Likely

Likely in anticipation of a holiday weekend that is often the lowest-demand period of the year for many utilities and end-users, prices fell across the board Thursday. The previous day’s fall of 3.9 cents by August futures was an additional, albeit minor, bearish factor for the cash market.

While no named storms have formed during the first three weeks of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season, it is still likely to produce 15 named storms, including eight hurricanes, four of them Category Three or greater — the same as the 1995-2010 average — according to forecasters at Andover, MA-based WSI Corp.

Natural gas demand is expected to lag behind available gas supplies during the summer months, which will likely keep gas prices at a stable level during the period, according to the “Summer Outlook” issued by the Natural Gas Supply Association of America (NGSA) last Wednesday.

Shale gas prices are likely to remain “reasonable” for years to come, despite possible upward pressure from hydraulic fracturing (fracking) issues, according to more than 700 executives and managers from utilities and other industry organizations who participated in a recent survey conducted by Black & Veatch.

As natural gas pipelines serving traditional long-line routes to market in North America have begun filing for new rate hikes in an attempt to make up for the load lost to locally delivered shale gas, fundamental market changes associated with the rate increases could affect basis differentials going forward, according to a new report from Evergreen, CO-based Bentek Energy.

Legislation that would open leasing on all property owned by the state government — including state parks — to oil and gas companies is advancing through the Ohio General Assembly and is expected to pass.

Companies that aim to export domestic shale gas can expect to face a tough spot market, according to Terry Engelder, the Penn State University geosciences professor who helped prove the value of the Marcellus Shale.

U.S. natural gas production keeps climbing, and for that to continue burnertip action needs to step up, and it likely will, a Bentek Energy LLC executive told attendees at GasMart 2011 in Chicago last week.

U.S. natural gas production keeps climbing, and for that to continue burnertip action needs to step up, and it likely will, a Bentek Energy LLC executive told attendees at GasMart 2011 in Chicago on Wednesday.