Maximum

Nonbinding interest in a recently completed open season may cause the sponsors of a proposed new intrastate transmission pipeline in Oregon to increase its maximum capacity from 1 Bcf/d to 1.5 Bcf/d, according to a senior executive at PG&E Corp. speaking Thursday on a first quarter earnings conference call.

El Paso said conditions had improved sufficiently to allow it to end Thursday the Strained Operating Condition that was declared Tuesday. “Linepack has stabilized and maximum withdrawals from Washington Ranch storage facility are no longer required to support system operations,” the pipeline said.

With its linepack projected to bump up against maximum target levels in the next couple of days, Pacific Gas & Electric issued a customer-specific OFO for Thursday.

Despite the current surplus of gas in storage and some predictions that working gas levels could end the injection season at maximum capacity near 3.7 Tcf, Chris McGill, managing director of policy analysis at the American Gas Association (AGA), warned gas buyers not to bet on it.

Despite the current surplus of gas in storage and some predictions that working gas levels could end the injection season at maximum capacity near 3.7 Tcf, Chris McGill, managing director of policy analysis at the American Gas Association (AGA), warned gas buyers not to bet on it.

Spot prices at the Henry Hub could drop below $4/MMBtu near the end of the injection season as many gas storage fields could reach their maximum capacity, Energy and Environmental Analysis Inc. (EEA) said Tuesday, echoing the predictions of some analysts and regulators but contrasting with recent comments from analysts at Raymond James & Associates (see Daily GPI, June 20). However, EEA also said gas prices are likely to “rebound significantly as soon as winter heating load develops.”

The Department of Transportation (DOT) has scheduled a public meeting Tuesday in Reston, VA, to explore the possibility of raising the maximum allowable operating pressure (MAOP) for certain natural gas pipelines — a move that would allow more gas to flow through the pipelines and potentially reduce the need for new construction in some cases.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) has scheduled a public meeting next Tuesday in Reston, VA, to explore the possibility of raising the maximum allowable operating pressure (MAOP) for certain natural gas pipelines — a move that would allow more gas to flow through the pipelines and potentially reduce the need for new construction in some cases.

Canadian producers telegraphed intentions to keep on drilling for natural gas at maximum speed by stockpiling targets at hectic Crown mineral rights auctions in Alberta and British Columbia. Alberta netted a record C$2.3 billion (US$2 billion) on oil and gas rights sales in 2005, prompting forecasts that field activity will stay strong potentially for years to come.