Hope

Breaking a five-session series of lower-lows and lower-highs, the natural gas futures market turned tentatively higher Wednesday as continued and steady end-user buying was enough to meet fund and commercial selling. Modest gains were seen throughout the six-year strip at Nymex and the September contract eked out a 0.9-cent advance to close Wednesday at $5.382.

The biggest mining and processing complex in the Alberta oilsands, stung by the sustained strength in natural gas prices, has set out to pare down its reliance on gas. Gas is burning up 20% of Syncrude Canada’s operating budget and the value of the natural gas has reached the point where manufacturing it from oilsands bitumen could pay off, COO Jim Carter said.

The biggest mining and processing complex in the Alberta oilsands, stung by the sustained strength in natural gas prices, has set out to pare down its reliance on gas. Gas is burning up 20% of Syncrude Canada’s operating budget and the value of the natural gas has reached the point where manufacturing it from oilsands bitumen could pay off, COO Jim Carter said.

The United States’ expectations that liquefied natural gas (LNG) will be the “savior” for its gas supply problems may be too high, said a top official with American Electric Power (AEP) last Tuesday.

The United States’ expectations that liquefied natural gas (LNG) will be the “savior” for its gas supply problems may be too high, said a top official with American Electric Power (AEP) Tuesday.

More high-profile, FERC-regulated energy companies are continuing to report data on natural gas and power trades to index publishers — or plan to resume the practice soon — than those who have opted to discontinue the practice, according to a review of the filings on the Commission’s website.

Failing to find two additional votes, Republican-led proponents abandoned all hope late Monday of passing omnibus energy legislation in the Senate before adjourning, effectively stranding the bill in Congress until next year. GOP leaders vowed to pick up where they left off when they return in late January.

Hoping the third time will be a charm, natural gas producers have asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reconsider its latest decision rejecting Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp.’s bid to charge shippers firm-to-the-wellhead (FTW) transportation rates similar to those enjoyed by its pipeline competitors.

Hoping the third time will be a charm, natural gas producers have asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reconsider its latest decision rejecting Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp.’s bid to charge shippers firm-to-the-wellhead (FTW) transportation rates similar to those enjoyed by its pipeline competitors.