Anytime

Because North America’s appetite for natural gas shows no signs of letting up anytime soon, policy makers need to take swift steps to deal with pipeline capacity constraints, liquefied natural gas (LNG) siting problems, production bottlenecks and gas storage concerns, says a new trilateral report by senior energy officials from the United States, Canada and Mexico.

While merchant industry “consolidation is inevitable,” NRG Energy CEO David Crane doesn’t see much action anytime soon. “I look around to see people to consolidate with, I see a lot of debt.” And, having emerged from bankruptcy with “a balance sheet on the edge of being sustainable,” Crane is not inclined “to go back into balance sheet soup.”

Canadian oil and natural gas industry CEOs and CFOs are more bullish on commodity returns than anytime in the past five years, according to the 2004 Deloitte Canadian Oil and Gas Outlook survey released on Monday. Respondents expect positive double-digit returns for publicly listed companies.

California’s natural gas industry probably shouldn’t expect anyflowers in sympathy anytime soon. The California Cut FlowerCommission said last week that some of the state’s growers havebegun laying off workers and even sacrificing their Valentine’s Daycrops because they can’t afford to heat their greenhouses.

“It looked like the screen and cash were in a race to see whichone could go downhill farthest and fastest.” A marketer’s commentaccurately summed up a day that more than ever indicated the bloomis quickly coming off this year’s price rose. Double-digit declinesdominated Thursday, with most exceeding 30 cents, and many GulfCoast and Midcontinent pipes experienced sub-$5 territory for thefirst time in months.

The GRI’s latest report indicates producers won’t run out ofwork anytime soon in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin (WCSB),which is estimated to have 166 Tcf in new pool potential and a 31.4Tcf reserve appreciation potential. Because of these positiveestimates, the GRI said the region could surpass 8 Tcf ofproduction by 2015.

The GRI’s latest report indicates producers won’t run out ofwork anytime soon in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin (WCSB),which is estimated to have 166 Tcf in new pool potential and a 31.4Tcf reserve appreciation potential. Because of these positiveestimates, the GRI said the region could surpass 8 Tcf ofproduction by 2015.