Medium

The pipeline facilities associated with a liquefied natural gas (LNG) deepwater port facility off the California coast in Santa Monica Bay face a medium-to-high probability of damage from earthquakes or other hazards in the next three decades, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

The pipeline facilities associated with a liquefied natural gas (LNG) deepwater port facility off the California coast in Santa Monica Bay face a medium-to-high probability of damage from earthquakes or other hazards in the next three decades, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

Former Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling began serving a 24-year and six-month prison sentence Wednesday at a medium-security federal prison in Minnesota after an appeals court turned down his request to remain free while he challenges his sentence.

Three utility gas buyers and a medium-sized California food processor swapped stories about planning and buying natural gas supplies, and the moral to their collective tales is: “it ain’t easy” from either sector. They made their comments as part of the final panel at the two-day LDC Forum: Rockies & West conference in Los Angeles.

A field-by-field analysis of global oil production and development indicates the world is not running out of energy in the near- or medium-term, with a boost in unconventional supplies — condensate, gas-to-liquids (GTL), natural gas liquids (NGL) and oil sands — expanding hydrocarbon capacity by as much as 25% over the next decade, according to a forecast by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA). In North America, U.S. capacity is expected to decline, but Canada will gain with the expansion of its unconventional sources.

Shrugging off medium-range forecasts calling for moderating temperatures, natural gas futures shot to new 22-month highs Wednesday as traders bid the market up in sympathy with stronger cash market prices and ahead of bullish storage data due out Thursday morning. Locals sold on the higher opening, but were then quickly forced to cover their sales as the market continued higher. New longs added to the buying frenzy and the prompt month gained 25 cents in 65 minutes to reach a $5.74 high at 11:30 a.m. EDT. February closed at $5.673, up 24 cents for the session.

Despite undeniably bearish medium-range weather forecasts, natural gas futures eased only slightly Friday as traders were hesitant to short the market for fear they would receive a bullish surprise Monday morning.

With a wide variety of storage estimates and medium-range weather forecasts, natural gas traders turned to technical factors Wednesday morning as they bid prices off recent lows and tested overhead resistance. The January contract managed a 19-cent rebound to $4.365 in just 90 minutes, but resistance in the mid-$4.30s held and prices then retraced lower. January finished at $4.298, up 7.2 cents for the day, but 6.7 cents off its $4.365 high for the session.

Two medium-size natural gas companies in the Southwest drew negative attention from the rating agencies last week, with Moody’s Investor Services reviewing Salt Lake City-based Questar Corp. for a possible downgrade and Standard & Poor’s assigning a negative outlook to Las Vegas, NV-based Southwest Gas Corp., noting its “strong, diverse and growing gas market” is offset by what S&P called “a highly political regulatory environment.”