Heat

Notching its first back-to-back price advance since mid-May, natural gas futures shot higher at the opening bell Monday as warmer-than-expected temperatures prompted commercial buyers to pressure the July contract through several layers of resistance. After the initial buying surge, however, the market quieted considerably, leaving prices to shuffle sideways throughout much of the session. July finished at $4.069, up 13.9 cents for the day.

This summer, warmer-than-normal temperatures along the East Coast “may re-test the power systems of New York and New England,” which last year had cooler-than-normal temperatures, said WSI Corp., which issued its end-of-May update on Monday. WSI’s forecast for a warm July and August, “especially in the major cities,” could “spell a strain for the already delicate capacity balances in critical areas like New York City.”

If the Energy Information Administration (EIA) follows through on plans to expand the confidential treatment of data it receives from electric power plants, the move could stifle efforts to promote electric competition in the United States and hamstring state and federal regulators from effectively fulfilling their oversight responsibilities.

If the Energy Information Administration (EIA) follows through on plans to expand the confidential treatment of data it receives from electric power plants, the move could stifle efforts to promote electric competition in the United States and hamstring state and federal regulators from effectively fulfilling their oversight responsibilities.

Sempra Energy and California regulators were put on the hotseat during a Senate hearing last week for their continued opposition to the new interstate pipeline and expansion projects that have been proposed for the natural gas-hungry California market.

Energy officials last week urged Congress to clear away the regulatory, legislative, tax and rate-related hurdles that are holding up construction of much-needed new power transmission and natural gas transportation facilities to serve the nation’s expanding energy appetite.

Sempra Energy and California regulators were put on the hotseat during a Senate hearing yesterday for their continued opposition to the new interstate pipeline and expansion projects that have been proposed for the natural gas-hungry California market.

The issue of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge(ANWR) in Alaska continues to heat up as state legislators continuein their attempts to pry open the restricted lands to natural gasand oil production. Members of the Alaska state legislature were inWashington, DC this week pleading there case for lease sales in thecontested area to begin in the near future, while trying to lay oldmyths to rest regarding the environmental impact.

The issue of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge(ANWR) in Alaska continues to heat up as state legislators continuein their attempts to pry open the restricted lands to natural gasand oil production. Members of the Alaska state legislature were inWashington, DC last week pleading their case for lease sales in thecontested area to begin in the near future, while trying to lay oldmyths to rest regarding the environmental impact.