Break

After taking a break to explore the upside on Thursday, January natural gas futures on Friday resumed their assault on psychological support down at $7. The prompt-month contract reached a low of $7.120 before closing out the week at $7.155, down 17.5 cents from Thursday’s finish and 24.7 cents lower than the previous week’s close.

After failing to break through psychological support at $7 over the previous three sessions, natural gas futures on Thursday decided to check out the upside for a change as the January contract reached a high of $7.425 before closing out the day at $7.330, up 14.5 cents from Wednesday’s finish.

With natural gas prices significantly higher than they were a decade ago, Entergy Louisiana is looking to cut its utility customers a break by transforming one of its gas-fired power plants near New Orleans into a coal-fired unit. While coal-fired plants create more emissions, the cheaper fuel could end up saving the utility’s customers $150 million in fuel costs during the first year of operation, Entergy Louisiana said.

For a regional market that couldn’t seem to buy a price break all week, the Rockies came roaring back Friday with triple-digit spikes. That was in sharp contrast to falling prices at virtually all other points as above-normal temperatures were expected to be in place by the end of the weekend in nearly all of the U.S. except its northwest corner. The weekend retreat of industrial load was a minor bearish factor.

With natural gas prices significantly higher than they were a decade ago, Entergy Louisiana is looking to cut its utility customers a break by transforming one of its gas-fired power plants near New Orleans into a coal-fired unit. While coal-fired plants create more emissions, the cheaper fuel could end up saving the utility’s customers $150 million in fuel costs during the first year of operation, Entergy Louisiana said.

A pair of liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal proposals on seemingly different trajectories — one ascending, the other trying to break its fall — eye separate hearings in their respective locales of Oregon and Southern California in the next two weeks.

A pair of liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal proposals on seemingly different trajectories — one ascending, the other trying to break its fall — eye separate hearings in their respective locales of Oregon and Southern California later this month.

Approved applications for permits-to-drill (APD) in Colorado are up 4% from the same time a year ago and are on pace to break all previous records, the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) said in a report issued Monday.

Riding a temporary price break in the Rockies, Oregon expects natural gas prices to remain stable for the year, according to reports from the major gas industry players in the Northwest. They gave projections to the Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) at a workshop last week in Salem, OR.