Domestic

There would be progressively greater impacts on natural gas consumption, prices and domestic supply if any or all of three restricted gas supply scenarios studied by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) occurred, the agency said in a special report released last week.

Despite the high commodity prices enjoyed by both natural gas and crude oil producers, John B. Walker, chairman of the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA), said that observers of the E&P sector shouldn’t conclude that all that glitters is gold.

While there are few new initiatives to boost domestic gas supply in the Bush Administration’s $2.4 trillion budget for 2005, other than the highly contentious issue of opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and gas drilling, Minerals Management Service (MMS) Director Johnnie Burton believes existing and proposed plans by her agency could provide a significant drilling incentive for producers.

Acquisitions are pushing Chesapeake Energy Corp. up near the top of the charts in terms of domestic gas production and reserves. The company recently completed three major property acquisitions totaling about $510 million and bringing its gas reserves to more than 3.4 Tcf and its production to an expected 875 MMcf/d in the first quarter and 890 MMcf/d for the year, making it one of the top 15 largest gas producers in North America in terms of daily production.

While there are few new initiatives to boost domestic gas supply in the Bush Administration’s $2.4 trillion budget for 2005, other than the highly contentious issue of opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and gas drilling, Minerals Management Service (MMS) Director Johnnie Burton believes existing and proposed plans by her agency could provide a significant drilling incentive for producers.

Acquisitions are pushing Chesapeake Energy Corp. up near the top of the charts in terms of domestic gas production and reserves. The company recently completed three major property acquisitions totaling about $510 million and bringing its gas reserves to more than 3.4 Tcf and its production to an expected 875 MMcf/d in the first quarter and 890 MMcf/d for the year, making it one of the top 15 largest gas producers in North America in terms of daily production.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp., the largest domestic independent oil and gas producer, reported Friday that net income for the fourth quarter dipped 4.8% due mostly to higher operating expenses, administrative costs, depreciation and taxes. But it said that 2003 overall was a “good year” for the Houston-based company.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp., the largest domestic independent oil and gas producer, reported Friday that net income for the fourth quarter dipped 4.8% due mostly to higher operating expenses, administrative costs, depreciation and taxes. But it said that 2003 overall was a “good year” for the Houston-based company.

U.S. natural gas production will continue to decline this year, but a fourth quarter survey of 43 domestic producers suggests a more modest decline compared with last year, according to Southwest Securities analysts.