Digests

Sending shockwaves through the natural gas futures market ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported at noon (EST) Wednesday that 49 Bcf was pulled from storage for the week ended Nov. 19. The number fell so far outside of anyone’s expectations that market watchers were looking to the EIA for some sort of explanation.

The weekly withdrawal from storage was slightly below average market expectations of about 90 Bcf but not surprising in light of the week’s warmer than normal weather. Working storage levels at 2,212 Bcf remain incredibly high with 1.1 Tcf more working gas than at the same time last year and 675 Bcf more than the five-year average.

Tractebel of Belgium last week completed the purchase of Cabot LNG, the largest U.S. importer of liquefied natural gas, from Cabot Corp., in a deal worth $680 million.

Tractebel of Belgium yesterday completed the purchase of CabotLNG, the largest U.S. importer of liquefied natural gas, from CabotCorp., in a deal worth $680 million.