Higher

Chevron Corp., the second largest U.S. oil and natural gas company, plans to allocate $32.7 billion for its capital and exploratory budget in 2012 — $2 billion higher than originally planned — mostly to fund upstream developments in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and two huge liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Australia.

Chevron Corp., the second largest U.S. oil and natural gas company, plans to allocate $32.7 billion for its capital and exploratory budget in 2012 — $2 billion higher than originally planned — mostly to fund upstream developments in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and two huge liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Australia.

December natural gas slipped lower in light trading Friday as traders continue to see little threat of higher prices in the near term but also see a dearth of sellers at present prices. At the close January had fallen 6.4 cents to $3.584 and February had retreated 6.2 cents to $3.613. January crude oil added 76 cents to $100.96/bbl.

Without the alternative of plentiful and cheap natural gas supplies and facing ever-higher petroleum prices, Berlin, Germany, the capital and city-state that serves as an icon for a nation still adjusting to reunification, has set a decidedly high goal for making itself Europe’s clean transportation capital. With the byproducts of natural gas being less viable here, Berlin envisions an electrified transportation system.

Although noting that industry never wants to be taxed, one of the largest players in the Marcellus Shale said it supports an impact fee in principle.

Encana Corp., one of the biggest natural gas producers in North America, is taking a walk on the oily side in 2012, redirecting a substantial portion of its 2012 budget to more profitable liquids-rich plays, CEO Randy Eresman said on Thursday.

Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) and El Paso Corp. have agreed to a friendly, $38 billion buyout of the latter that KMI CEO Richard D. Kinder said is largely predicated on the growing role of natural gas in North America’s energy supply picture, thanks in large part to production from shale gas plays around the continent.

Midstream natural gas processing services offered by MarkWest Liberty Midstream & Resources LLC in northwestern West Virginia continue to expand after the operator on Wednesday secured long-term agreements with pipeline subsidiaries of Magnum Hunter Resources Corp.

Sustained low natural gas prices and higher productivity may trigger a wave of industry consolidation similar to the mega mergers in the past decade, oil and gas experts told an audience at the recent IHS Herold 20th Annual Pacesetters Energy Conference in Stamford, CT.