Hold

A Republican proposal to place the reforms under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act on hold until foreign regulators implement comparable regulations has come under fire at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

A Republican proposal to place the reforms under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act on hold until foreign regulators implement comparable regulations came under fire at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) should complete work on a supplemental generic environmental impact statement (SGEIS) on hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) by July 1 and the State Assembly should “reject all forms of obstructive legislation” that would delay natural gas development, according to letters sent to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and lawmakers by the The Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York (IOGA).

April natural gas futures managed to hold on to Thursday’s gains and closed slightly higher Friday, although traders are still thinking prices will eventually head back down to the mid $3 area. By the close of trading April futures had risen 1.0 cent to $4.168 and May had gained 1.2 cents to $4.246. April crude oil shed 35 cents to $101.07/bbl.

Success at extracting natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) from North American shales has turned the conversation about NGLs and the U.S. petrochemical industry around 180 degrees. The abundance of feedstock and fuel coming from shale plays has caught the attention of the petrochemical industry, but still more confidence is needed before the real investment can begin.

In a March 2 letter to Gov. Tom Corbett, a group of 80 Pennsylvania state representatives said they would hold up royalty revenues if the state leased additional forest land for natural gas development.

March natural gas futures inched higher Friday in a day of lackluster trading. In spite of the market’s ability to hold above $3.80, analysts are sharpening their pencils and counting the next move lower as they see a lack of weather-driven demand eroding prices. At the end of the day March was higher by eight-tenths of a penny to $3.876 and April added five-tenths of a cent to $3.906. March crude oil eased 16 cents to $86.20/bbl.

NOVA Gas Transmission Ltd. (NGTL), a unit of TransCanada Corp., and ATCO Pipelines will hold meetings Feb. 28 in Edmonton and March 1 in Calgary to update customers on the ATCO/NGTL integration initiative. In September 2008 the companies said they had reached an agreement to provide seamless gas transmission service in Alberta (see Daily GPI, Sept. 10, 2008). The meetings are intended to provide an update on the initiative’s progress; review NGTL service and attributes; review ATCO/NGTL contract administration, transition and election requirements; and address shipper questions or concerns. Those planning to attend either meeting should RSVP to Laurie Summy at (403) 920-5571, or at laurie_summy@transcanada.com by Feb. 23.

Results of core and petrophysical analyses from a well on Quebec’s Anticosti Island are “encouraging,” according to Corridor Resources Inc. and Petrolia Inc., which hold leases covering more than 1.5 million acres on the island.