Natural Gas Week articles from July 2004

Natural Gas Week archives from July 2004

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
July 5, 2004... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 6/29-7/5 Avg. Avg. Jul. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg....

Freeport-McMoRan LNG project in talks for Trinidad supply.
July 5, 2004... Freeport-McMoRan Energy's entry into the liquefied natural gas (LNG) arena got a boost last week as an official with Trinidad and Tobago said his nation is in technical talks with the New Orleans-based energy company over a possible...

Analyst: heady acquisition costs won't trigger gas drilling boom.
July 5, 2004... High prices paid in recent merger and acquisition (M & A) deals have tilted the scales back in favor of the drillbit as a way of building gas reserves, but that does not necessarily herald a surge in US drilling activity. In a recent...

Mild temps, holidays sink gas, but warmer weather in sight.
July 5, 2004... Unusually mild weather for early July had natural gas markets caught in a holding pattern ahead of the long Independence Day weekend, with the outlook still widely bullish for the looming summer but traders awaiting some indication of...

El Paso shift in upstream focus draws only qualified thumbs-up.
July 5, 2004... El Paso's long-awaited plans to halt the slide in its natural gas production have met with only qualified approval from Wall Street analysts who cover the company. The Houston-based company will lean less heavily in the future on high-risk...

Output forecast down.(Late News ...)
July 5, 2004... Output forecast down. Houston-based ConocoPhillips expects second-quarter worldwide oil and gas output to fall 3%-4% from first-quarter production because of scheduled maintenance, seasonal declines and asset sales. In first quarter,...

LNG terminals planned.(Late News ...)
July 5, 2004... LNG terminals planned. Statia Terminals of Nova Scotia announced plans for multi-million dollar liquefied natural gas plant and terminal at Strait of Canso in Nova Scotia. If approved, it would be second planned for the region. A $450 million...

Deal finalized.(Late News ...)
July 5, 2004... Deal finalized. Calgary, Alberta-based Paramount Resources has completed acquisition of oil, natural gas properties in central Alberta province; Fort Liard area in Northwest Territories and northeast British Columbia for C$189 million....

Shell breaks deepwater depth record.
July 5, 2004... Shell Exploration & Production has started production on a record-breaking deepwater subsea well. Gaurdie Banister, technical director for the company's Americas Basin, said natural gas is being produced from its Coulomb development in...

Analysts predict $8 summer gas on bullish market fundamentals.
July 5, 2004... The bullish mood pervading natural gas markets has analysts ratcheting up price forecasts for this summer and beyond. Recent forecasts have called for $7/Mcf gas this summer (NGW Jun.24, p1), and a new report predicts $8 gas is in the cards in...

Deregulation pits TXU against Reliant in Texas turf war.
July 5, 2004... Texas is home to oil, cows and two large utilities duking it out for domination in the deregulated power markets. Retail competition started in January 2002 within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which includes about 85%...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
July 5, 2004... July 5, 2004 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [GRAPHIC OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 6/28 6/29 6/30 7/1 7/2 HH-NY +0.42 +0.40 +0.28 +0.33 +0.37 HH-Chicago -0.04 +0.11 +0.24...

Stodgy phoenix rise from ashes of the merchant sector collapse.
July 5, 2004... Converge, diverge and reconsolidate--cyclical trends among energy companies in all sectors of the petroleum industry since the beginning--have nowhere been more intense and radical than among what once were the energy merchants. Led by...

Composite spot wellhead price.
July 5, 2004... COMPOSITE SPOT WELLHEAD PRICE January 2000 to Present ($/MMBtu) Year Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept. Oct. 2004 5.90 4.79 5.28 5.62 6.17 6.11 2003 5.15 6.91 7.14 4.94 5.48 5.63 4.87...

COMPOSITE SPOT DELIVERED-TO-PIPELINE PRICE.
July 5, 2004... COMPOSITE SPOT DELIVERED-TO-PIPELINE PRICE January 2000 to Present ($/MMBtu) Year Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept. Oct. 2004 6.30 4.82 5.32 5.65 6.20 6.12 2003 5.40 7.10 7.25 5.07 5.53...

Natural gas futures.
July 5, 2004... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: June 28--July 2, 2004 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Last Volume Last Volume Last...

Rising terrorism poses long-term risk to global energy market.
July 5, 2004... With the globe awash in recoverable oil and natural gas, there is no shortage in supply of energy in the world. But the likelihood of terrorist attacks on energy infrastructure makes that supply vulnerable. "We're going to have a very risky...

