Pace

Expedited permitting to carry out repairs on natural gas pipelines is the biggest challenge facing pipe operators as they try to comply with the Office of Pipeline Safety’s (OPS) integrity management rule, an industry official representing gas distributors and municipal utilities told Senate lawmakers Tuesday.

The record pace of drilling in Canada has finally started to pay off. Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) reported that natural gas exports to the United States through February of this year were up 1.3% to 626.5 Bcf, or about 10.44 Bcf/d, compared to 618.7 Bcf, or 10.31 Bcf/d, over the same period in 2003. The NEB said the biggest volume increase was to the California market where exports jumped 23%. Volumes to the Pacific Northwest rose 15%. Exports to the Northeast and Midwest fell by 7% and 0.8%, respectively. Gas exports in the month of February totaled 303.7 Bcf compared to 291.7 Bcf in February 2003. During 2003, exports fell to 3.5 Tcf, their lowest level since 1999 when exports were 3.37 Tcf. The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects gross pipeline imports to fall this year to 3.28 Tcf from 3.42 Tcf in 2003. Meanwhile, Lehman Brothers analyst Thomas Driscoll said on Tuesday that he expects Canadian gas production to rise 1.2% this year to 16.6 Bcf/d. Driscoll said first quarter Canadian production was flat at 16.5 Bcf/d based on a survey of 14 major gas producers.

The record pace of drilling in Canada has finally started to pay off. Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) reported that natural gas exports to the United States through February of this year were up 1.3% to 626.5 Bcf, or about 10.44 Bcf/d, compared to 618.7 Bcf, or 10.31 Bcf/d, over the same period in 2003.

Accelerating the pace of losses notched in Thursday’s disappointing (for bulls) trading session, the natural gas futures market tumbled to new two-month lows Friday as light non-commercial selling went nearly unchecked by either local traders or commercial accounts.

After a one-day breather Friday, the natural gas futures market continued its blistering pace of advance Monday as fund short-covering was augmented by private forecasts suggesting the final 10 days of the month will see another blast of Arctic air. An increase in Nymex margin requirements was also seen as a contributing factor, intensifying the urgency for shorts to cover their positions.

After reaching a record pace for drilling and a high success rate, Canadian Natural Resources posted record net earnings of C$428 million (C$3.19 per common share) for the first quarter 2003, compared with C$99 million (C$0.81 per common share) for the first quarter of 2002 and C$209 million (C$1.56 per common share) in the previous quarter.

Soaring oil and gas sales pushed two of North America’s largest independents, Devon Energy Corp. and EnCana Corp., to record first quarter earnings. Devon’s net earnings were $436 million ($2.76 a share), compared with $62 million (41 cents) a year ago. Meanwhile, Calgary-based EnCana earned C$1.246 billion (C$2.57), versus C$163 million (34 cents) for the same period of 2002.

Soaring oil and gas sales pushed two of North America’s largest independents, Devon Energy Corp. and EnCana Corp., to record first quarter earnings. Devon’s net earnings were $436 million ($2.76 a share), compared with $62 million (41 cents) a year ago. Meanwhile, Calgary-based EnCana earned C$1.246 billion (C$2.57), versus C$163 million (34 cents) for the same period of 2002.

Traditional natural gas supplies will not keep pace with demand in the long term, and more U.S. companies likely will turn to the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market in the years to come, a Northeast utility executive said in Houston Tuesday.