Jeremiah Shelor

Rover Pipeline LLC is urging FERC to stay the course and reauthorize work on its Mainline B horizontal directional drill (HDD) under the Tuscarawas River in Ohio, with the company indicating it’s “frustrated by the inaccurate central premise” behind the directive it issued last week.

Prompt-month natural gas futures rocketed higher Monday, marking the most expensive contract expiration in more than a year as weather models continued to advertise mid-February cold risks. The forecast arrival of some wintry weather drove spot prices higher in the Northeast as prices in the West languished, and the NGI National Spot Gas Average climbed 75 cents to $4.03/MMBtu.

February natural gas was set to open Friday about 3 cents higher at around $3.478, with the market still watching for frigid temperatures expected to hit around the end of next week.

The United States added 11 rigs for the week ended Friday on the strength of a big ramp up in drilling activity in the Permian Basin, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI).

The United States dropped one natural gas rig for the week ended Friday, but a big increase in oil-directed drilling helped grow the domestic count by double digits, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI).

Natural gas futures finished higher Friday to cap off a bullish week that saw lean storage inventories and a potentially frigid February support some of the highest prompt month prices in more than a year.

Natural gas futures surged during the week ending Jan. 26 thanks to lean storage inventories and weather guidance showing the potential for a return of frigid temperatures in February. Cash prices weakened as temperatures moderated from the week before, and the NGI Weekly Spot Gas Average fell 64 cents to $3.42/MMBtu.

February natural gas was set to open Thursday about 4 cents higher at around $3.551, with the market turning its attention to the 10:30 a.m. EDT release of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) storage data.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a mammoth storage withdrawal Thursday that surprised to the bullish side of expectations, but prompt-month futures lost ground after rallying earlier in the week.