North American weekly gas storage.
July 5, 2004... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Jun. 25 Jun. 18 Weekly Year Yr. Ago 5-year 5-year Region Week Week Change Ago Change Average Change US East 1019 ...

Natural gas bidweek prices.
July 5, 2004... NATURAL GAS BIDWEEK PRICES Flow Dates: 7/1 - 7/31 July Chg. Prev. Price Avg. from Bid Point $/MMBtu Prev....

CITYGATE PRICES.
July 5, 2004... CITYGATE PRICES July Chg. Prev. Price Avg. from Bid Point $/MMBtu Prev. High Low Vol. Deals Week Austin, Texas ...

Shell to limit LNG shipments to Altamira, no additional supply.
July 5, 2004... The Royal Dutch/Shell Group plans to import only enough liquefied natural gas (LNG) to its Altamira project in Mexico to meet its commitments to Mexican utility Comision Federal de Electricidad (CFE) despite initial plans to import additional...

EPA finds no harm to drinking water by coalbed fracturing.
July 5, 2004... The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found no evidence that hydraulic fracturing fluids used to extract natural gas from coalbed methane wells are contaminating drinking water, a conclusion that diminishes industry's fear of possible...

NGW's monthly weighted averages.
July 5, 2004... NGW'S MONTHLY WEIGHTED AVERAGES $/MMBtu Price Point Jun.'04 May.'04 Apr.'04 Mar.'04 Feb.'04 Jan.'04 Gulf Coast ANR SE 6.20 6.20 5.63 5.31 5.32 6.10 Col. Gulf--Erath 6.22 6.29...

Wind power project contingent on PTC renewal.(Current)
July 5, 2004... FPL Energy announced plans last week to construct a 106.5-MW wind farm near Weatherford, Oklahoma. With 71 1.5-MW wind turbines situated on more than 3,800 acres of land, it would be the largest wind farm to be built in the state. It will have...

Ontario welcomes renewable proposals.(Current)
July 5, 2004... The doors have swung open for building new renewable generation in Ontario, and developers are walking through in droves. The province has announced two rounds of requests for proposals (RFP) for new electricity capacity or conservation...

Progress to pay $43M to settle suit.(Current)
July 5, 2004... A Progress Energy unit will pay $43.1 million to settle a lawsuit stemming from a contract dispute with the San Francisco Unified School District. The company's Strategic Resource Solutions unit agreed to pay $10.1 million once the...

PJM to dispatch Ohio power plant.(Current)
July 5, 2004... PJM Interconnection said it will ask federal regulators for permission to use a power plant outside its territory in Ohio when needed to help relieve congestion on power lines between the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic electric systems. In an...

Allegheny's Midwest coal plants return.(Current)
July 5, 2004... Two Allegheny Energy coal-fired power units in West Virginia and Pennsylvania returned to service over the last two weeks just in time to help meet the region's peak summer air conditioning demand. The 570-MW Hatfields Ferry 2 in Pennsylvania...

Select Energy inks contract with NSTAR.(Current)
July 5, 2004... Berlin, Connecticut-based Select Energy, the marketing arm of Northeast Utilities, said it won a $225 million wholesale power contract with NSTAR, a Massachusetts-based electric and natural gas distribution company. Under the year-long...

Calpine plant turns on Florida juice.(Current)
July 5, 2004... Calpine's combined-cycle 540-MW Osprey Energy Center began commercial operations last week, marking the debut of the only plant of its kind to be built and wholly owned by an independent in peninsular Florida. The energy center, located...

Spot electricity trading.(Current)
July 5, 2004... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: June 28-July 2, 2004 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Avg. Price Avg. Price This Last Year Month POINT ...

Comparative fuel prices.(Current)
July 5, 2004... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) July 5, 2004 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $54.00/ton $6.34/MMBtu $2.25/MMBtu EAST COAST...

Fortuna Energy expands US properties in $65M acquisition.(Regional Market Roundup)
July 5, 2004... Fortuna Energy, a subsidiary of Canadian-based Talisman Energy, has acquired all of Belden & Blake's Trenton-Black River assets in the Appalachia region for $65 million in cash in a deal that includes 475,000 acres in New York, Pennsylvania,...

