Forecasts

A “supply shock” to the global energy markets being created by North American oil production will be as transformative to the market over the next five years as was the rise of Chinese demand in the last 15, forcing operators to overhaul global investment strategies and reshape the way oil is transported, stored and refined, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Tuesday.

Cash natural gas prices were unchanged on average in Friday for weekend and Monday trading. Northeast points managed gains as weather forecasts proved supportive, but Rocky Mountain points were steady to lower, and eastern points fell a couple of cents.

A standout performance in the Permian Basin increased oil production 23% year/year in the first three months of this year, but it’s not the only racehorse in the stable, Devon Energy Corp.’s top executive said Wednesday. Encouraging results from the emerging Mississippian Lime, for example, may provide the “next leg of growth.”

Armed with fresh benefits forecasts, Canadian domestic industry is reviving a generations-old crusade for a priority spot on energy policy agendas dominated by government support for export pipeline projects. Provincial and federal authorities are being told that enough current refining and petrochemical development opportunities have been identified in Alberta alone to add about C$6.4 billion to Canada’s annual gross domestic product and create 18,600 jobs.

Armed with fresh benefits forecasts, Canadian domestic industry is reviving a generations-old crusade for a priority spot on energy policy agendas dominated by government support for export pipeline projects.

Goldman Sachs on Friday joined two other analyst houses in boosting U.S. natural gas price forecasts, recommending that investors position themselves for “higher prices over the course of 2013.” The gas rig count also is predicted to surpass the 500 mark by the end of the year.

After ignoring forecasts of the coming winter storm back on Monday, traders of physical natural gas were forced to face the music on Wednesday as the same system that brought a white Christmas to portions of Texas was still depositing a wintry mix of sleet and snow from Oklahoma through the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

Propelled by its U.S. onshore crude oil and liquids output, EOG Resources Inc. reported better-than-expected profits for the third quarter. Investors in return sent the stock price up 4.37% on Tuesday.

National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV), the largest oilfield equipment supplier in North America, beat profit forecasts in 3Q2012 on solid demand in the deepwater and overseas, but the U.S. land drilling market has stalled, executives said Thursday.