• Major surge for expiring September Nymex natural gas futures contract
  • Damage assessments just beginning after Laura slams Gulf Coast
  • Cameron LNG awaiting go-ahead by local authorities to enter facility

Natural gas futures skyrocketed Thursday, even as Hurricane Laura struck a key natural gas export terminal when it slammed the Gulf Coast overnight and threw into question a recovery in liquefied natural gas (LNG) demand.

With production still curtailed and a tighter government storage stat in hand, traders lifted the expiring September contract up 11.8 cents to $2.579. October jumped 13.6 cents to $2.710.

Cash prices were mixed as Laura’s shift to the east Wednesday afternoon spared energy infrastructure along the Houston Ship Channel and Galveston Bay, with some...