Baker Hughes Rig count.(Regional Market Roundup)
July 5, 2004... BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT Week Ended Jul. 2 Rotary Rigs Current Previous Year Week Week Ago Total US 1,201 1,176 1,077 Land ...

Gas price trends.(Regional Market Roundup)
July 5, 2004... GAS PRICE TRENDS ($/MMBtu) ROCKY NEW CALIFORNIA MTNS MEXICO TEXAS South North Gulf Coast Gulf Coast ...

Cross-border fight brewing over Canadian coalbed methane play.(Canadian Markets)
July 5, 2004... Energy, economics and international treaties have all come into play as work continues on a coalbed methane project near the US-British Columbia border near a small Canadian town called Fernie. From the energy industry's standpoint, what's...

KeySpan buys Caribou sour gas plant.(Canadian Markets)
July 5, 2004... In a deal valued at C$7 million, KeySpan Energy Canada Partnership has bought the El Paso Velvet Processing L.P.. El Paso Velvet Processing is a subsidiary of El Paso. KeySpan has acquired a sour gas plant, gathering pipelines and related acid...

Canadian Superior begins site work.(Canadian Markets)
July 5, 2004... Canadian Superior Energy has announced that work is under way preparing for the drilling of its next Mariner Project exploration well off the coast of Nova Scotia. This will be the second well drilled on Exploration Lease El 2409 acquired...

Canadian price report.(Canadian Markets)
July 5, 2004... CANADIAN PRICE REPORT ($U.S. per MMBtu/$Can per Gigajoule) BRITISH COLUMBIA Huntingdon/ Kingsgate/ Total Sumas Eastport...

EEI's power data revisions put damper on bullish price outlook.
July 5, 2004... The extraordinary growth in electricity demand reported week after week ahead of this summer was apparently too good a story to be true for natural gas bulls. The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) said last week that after an extensive...

Gas price report.
July 5, 2004... GAS PRICE REPORT ($/MMBtu--Spot) July 5, 2004 Interstate Intrastate Delivered Delivered Wellhead Wellhead To Pipeline To Utility Bid ...

Natural gas weekly spot prices.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 7/6-7/12 Avg. Avg. Jul. Daily Daily Bid Price Point $/MMBtu Chg....

Lay fall from grace punctuated by 11-count federal indictment.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... Only three years ago, Kenneth L. Lay was receiving continuous accolades as a presidential confidant and one of America's top business executives. Last week, he was in handcuffs as agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation escorted the...

Clean-coal could deliver syngas to fuel gas plants of the future.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... In a future fraught with fears of coming energy shortages, black coal could become our white knight, advocates say, thanks in part to vigorous natural gas prices and advancing clean-coal technologies. Only a few years ago, natural gas was...

Surprising storage injection pressures late-week gas prices.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... An unexpectedly large storage injection reported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) for the last week of June has put bulls on the defensive in gas markets, though the scales could quickly tilt given the emergence of the first...

Lay defense: Fastow's schemes too cagey, complex to catch.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... In the movie Gilda, 1940s screen siren Rita Hayworth advised her audience to "Put the Blame on Mame." Former Enron chief Kenneth L. Lay is finding Andy to be more handy. Lay and his attorneys have initiated a full-scale attack on Andrew...

NG companies sued.(Late news ...)
July 12, 2004... NG companies sued: Santa Clara County and city and county of San Francisco have filed separate lawsuits accusing US natural gas companies of price-fixing conspiracy that cost California customers billions of dollars during 2000 energy crisis....

$240 million deal.(Late news ...)
July 12, 2004... $240 million deal: Mark West Energy Partners will buy American Central East Texas Gas Co.'s Carthage gathering system and natural gas processing assets in East Texas for $240 million in deal to close Aug. 31. Carthage system gathers natural gas...

Worker shortage.(Late news ...)
July 12, 2004... Worker shortage: House Resources subcommittee on energy and mineral resources were told oil and gas exploration industry is facing personnel shortage in professional and blue-collar positions. Subcommittee members heard industry lost 500,000...

CPUC to appeal FERC denial of say over LNG terminal siting.
July 12, 2004... Federal regulators' continuing battles with state authorities over the siting of energy infrastructure projects were kicked up a notch last week as California officials decided to challenge the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC)...

Scientists slam climate bill's assessment of global warming.
July 12, 2004... The Climate Stewardship Act (CSA), a piece of federal legislation seeking to cap greenhouse gas emissions that has been hailed by environmentalists but scorned by business advocates, is now being assailed by climate scientists. During a...

