Drive

High commodity prices will drive oil and natural gas industry spending in the offshore to a total of $380 billion between now and 2012, a 60% jump from the previous five-year period, Douglas-Westwood Ltd. reported last week.

High commodity prices will drive oil and natural gas industry spending in the offshore to a total of $380 billion between now and 2012, a 60% jump from the previous five-year period, Douglas-Westwood Ltd. reported Tuesday.

As the winter heating season gets closer, the AccuWeather.com long-range center continues to drive home the point that a very warm winter is on the way for much of the nation, especially east of the Rockies. If the forecast is confirmed, the natural gas and power markets could be in for lower prices as demand for both commodities lays off.

The Connecticut governor was operating with some bad data when she issued a press release Thursday accusing the natural gas industry of attempting to drive up prices by cutting off production needed to fill storage. Gov. M. Jodi Rell based her price manipulation accusation on the proposition that the natural gas storage for winter is lagging, when in fact it is nearly full, topping out above 3 Tcf in the last few weeks — a month and a half before the official start of the winter season.

The Connecticut governor was operating with some bad data when she issued a press release Thursday accusing the natural gas industry of attempting to drive up prices by cutting off production needed to fill storage. Gov. M. Jodi Rell based her price manipulation accusation on the proposition that the natural gas storage for winter is lagging, when in fact it is nearly full, topping out above 3 Tcf in the last few weeks — a month and a half before the official start of the winter season.

Because it’s a peninsula with limited access to gas pipelines, Florida is subject to supply volatility that can drive up prices under certain conditions such as when hurricanes threaten the Gulf of Mexico. A Houston-based start-up company has plans to capture some of that volatility with a new $325 million liquefied natural gas (LNG) peak-shaving storage facility.

Because it’s a peninsula with limited access to gas pipelines, Florida is subject to supply volatility that can drive up prices under certain conditions such as when hurricanes threaten the Gulf of Mexico. A Houston-based start-up company has plans to capture some of that volatility with a new $325 million liquefied natural gas (LNG) peak-shaving storage facility.

North American natural gas and oil production, which represents 92% of sales from continuing operations, will continue to drive Pioneer Natural Gas Resources Co.’s earnings this year, with quarterly output up 6% over a year ago and the company on track to hit double-digit growth by the end of 2006, company officials said Tuesday.

Daily offshore oil and natural gas production worldwide, which currently stands at about 43 million boe, will grow to 53 million boe in 2010, which in turn will drive forecasted worldwide annual oil company spending from $193 billion to $248 billion, according to a new study by Douglas-Westwood Ltd. But the authors warned that resource-limited growth will be an increasing concern in the coming years.