New England

FERC last week approved new reliability standards to enhance grid reliability during extreme weather events such as Winter Storm Uri in February 2021.  Two years after Uri’s rampage across the U.S. South, during which hundreds died from hypothermia following blackouts that affected millions, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission implemented enhanced cold weather preparedness plans, generator…

New England paid some of the highest natural gas prices on record last year amid pipeline constraints and stronger competition for LNG. Daily spot natural gas prices at Algonquin Citygate near Boston peaked last year at $34.900/MMBtu in December, according to NGI data, and were higher than benchmarks in both Asia and Europe at that…

BP plc reported it has achieved first gas from its offshore Cassia C development, its latest milestone in the effort to sustain natural gas flows and LNG cargoes from Trinidad and Tobago. The firm disclosed Tuesday it had transported ashore its first gas volumes from its latest development in the Greater Cassia area more than…

Huge natural gas forward basis moves continued for pipeline capacity-starved New England, but hefty premiums also shifted further west during the short Nov. 17-21 period, NGI’s Forward Look data showed. With several inches of snow falling and a stormy outlook ahead, the Rockies and Pacific Northwest posted sharply higher forward prices. Northwest Sumas December basis…

Natural gas forward prices continued to strengthen during the Nov. 9-16 period amid a continuation of colder-than-normal temperatures ahead of the core of winter, according to NGI’s Forward Look. Gains (again) were most pronounced in New England, where rising heating demand and pipeline constraints combined to drive hefty premiums compared to the rest of the…

Natural gas transporters are urging the Biden administration to pursue a long-term solution to New England’s energy security issues ahead of a potentially “perilous” winter season. In a letter to the White House on Monday, Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) CEO Amy Andryszak called on the president to address “the root cause of…

The CEO for New England’s largest utility, Eversource Energy, called on President Biden in a letter last week to enact federal emergency orders to “swiftly address the growing concerns” of New England’s access, or lack thereof, to natural gas this winter heating season.  New England, which lacks the natural gas pipeline infrastructure to fill out…

FERC is projecting elevated U.S. natural gas prices for the 2022-2023 winter, despite mild weather forecasts for most of the country and steadily rising domestic production. “Natural gas prices for the upcoming winter are expected to remain higher than recent years at major trading hubs across the U.S.,” Federal Energy Regulatory Commission staff said in…

Thirteen Massachusetts-based municipal public power entities have agreed to purchase more than 110 GWh/year of electricity from two hydroelectric power plants in Connecticut owned by FirstLight Power Resources Inc. The offtaker under the power purchase agreement (PPA) is Energy New England (ENE), a wholesale risk management and energy trading organization serving municipal utilities in New…