Natural

Cooler forecast trends over the weekend kept the pressure on natural gas futures prices early Monday. The expiring August Nymex futures contract was trading 0.8 cents lower at $2.161/MMBtu shortly after 8:30 a.m. ET.

Forecasts advertising early season cooling demand in the Southeast weren’t enough to impress natural gas futures traders early Monday. The June Nymex contract was off 1.8 cents to $2.562/MMBtu as of 8:30 a.m. ET.

October natural gas futures were set to open Thursday about 1.2 cents higher at around $2.875/MMBtu, bolstered by warmer overnight weather trends as the market looks ahead to the release of today’s government storage report.

September natural gas futures were set to open Wednesday close to even at around $2.971/MMBtu, holding onto most of the prior day’s gains as hot weather and storage deficits remain supportive for prices.

Permian Basin midstream operator Oryx Midstream Services II LLC’s subsidiaries have extended a joint open season through Aug. 31 to gauge support for a crude oil gathering and trunkline system to carry supply from the Delaware sub-basin. The open season was to have concluded on Thursday (Aug. 9). For information contact Oryx’s Carlos Mata, senior vice president of business development, at (432) 253-7756.

April natural gas was set to open Wednesday about 4 cents lower at around $2.748 as overnight weather models trended milder, particularly in the forecast for late March.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is proposing changes to its Monthly Crude Oil and Lease Condensate, and Natural Gas Production Report, including publishing separate estimates for Alabama, Federal Offshore Pacific, Michigan, Mississippi and Virginia. Data from those states/area would no longer be included in the “Other States” category, EIA said in a notice published on Oct. 2 in the Federal Register. EIA would publish data for a total of 21 states/areas and “Other States,” which would include 14 states. EIA is seeking public comment on the proposed changes through Nov. 1. Comments should be sent to DOE Desk Officer, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Bldg., Room 10102, 735 17th St. NW, Washington, DC, 20503, or by e-mail to Chad_S_Whiteman@omb.eop.gov.

October natural gas is expected to open 9 cents higher Monday morning as weather forecasts call for significant warmth over key Midwest markets. Overnight oil markets fell.

July natural gas is expected to open 5 cents higher Monday morning at $2.98 as traders study longer-directed weather forecasts. Overnight oil markets rose.