Fact

Front-month natural gas futures values reached almost a three-month low Monday as traders seemed resigned to the fact that the winter heating season — and its ability to draw down storage — are quickly running out of time. April futures recorded a low of $4.670 just after 12:30 p.m. EST before closing out the day’s session at $4.680, down 13.3 cents from Friday’s finish. The last time a front-month contract traded lower was back on Dec. 7, 2009, when the January 2010 contract notched a low of $4.644.

Despite the fact that much of the midwestern and eastern parts of the country are plunging into the season’s second cold freeze, natural gas futures traders appeared unmoved Friday as the March contract bounced back and forth before closing the regular session at $5.515, up 9.9 cents from Thursday’s finish and 38.4 cents from the previous week’s close.

Despite the fact that much of the midwestern and eastern parts of the country are plunging into the season’s second cold freeze, natural gas futures traders appeared unmoved Friday as the March contract bounced back and forth before closing the regular session at $5.515, up 9.9 cents from Thursday’s finish and 38.4 cents from the previous week’s close.

Natural gas from shale plays has become a major factor in integrated energy planning in the Pacific Northwest. This fact was reiterated Friday by the head of the Northwest Gas Association, Dan Kirschner, speaking in Seattle at Law Seminars International’s conference, “Buying and Selling Electric Power in the West.”

Natural gas from shale plays has become a major factor in integrated energy planning in the Pacific Northwest. This fact was reiterated last Friday by the head of the Northwest Gas Association, Dan Kirschner, speaking in Seattle at Law Seminars International’s conference, “Buying and Selling Electric Power in the West.”

The market finally had to acknowledge the fact that its large gains that dominated the first three trading days of the week lacked validating support from generally moderate weather fundamentals. Also feeling highly negative guidance from previous day’s futures loss of 27.6 cents, cash prices fell by double-digit amounts across the board Thursday.

September natural gas futures shed slightly less than half of Thursday’s gains Friday as traders mulled not only the fact that natural gas failed to advance with crude oil, but also soft economic data. September futures slipped 9 cents to $3.653 and October retreated 7.9 cents to $3.909. September crude oil added a stout $2.51 to $69.45/bbl, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 17 points to 9,171.

A return the “heroic oil or natural gas prices” of recent years is not on the horizon, and in fact, prices likely will fluctuate seasonally between $3/Mcf to $5/Mcf over the next 12 months and average under $6 for at least a year after that, a Moody’s Investors Service analyst said last week.

A return the “heroic oil or natural gas prices” of recent years is not on the horizon, and in fact, prices likely will fluctuate seasonally between $3/Mcf to $5/Mcf over the next 12 months and average under $6 for at least a year after that, a Moody’s Investors Service analyst said Tuesday.