Commodities

A niche exists in the portable oilfield and remote power generation sector, but liquefied natural gas (LNG) in these high-horsepower (HHP) applications is struggling to compete with diesel because low commodity prices have narrowed the gap for the two alternatives, a Prometheus Energy executive said Tuesday.

Deutsche Bank has sold its natural gas trading book to Morgan Stanley, a source familiar with the deal confirmed to NGI.

Citing disasters involving commodities, from the Macondo oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to recent crude oil tanker train crashes to the Three Mile Island nuclear leak in 1979, the Federal Reserve Board on Tuesday said it was re-examining the risk involved in the physical commodity activity of financial holding companies (FHC). The banking agency issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking seeking comment on how to limit risk.

“If counterparties, such as banks…begin to disappear, our ability to manage our risk would be seriously impeded,” energy companies told Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) reportedly is investigating whether JPMorgan Chase & Co. has manipulated U.S. energy markets, but neither the department nor the company will comment on the reports.

Onshore drilling efficiencies in domestic shale gas plays continue to increase, per-unit costs continue to fall, and together, they given a big boost to operators’ proven reserves, by one calculation.

ExxonMobil Corp., whose international portfolio more often than not has fortified it from the ups and downs of the volatile commodities market, failed to outrun global uncertainty and lower U.S. natural gas prices in the third quarter, with profits off 7% year/year to $9.6 billion, $750 million less than a year ago. Production also declined to its lowest level in three years.

ExxonMobil Corp., whose international portfolio more often than not has fortified it from the ups and downs of the volatile commodities market, failed to outrun global uncertainty and lower U.S. natural gas prices in the third quarter, with profits off 7% year/year to $9.6 billion, $750 million less than a year ago. Production also declined to its lowest level in three years.

Canadian natural gas explorer Compton Petroleum Corp. on Monday agreed to a C$33 million friendly takeover bid by New York-based MFC Industrial Ltd., a global commodities trader.