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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved Gulfstream Natural Gas System LLC’s proposal for a mostly compression expansion of its system in the West-Central portion of Florida. In its Phase V Expansion Project the pipeline plans to add a 20,500 hp compressor unit and associated facilities in Manatee County, FL, which would increase mainline capacity by 35,000 Dth/d. Gulfstream said it has executed a 25-year firm service agreement with Florida Power Corp. for all of the capacity to serve the utility’s Hines Generating Station in Polk County, FL. Gulfstream pegged the cost of the Phase V facilities at $50.8 million. The Commission approved Gulfstream’s request for a predetermination supporting rolled-in rate treatment for the costs of the expansion in its next Section 4 rate case, absent a material change in circumstances.

It was mostly a question of “when,” not “if,” ExxonMobil Corp. would make a mega purchase of some hot oil or natural gas property worldwide. But the news last Monday that it would buy onshore natural gas producer XTO Energy Inc. was a big surprise to a lot of energy analysts. Now some are wondering where the next big transaction in the gas patch will be.

It was mostly a question of “when,” not “if,” ExxonMobil Corp. would make a mega purchase of some hot oil or natural gas property worldwide. But the news Monday that it would buy onshore natural gas producer XTO Energy Inc. was a big surprise to a lot of energy analysts and now some are wondering where the next big transaction will be.

Following major spikes everywhere to open the trading week, the market was mixed Tuesday but dominated by mostly mild softness. A 34.4-cent giveback by December futures Monday proved more influential to cash traders than the prospects of increasing cold weather later this week.

Despite a mid-term outlook for mostly moderate temperatures in nearly all regions and warnings of excess supplies at some locations in the West, cash prices were higher at most points Monday. A return of freezing lows in the Rockies after a relatively mild weekend, along with temperatures dipping into the 30s in both the Northeast and Midwest, got a modest amount of support from industrial demand returning from its typical weekend hiatus in boosting cash quotes.

Prices resumed a mostly moderate climb Monday after having last week’s four-day series of spikes interrupted Friday. Although cold weather was easing a bit after setting date-specific records for low temperatures over the weekend, there was still quite a bit of chill in northern forecasts to keep heating load fairly strong.

What had been only a moderately soft market Wednesday with mostly single-digit losses and some western gains tossed into the mix appeared to be turning into a near-rout Thursday as fairly large double-digit losses extended across the board. A continuing dearth of weather-based demand — in either the form of cooling or heating — was abetted by a prior-day futures decline of 3.4 cents in quashing cash quotes.

Prices continued to sink at a large majority of points Tuesday, but mostly by small amounts, as overall weather fundamentals and prior-day futures guidance stayed weak for the cash market. The impending scarcity of storage injection options was another bearish influence.

A crowd of about 2,000, mostly landowners, gathered in Bainbridge, NY, recently to urge state and federal policymakers to allow the use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracing) techniques to develop natural gas in the state’s Marcellus and Ithaca shale formations.