Chill

Although the overall weather picture remains basically moderate, there apparently is just enough chill returning to cause cash prices to level off or rally Wednesday. A majority of points were flat to slightly higher, with gains of more than about a nickel largely limited to the Rockies/Pacific Northwest. California and some Northeast citygates saw small declines.

No movie was involved, but “The Big Chill” descended on the Northeast Tuesday and sent delivered prices in New England skyrocketing as high as $30. Outside the Northeast, the market was decidedly mixed around flatness with numbers ranging from a quarter down to half a dollar higher.

After weathering the extended cold chill over the second half of January, it appears that at least part of the country is not out of the woods yet as another cold front is bearing down in some areas of the East. The National Weather Service’s 8-14 day outlook as of Feb. 7 called for normal to below normal temperatures across the East and Midwest, while the Southwest is expected to register above normal temps.

After weathering the extended cold chill over the second half of January, it appears that at least part of the country is not out of the woods yet as another cold front is bearing down in some areas of the East. The National Weather Service’s 8-14 day outlook called for normal to below normal temperatures across the entire country, except for Florida, which is expected to enjoy above normal readings.

The records continue to fall in the East from severe winter cold. After numerous utilities reported record breaking demand on the systems in New York and the Mid Atlantic region last week, Williams subsidiary Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line (Transco), which serves the entire East Coast region, said it set a new peak delivery record seven out of 10 days from Jan. 15-24.

Any skepticism over a “Siberian Express” arctic cold front making a stop in the Lower 48 was quickly wiped away last week as temperatures plummeted into the teens, 20s and low 30s across much of the Northeast, Midwest and Midcontinent. The only question left was just how long it would be parked over the central and eastern regions of the United States.

November is the month to watch for colder than normal weather, according to WSI Corp.’s beginning-of-September update to its three-month seasonal forecast. The Massachusetts-based forecaster noted that there will be temperature anomalies this month and into October, but they may have “limited impact” because temperature normals and load levels tend to be significantly lower than summer months.

If you think it was frigid last week, it’s going to be downright”brutal” in much of the nation this week, according to a short-termweather forecast issued by Salomon Smith Barney.

If you think it’s frigid now, next week is going to be “brutal,”according to a short-term weather forecast issued by Salomon SmithBarney yesterday.