Intrastate weekly spot prices.
July 12, 2004... INTRASTATE WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 7/6-7/12 Price Point $/MMBtu Chg. High Low Avg. Avg. Jul. Daily Daily Bid ...

Prices and differentials for major hubs and selected city gates.
July 12, 2004... July 12, 2004 US$/MMBtu, Volume-Weighted [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SELECTED DAILY DIFFERENTIALS Differential 7/5 7/6 7/7 7/8 7/9 HH-NY +0.37 +0.51 +0.45 +0.37 +0.40 HH-Chicago +0.10 -0.00...

Coast Guard shuts Gulf ports for not meeting security rules.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... The US Coast Guard closed two facilities last Wednesday in Geismar, Louisiana, that handle natural gas liquids (NGL) and other petroleum products for failing to meet new maritime and port security regulations. Coast Guard officials in...

Greens: survey shows New Mexico favors Otero Mesa alternative.(Energy Intelligence)
July 12, 2004... Amid charges of undue political influence, a counter-proposal from the governor and a study on how the public water supply would be affected, opponents of permitting for oil and gas development in New Mexico's Otero Mesa have armed themselves...

Pipeline capacity utilization.
July 12, 2004... PIPELINE CAPACITY UTILIZATION Pipeline Point Name Capacity Colorado Interstate Gas Cheyenne 590,000 Columbia Gas Transmission Leach 2,218,000...

Fitch: high commodity prices undercut by increased risks.
July 12, 2004... Operational risks in the oil and gas sector have increased almost as sharply as commodity prices in the past 12 months, credit rating agency Fitch said Friday, in comments that painted a bleak picture of the day-to-day political and logistical...

Natural gas futures.
July 12, 2004... NATURAL GAS FUTURES Trading Dates: July 5 - July 9, 2004 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Last Volume Last Volume Last...

Las Vegas company gambles on Kansas play.(E & P Update)
July 12, 2004... Led by a nuclear physicist and based in Las Vegas, Petrol Oil and Gas hopes to hit the jackpot in the coalbed methane business. The company was incorporated in 2002 and currently holds 165,000 mineral acres in eastern Kansas and western...

Gas rigs Vs. Total rigs.
July 12, 2004... [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Gas Rigs Vs. Total Rigs Oil Rigs Gas Rigs 7/1/2000 209 733 7/1/2001 220 1058 7/1/2002 135 716 7/3/2003 152 925 2/6/2004 149 968 3/12/2004...

Storage-price-gas rig count.
July 12, 2004... [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Chart shows relationship between gas in storage, composite spot wellhead price and active gas rigs. Sources: Baker Hughes, Inc., Energy Information Administration, Natural Gas Week

Nuclear power advances could keep gas at bay.(Current)
July 12, 2004... Nuclear energy remains the cheapest way to produce electricity, according to a recent International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report marking the 50-year anniversary of nuclear use for civilian applications. US power generators with...

US joins efforts for demand response.(Current)
July 12, 2004... The US has joined several nations looking to advance demand response programs that support lower electricity prices and can be used to conserve energy. Demand response allows retail and wholesale electricity customers to respond in real...

TXU abandons Texas power plant.(Current)
July 12, 2004... TXU is finally abandoning construction of an East Texas power plant that has lain fallow for years. The action was prompted by a decision to redeem $100.9 million in construction bonds, officials with the Dallas-based company said. ...

FERC approves OGE plant purchase.(Current)
July 12, 2004... OGE Energy's utility unit can buy a majority stake in an Oklahoma power plant owned by NRG Energy under a plan approved by the Federal Energy Regulating Commission (FERC). Oklahoma Gas and Electric inked a deal last year with NRG to buy a...

EL Paso closes on sale of four plants.(Current)
July 12, 2004... El Paso Merchant Energy has completed the sale of four power generating stations in the US to Northern Star Generation for about $226 million, plus the assumption of $39 million of debt. The stations were among 25 plants that the...

Spot electricity trading.(Current)
July 12, 2004... SPOT ELECTRICITY TRADING Trading Dates: July 5-July 9, 2004 NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE (NYMEX) (HENRY HUB) Avg. Price Avg. Price Change Year Month POINT This Week Last Week Ago ...

