Necessarily

The market demonstrated once again Thursday that widespread severe cold is not necessarily a gas price booster. Prices dropped at nearly all points as two prior days of major futures weakness took their toll on the cash market. Increased use of storage was still believed to be supplanting potential new purchases of spot gas, and while frigid weather will last into the weekend in northern market areas, it would be less cold than before in many sections.

Successful energy companies in the years to come will be the ones that meet consumers’ needs — not necessarily those that produce the most oil and natural gas or electricity, a leading industry consultant said last week.

In the future, successful energy companies will be the ones that meet consumers’ needs — not necessarily those that produce the most oil and natural gas or electricity, a leading industry consultant said Wednesday.

Marathon Oil Co., not long separated from USX Corp., said Thursday bigger isn’t necessarily better, and plans to gain shareholder value by defining unique niches that promote growth. To that end, Marathon plans to host a trade auction this spring to swap its entire portfolio of oil and gas properties in the San Juan Basin, southwestern Wyoming, south-central and eastern Texas and Louisiana for properties in the Powder River and Permian basins.

While U.S. natural gas resources appear virtually unlimited,that doesn’t necessarily mean the industry can ramp up productionto meet the oft-heralded 30 Tcf a year market projected to developover the next 15 to 20 years, according to a Chevron U.S.A.exploration manager.

While U.S. natural gas resources appear virtually unlimited,that doesn’t necessarily mean industry can ramp up production tomeet the oft-heralded 30 Tcf a year market projected to developover the next 15 to 20 years, according to a Chevron U.S.A.exploration manager.

Oftentimes when the natural gas futures contract moves in adirection that fundamentals do not necessarily dictate, commercialtraders are left shaking their heads and cursing those speculators”who know nothing about how the physical market works.” But as thepanelists at yesterday’s GasMart Power’98 session titled StirringUp the Natural Gas Futures Market with Locals & Funds stressed,speculative funds are here to stay, so perhaps commercials would bewell served to learn how they think.