Averaged

Overall, the cash market averaged a 2-cent decline Tuesday, but the Northeast still managed to trade in volatile fashion as traders and marketers continued to adjust to restrictions on Algonquin Pipeline.

The cash market overall averaged unchanged Monday though Northeast points surged, the Mid-Atlantc was flat to mixed, and Gulf points eased lower as mild weather was forecast to grasp the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and points east. October futures staged a last minute rally and tacked on 13.0 cents to $2.812 and November was higher by 10.8 cents to $2941. October crude oil added 12 cents to $96.54/bbl.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. announced Tuesday that its gross production in the Marcellus Shale has averaged more than 700 MMcf/d for the last two weeks, hitting a record 752 MMcf for one 24-hour period.

Cash quotes overall averaged about 2 cents higher Monday as East and Northeast points were forecast to endure a slight warming but other areas of the country such as the Midcontinent saw nominal price changes. Futures markets seemed little fazed by the building Tropical Storm Isaac and at the close September had shed 4.9 cents to $2.653 and October had dropped 6.1 cents to $2.673. October crude oil fell 68 cents to $95.47/bbl.

ExxonMobil Corp. now has about 51 natural gas and oil rigs operating in the U.S. onshore, which is down from the 57 rigs it averaged from April through May and well below the rig count a year ago, Investor relations chief David Rosenthal told analysts on Thursday.

Seneca Resources Corp. has reduced its outlook in the Marcellus Shale after long-time joint venture (JV) partner EOG Resources Inc. said it didn’t expect to drill the minimum number of wells that were defined under an area of mutual interest (AMI).

ExxonMobil Corp. now has about 51 natural gas and oil rigs operating in the U.S. onshore, which is down from the 57 rigs it averaged from April through May and well below the rig count a year ago, Investor relations chief David Rosenthal told analysts on Thursday.

Aggregate U.S. pressure pumping supply exceeded demand late last year and in the first three months of 2012 capacity utilization averaged 93.4%, a big turnaround in a market that had been undersupplied for two years, according to a new analysis. The shift is challenging oilfield service operators, which already were noting the squeeze in quarterly conference calls.

Halcon Resources Corp., run by the former chief of shale powerhouse Petrohawk Energy Corp., and GeoResources Inc. have agreed to merge in a cash-and-stock transaction worth an estimated $1 billion. The combined company would have an onshore portfolio of opportunities across the Midcontinent, with a core area in the Bakken Shale.