Dominion acquires Virginia plants.(Current)
July 12, 2004... Dominion Virginia Power has acquired two generating facilities in Virginia. The first is a 310-MW, natural gas-fired generating plant in Chesapeake, Virginia, while the second is an 80-MW, wood burning plant near Hurt, Virginia. Dominion...

Comparative fuel prices.(Current)
July 12, 2004... COMPARATIVE FUEL PRICES (Cash Market) July 12, 2004 APPALACHIA Appalachian Pool Ohio/Big Sandy River Coal Dlvd (Util) $57.00/ton $6.45/MMBtu $2.38/MMBtu EAST COAST New York ...

ConocoPhillips garners capacity in Cheniere Freeport LNG project.(Regional Market Roundup)
July 12, 2004... ConocoPhillips has completed the acquisition of 1 Bcf/d of regasification capacity in the planned Freeport Liquifed Natural Gas (LNG) terminal planned for Brazoria County, Texas. The deal with Cheniere Energy gives ConocoPhillips a 50%...

Baker Hughes rig count.
July 12, 2004... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT Week Ended Jul. 9 Rotary Rigs Current Previous Year Week Week Ago Total US 1,207 1,201...

Gas price trends.
July 12, 2004... GAS PRICE TRENDS ($/MMBtu) CALIFORNIA ROCKY NEW TEXAS MTNS MEXICO South North Gulf Coast Gulf Coast ...

Nova Scotia becoming hot spot for LNG terminal development.(Canadian Markets)
July 12, 2004... Location... location... location: That real-estate mantra might just describe why Nova Scotia is becoming so popular for proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects. At least three companies have planned LNG projects for Nova Scotia...

PetroChina stirs pot with E&P plans.(World Roundup)
July 12, 2004... PetroChina has won a license to explore for oil and natural gas in the southern region of the South China Sea. The Chinese energy giant did not say where the exploration would take place. Last week's announcement did prompt investors and...

Agreement expected for Qatar GTL plant.(World Roundup)
July 12, 2004... Exxon Mobil and state Qatar Petroleum are expected to sign the final agreement for their long-awaited natural gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant in the Mideast Gulf nation within the next week. The facility would produce of 150,000-180,000 b/d GTL...

Indonesian-ConocoPhillips deal on hold.(World Roundup)
July 12, 2004... Officials with Indonesia's state power company, PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), have said they are putting on indefinite hold a deal to buy natural gas from ConocoPhillips due to what the Indonesians called unresolved issues. Under the...

Canadian price report.
July 12, 2004... CANADIAN PRICE REPORT ($U.S. per MMBtu/$Can per Gigajoule) BRITISH COLUMBIA Huntingdon/ Kingsgate/ Total Sumas ...

North American weekly gas storage.
July 12, 2004... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Jul. 2 Jun. 25 Weekly Year Yr. Ago Region Week Week Change Ago Change US East 1085 1019 66 ...

Analyst: storage injections point to lower prices ahead.(World Roundup)
July 12, 2004... Several analysts have stepped up recently to tout the likelihood of $7/MMBtu, and possibly $8 gas when peak heat arrives this summer (NGW, Jul.5 p4). The bullish outlook, however, is not universally shared. In a research note last week,...

Natural gas weekly spot prices.
July 19, 2004... NATURAL GAS WEEKLY SPOT PRICES Flow Dates: 7/13-7/19 Avg. Avg. Jul. Price Daily Daily Bid Point $/MMBtu Chg....

Analysts see increasing prices, silver lining for rest of 2004.
July 19, 2004... Natural Gas Week polled 24 analysts for a look ahead at natural gas prices. The analysts' average forecast for the natural gas composite spot wellhead price for the third quarter of 2004 was $5.89/MMBtu with an average for the fourth quarter of...

LNG terminal cluster could make supply too vulnerable to storms.
July 19, 2004... Analysts believe few, if any, liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminals will be approved or built on either the East or West coasts of the US in the foreseeable future. The opinion is that most of the new LNG terminals to be approved will...

Nymex gas futures fall below $6 on storage, weather trends.
July 19, 2004... This Thursday's storage report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) will be critical in confirming a trend toward a loosening gas market supply and demand balance. Two straight weeks of hefty triple-digit storage injections, while...

LNG second-quarter imports rise despite Trinidad supply slump.
July 19, 2004... US LNG imports were up 26% in the second quarter from the same period last year and 6.2% from the first quarter, despite some disruption in supply from Trinidad. A decline of almost 9% in imports from Trinidad from first-quarter levels, to...