Blueprint

Asserting that a complete moratorium on shale exploration “would limit the potential” for research, the government of the Canadian province of New Brunswick said Tuesday it intends to continue to identify and act on the opportunity for greater scientific work to be done relating to shale gas exploration.

Responding to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Energy Highway Blueprint, the New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) on Tuesday said it will study the expansion of natural gas delivery to homeowners and businesses in the state. The PSC also acted on items designed to ease transmission congestion to meet power needs by providing downstate New York access to lower-cost power, and to plan for possible major power plant retirements.

Laying out a blueprint for how small- and medium-sized businesses can take advantage of the opportunities provided within the current U.S. natural gas development boom, the Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) has released the second in a series of recommended practices aimed at bolstering the Marcellus Shale region’s supply chain.

Drawing up a blueprint for regional companies that want to capture the lucrative business opportunities brought on by rampant Marcellus Shale oil and natural gas development in Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh researchers this month released a Pitt Business Working Paper titled “Understanding the Marcellus Shale Supply Chain.”

Following Monday’s trading blueprint, March natural gas futures paid a second visit to the $9.300 price level before being rebuffed once again. The prompt-month contract traded between $9.115 and $9.305 before closing out Tuesday at $9.206, up 2 cents on the day.

In the story “Independence Project a Blueprint for Future Deepwater Exploration,” which appeared in Monday’s Daily Gas Price Index and in Natural Gas Intelligence, Enterprise Products Partners President and CEO Bob Phillips was mistakenly identified. NGI regrets the error.

In almost an exact blueprint of Friday’s topsy-turvy session,natural gas futures spiked then retraced yesterday as tradersdigested the latest weather news. After gapping higher at the openand putting in a fresh one-month high at $4.43, the Septembercontract succumbed to profit-taking which ushered the prompt monthlower at the close. September finished at $4.348, up 5.2 cents forthe session, but just a fraction of a cent above its low on theday.