Again

Nautilus Pipeline said it is on track to begin receiving gasagain at Ship Shoal 207 at the start of the May 1 gas day.Processing of a large condensate slug at Exxon’s Garden City Plantonshore Louisiana (see Daily GPI, April 17) is expected to becompleted by Thursday.

“If you want higher gas prices just wait for the next shouldermonth,” was the phrase bandied about the cash market yesterday ascash prices rose to heights unparalleled since last October andNovember. Last Autumn futures prices peaked at $3.85 beforefree-falling down to settle at $3.266 at the end of October. Now afutures led rally has pulled cash prices with it leaving the marketto wonder how much higher can prices go and will they come down.”That is the $10 million question,” a source quipped.

Natural-gas shippers have again been promised they will gainfrom the proposed merger of TransCanada PipeLines Ltd. and NovaCorp., but not before a spell of increased tolls.

Natural Gas Clearinghouse’s (NGC) controversial transportationcontracts for 1.3 Bcf/d with El Paso Natural Gas came under fireagain last week as producers and marketers hammered away at thealleged anticompetitive nature of the firm agreements.

Despite already having held a series of hearings on the project,FERC yesterday set for hearing the issue of whether the market needfor a controversial liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility plannedfor a Maine community could be better met by alternative pipelineprojects.

The April Nymex contract once again failed to break above majorresistance at $2.19 on Tuesday, and as a result, the spot monthfinished the day down 3.2 cents to $2.137. Total estimated volumecame in at 34,371.

Flatness again dominated Tuesday in the majority of cashmarkets. However, Northeast citygates dropped by about a nickeldespite heavy, wet snow or cold windswept rain in the region thatone weather forecast service expected to persist overnight.