Factor

One significant factor that will continue putting pressure on the oil and gas industry is the declining number of petroleum engineers (PE) available, according to a report by Raymond James & Associates. The latest statistics from the Society of Petroleum Engineers puts the average age of PEs in the United States at 51 compared to 41 internationally. About 59% of PEs in the U.S. in 2003 were 45 or older (compared to 45% in 1997) and only 25% are under 36 (compared to 33% in 1997), Raymond James said.

One significant factor that will continue putting pressure on the oil and gas industry is the declining number of petroleum engineers (PE) available, according to a report by Raymond James & Associates. The latest statistics from the Society of Petroleum Engineers puts the average age of PEs in the United States at 51 compared to 41 internationally. About 59% of PEs in the U.S. in 2003 were 45 or older (compared to 45% in 1997) and only 25% are under 36 (compared to 33% in 1997), Raymond James said.

One significant factor that will continue putting pressure on the oil and gas industry is the declining number of petroleum engineers (PE) available, according to a report by Raymond James & Associates. The latest statistics from the Society of Petroleum Engineers puts the average age of PEs in the United States at 51 compared to 41 internationally. About 59% of PEs in the U.S. in 2003 were 45 or older (compared to 45% in 1997) and only 25% are under 36 (compared to 33% in 1997), Raymond James said.

By coming in larger than most estimates and shattering the five-year average build, the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) estimated natural gas storage injection for the week ended Oct. 1 was an undeniably bearish 81 Bcf. But natural gas futures treated the report as a mere hiccup in Thursday morning trade.

Mired in a sea of bearish news, natural gas futures traders glommed on to the only available bullish factor Wednesday and rode a buying wave created by an early spike in the nearby crude oil market. The October natural gas contract notched a new $4.66 high for the week by 11 a.m. EDT. Modest position squaring was seen in the afternoon, which allowed prices to ease back to finish the session at $4.588, a 7.7-cent advance on the day.

Discovery Gas Transmission LLC has filed an application with FERC for an expansion that would include four new delivery points, increasing its delivery capability into the southern Louisiana pipeline grid by 150,000 Dth/d.

Five months after natural gas prices at the Henry Hub hit an all-time high of $22/Mcf and prices in the Northeast and Midwest topped $30/Mcf, FERC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in independent investigations found that the price aberrations in late February of this year were not caused by manipulation within the market, but rather were due to ordinary supply and demand factors.

Five months after natural gas prices at the Henry Hub hit an all-time high of $22/Mcf and prices in the Northeast and Midwest topped $30/Mcf, FERC on Wednesday concluded that the price aberrations in late February of this year were not caused by manipulation within the market, but rather were due to ordinary supply and demand factors.

The 40 cents-plus screen spike of the day before was the most frequently cited factor in Tuesday’s muscle-flexing cash market, but rising temperatures in the South, storage injection demand and the end of a Rockies transportation constraint also drew mention. Double-digit gains ruled the day at most points, accompanied by triple-digit rebounds for CIG, Cheyenne Hub, Questar and San Juan-Bondad. Significant nuclear outages, while little changed from before, also helped bolster gas prices.