering pipeline repair efforts.
January 15, 2007... Take the uncertainty of the winter weather and add the continuing post-Katrina and Rita impacts in the Gulf of Mexico and you have an idea of the headaches facing Plains All American Pipeline. The Houston-based company had a 14-inch...

Congress may reinstate Bristol Bay protections removed by Bush.
January 15, 2007... Fish versus the offshore drilling rig. That's how environmentalists are trying to frame the debate over developing Alaska's North Aleutian Basin. Last week, President Bush removed the ban on oil and gas leasing in federal waters off...

Despite falling crude, NatGas makes gains, trending toward $7.
January 15, 2007... As traders return to work following today's Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, prices are poised to move higher, possibly retesting the $7 area, as the market focuses on a marked increase in cold-weather demand. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] In...

Congress taking fresh look at regulating online OTC trading.
January 15, 2007... The chairman of a key US House of Representatives subcommittee announced plans last week to consider legislation that would regulate the over-the-counter (OTC) energy derivatives market. Michigan Democratic Rep. Bart Stupak, who was...

BP chief leaving.(Late news)
January 15, 2007... BP chief leaving: BP Chief Executive John Browne will retire at the end of July--more than a year ahead of expectations, according to a statement released Friday from the company's London headquarters. Tony Hayward, the head of BP's exploration...

Sales talk.(Late news)
January 15, 2007... Sales talk: Energy Partners said Friday it is in talks with what were described as "interested parties" about the company's possible sale. Officials with New Orleans-based Energy Partners said it will provide another update by mid-February,...

Wind projects named.(Late news)
January 15, 2007... Wind projects named: BP Alternative Energy North America said Friday it expects to begin construction on five wind power generation projects in the US this year. Located in four states--California, Colorado, North Dakota and Texas--the projects...

Forest Oil expanding gas assets with Houston Exploration buyout.
January 15, 2007... Forest Oil has agreed to buy Houston Exploration in a $1.5 billion cash and stock deal that will strengthen its position in South Texas, East Texas and the Arkoma Basin of Arkansas and Oklahoma. The combined company will be an onshore...

Fall in NatGas price pulls down Wyoming state budget surplus.
January 15, 2007... Warmer weather and the cooling of natural gas and oil markets are hitting Wyoming in the wallet. Gov. Dave Freudenthal, in his State of the State address Wednesday announced that the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group (CREG) is reducing revenue...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
January 15, 2007... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates:1/9-1/15 Avg. Avg. Jan. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low...

EIA releases upbeat LNG forecast; FERC deems Cove Point blameless.
January 15, 2007... The federal government last week released a forecast for the LNG industry, saying imports to the US are on the rise and will continue to increase through 2008. In its forecast, the Energy Information Administration said US imports of LNG...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
January 15, 2007... PRICES AND DIFFERENTIALS FOR MAJOR HUBS AND SELECTED CITY GATES January 15, 2007 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [GRAPHIC OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 1/8 1/9 1/10 1/11 1/12 HH-NY ...

North American weekly gas storage.
January 15, 2007... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Jan. 5 Dec. 29 Weekly Year Yr. Ago 5-year 5-year Region Week Week Change Ago Change Average Change US East 1712 ...

Natural gas futures.
January 15, 2007... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: January 8--January 12, 2007 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Last Volume Last...

Maryland task force shoots down Sparrows Point LNG terminal plan.(Atlantic Basin LNG Update)
January 15, 2007... AES' Sparrows Point LNG plan received a decisive "thumbs down" by a task force created by the Maryland legislature to study the impacts of the proposal. The Baltimore County Liquefied Natural Gas Task Force, created by the 2006 General...

Time said ripe for dealing with climate change.(CURRENT)
January 15, 2007... Talk about climate change can no longer focus on "what if" scenarios, but "what now," because there is little doubt that something is happening that the US must face head on. This isn't like acid rain, which is a regional problem. This is...

Xcel expanding, cleaning coal plant.(CURRENT)
January 15, 2007... Xcel Energy is planning an expansion of a coal-fired plant not too far from its headquarters in Minnesota's Twin Cities. But before the environmentalists get too riled up with the regulated electricity and gas company. Xcel Energy is quick to...

Alberta price forecast pushed 16% higher on outages, NatGas growth.(CURRENT)
January 15, 2007... The Alberta power price forecast for this year has been bumped up $11/MWh, by Martin King, analyst for Calgary-based First Energy Capital. He now predicts the Alberta power price forecast for this year will be $83/MWh, up from his earlier...

Spot electricity trading.(CURRENT)
January 15, 2007... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: January 8-January 12, 2007 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Avg. Price Avg. Price This Last Year Month POINT ...

Comparative fuel prices.(CURRENT)
January 15, 2007... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) January 15, 2007 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $39.25/ton $6.39/MMBtu $1.64/MMBtu EAST COAST...