The House has introduced legislation to open federal waters off the coast of Virginia to oil and natural gas development, and the Senate is expected to offer a companion bill in the coming weeks. Virginia lawmakers in Congress and at the state level have pressured the Interior Department to open the coastal waters to offshore development for years (see NGI, July 11, 2011). The Virginia Jobs and Energy Act (HR 1782), introduced by Rep. Scott Rigell (R-VA), mandates that Lease Sale 220 be conducted within one year and that one lease sale be held in subsequent five-year oil and gas leasing programs. Co-sponsors are Virginia Republican Reps. Rob Wittman, Robert Hurt and Morgan Griffith. During the last Congress, Rigell introduced similar legislation (HR 3882) after the Obama administration shut down exploration off of Virginia’s coast. Provisions of the bill passed the House in 2012 as part of a larger energy package, but it failed to make it out of Congress.
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Chesapeake Jettisons More Assets, Raises Guidance
Chesapeake Energy Corp., which has dropped rigs and deferred most of its dry natural gas drilling for the year, said last week that stronger-than-anticipated output from the Marcellus Shale should lift gas output higher in 2013 than it was two years ago.
Eastern Transmission Analyses Done; NatGas Infrastructure Study Ordered
The Eastern Interconnection Planning Collaborative (EIPC) on Monday said that while it has completed a transmission analyses as part of an electric system transmission planning effort funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the government agency has now asked the working group to look into whether the country’s natural gas infrastructure is up to the challenges posed by increased gas-fired power generation.
North America Again Tops Global Energy M&A
Oil and natural gas mergers and acquisitions (M&A) “slowed dramatically” in the first three months of this year from 2012, with activity slipping about 40% from the full-year 2012 average and inventory down by almost one-third, according to PLS Inc. However, as it has been for a few years, North America continued to draw the most interest and the most dollars, pulling in close to two-thirds of the transactions by dollar value and almost 80% of the total deals.
North America M&A Leads Global Markets in First Quarter
Oil and natural gas mergers and acquisitions (M&A) “slowed dramatically” in the first three months of this year from 2012, with activity slipping about 40% from the full-year 2012 average and inventory down by almost one-third, according to PLS Inc. However, as it has been for a few years, North America continued to draw the most interest and the most dollars, pulling in close to two-thirds of the transactions by dollar value and almost 80% of the total deals.
All Agree: Higher Natural Gas Prices This Year
More independent energy analysts last week joined their brethren in raising their forecasts for U.S. natural gas prices this year. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) also lifted its expectations for Henry Hub spot prices in the latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).
Industry Briefs
Chevron Corp. increased its natural gas output in the first two months of 2013 at the same time it was collecting higher gas prices than it did a year ago. In the United States, net gas production in January and February averaged 1.256 Bcf/d, versus 1.170 Bcf/d for the full three-month first quarter of 2012. Global net gas output climbed 5.4% to average 5.291 Bcf/d in January and February, compared to 5.019 Bcf/d in 1Q2012. The producer, which is scheduled to release its 1Q2013 earnings report on April 26, said realized prices for U.S. gas averaged $3.06/Mcf in the first two months of this year, compared with $2.48 in 1Q2012. U.S. net oil-equivalent production increased to 663,000 boe/d in the first two months of 2013 compared with 651,000 boe/d in 1Q2012, but it was down from 4Q2012’s total of 674,000 boe/d because of maintenance activity in the Gulf of Mexico.
Wells Fargo Raises Natural Gas Price Forecast
Energy analysts with Wells Fargo Securities LLC on Wednesday increased their natural gas price forecasts for 2013 and 2014 and cut estimates for 2015.
Weatherbug Expects Summer 2013 to Mimic 2012
Temperatures this summer will be similar to last year, with above-normal temperatures likely from West Texas across the Great Plains into the central and southern Rockies, and across the Mid-South, according to the WeatherBug meteorologists at Earth Networks.
Weatherbug Expects Summer 2013 to Mimic 2012
Temperatures this summer will be similar to last year, with above-normal temperatures likely from West Texas across the Great Plains into the central and southern Rockies, and across the Mid-South, according to the WeatherBug meteorologists at Earth Networks.
