Cash

Natural gas cash prices overall added just a half-cent Wednesday as temperatures were forecast to take a dive over the next several days. Midwest and Great Lakes points were higher by a couple of pennies, but Northeast and eastern locations eased. At the close of trading, June futures had fallen 0.6 cent to $4.186 and July was off 0.6 cent as well to $4.233. July crude oil tumbled $1.90 to $94.28/bbl.

Natural gas cash prices nationally added on average a nickel in Tuesday’s trading as traders are beginning to see the dynamic of warm weather generating additional power generation requirements from gas-fired plants.

Cash natural gas prices vaulted 24 cents higher overall on Monday on supportive weather forecasts in several key market areas. Just as the market on Friday priced in the double-digit futures loss on Thursday, Monday’s trading was faced with the task of acknowledging the screen’s 12-cent jump Friday. The Mid-Atlantic region posted gains of close to 40 cents, but Southern California, Gulf, Midcontinent and Rockies points all enjoyed exuberant pricing. At the close of futures trading, June had risen 3.5 cents to $4.090, and July was up 3.8 cents to $4.141. June crude oil added 69 cents to $96.71/bbl.

Cash natural gas prices fell 4 cents overall as traders elected to get their deals done ahead of the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) weekly storage report.

The natural gas cash market on average added 6 cents Wednesday for Thursday delivery led by weather-driven gains in the Great Lakes and East. In fact, points across the country were firmly in the black on the day outside of a handful of northeastern spots and a couple of midwestern points. Futures managed to build on Tuesday’s gains and at the close, June was higher by 4.6 cents at $4.070, and July had added 4.5 cents to $4.113. June crude oil rose 9 cents to $94.30/bbl.

Cash natural gas prices rose 3 cents overall Monday, with gains paced by strong Northeast points undergoing pipeline outages, and higher points in California. Other major market centers were mixed. Futures prices waffled throughout the day, but managed a positive finish, with June ending up 1.5 cents to $3.925 and July adding 1.1 cents to $3.971. June crude oil fell 87 cents to $95.17/bbl.

Building midstream infrastructure in the Marcellus Shale to keep up with growing natural gas volumes was a challenge in the first quarter, MarkWest Energy Partners LP CEO Frank Semple said Thursday.

Marcellus and Utica shale midstreamer MarkWest Energy Partners LP has expanded its service offerings in the Anadarko Basin in a $245 million cash agreement with Chesapeake Energy Corp.

Cash natural gas prices eased lower overall by a couple of pennies in featureless trading Monday. New England and eastern points were a couple of pennies higher, but Great Lakes locations were mixed, with changes within a couple of pennies of unchanged.