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EOG Resources Inc. is “indifferent” to growing natural gas volumes in North America as long as prices hover around $4, and instead will continue to focus on oil and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the Eagle Ford Shale, the Houston-based company said Wednesday.

With a record amount of natural gas in storage and “resilient” domestic gas production, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects spot prices to hover in the $5/Mcf range during the winter season, “even as space-heating demand increases and economic conditions improve.” The agency also anticipates that gas consumption by power generators will drop next year due to potentially higher gas prices and the addition of new coal-fired generation capacity.

Despite the fact that the number of rigs currently searching for natural gas in the United States continues to decline as prices continue to hover under $4/MMBtu, supply continues to remain healthy for the time being. According to a Baker Hughes report Friday, another eight gas rigs were laid down during the week ending May 29.

Despite the fact that the number of rigs currently searching for natural gas in the United States continues to decline as prices continue to hover under $4/MMBtu, supply continues to remain healthy for the time being. According to a Baker Hughes report Friday, another 17 gas rigs were laid down during the week ending May 22.

As natural gas values continue to hover below six-year lows, Massachusetts-based investor-owned electric and gas utility NSTAR informed its natural gas customers this week that they likely will be seeing a 70% decrease in prices starting in May.

Front-month natural gas futures continued to hover around its five-and-a-half-dollar purgatory on Wednesday as the bears appear to be running out of road while the bulls lack the fuel for a sustained push higher. January natural gas on the day appeared to make a run at the upside with a $5.850 high and the downside with a $5.486 low before closing at $5.619, down 13.2 cents from Tuesday.

While $2/MMBtu natural gas prices in the United States are a thing of the past as prices currently hover in the $5-8/MMBtu range, the higher price level is in response to supply and demand fundamentals, not a lack of market transparency, according to the Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA).

While $2/MMBtu natural gas prices in the United States are a thing of the past as prices currently hover in the $5-8/MMBtu range, the higher price level is in response to supply and demand fundamentals, not a lack of market transparency, according to the Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA).

Standard and Poor’s Rating Service explained the reasons for assigning a “B” rating and negative outlook on both El Paso Corp. and The Williams Cos. Inc. in a new report released on Friday. The two companies have “consistently underperformed in terms of meeting financial target expectations” mainly because of the poor performance of their marketing and trading divisions, which despite being either significantly reduced, as in Williams’ case, or on the fast track toward being completely dissolved, as in El Paso’s case, could continue to be a draw on cash, S&P said.