Pointing

Finger pointing has begun among the federal, state and industry stakeholders in the ongoing effort to determine whether natural gas drilling, and specifically hydraulic fracturing (fracking), near Pavillion, WY, has contaminated groundwater.

Pointing to international investment house failures that rebounded to their U.S. affiliates and ultimately the American taxpayer, Chairman Gary Gensler of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said those foreign-based affiliates should come under the same market reforms being installed in the United States.

A growing number of producers are shying away from dry gas drilling and instead pointing their drillbits at liquids-rich and oil targets, but drillers are “soldiering on” despite stubbornly low natural gas prices and “are set to do what they do best: drill,” according to energy analysts with Barclays Capital Markets.

A growing number of producers are shying away from dry gas drilling and instead pointing their drill bits at liquids-rich and oil targets, but drillers are “soldiering on” despite stubbornly low natural gas prices and “are set to do what they do best: drill,” according to energy analysts with Barclays Capital Markets.

Early indicators are pointing toward significant opportunities for coal-to-natural gas switching in the electric generation sector this year with gas prices estimated to stay in the $2.50-3.00/Mcf range, according to recent analyst notes. This situation will be particularly ripe in the East.

Pointing the finger of blame squarely on the operator and regulators, federal safety officials at a meeting of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) last Tuesday in Washington, DC, described last September’s fatal San Bruno, CA, natural gas transmission pipeline rupture and explosion as preventable and resulting from systemic “flawed” pipeline operations and regulatory oversight.

Pointing out that they have not sought authorization to export liquefied natural gas (LNG), Jordan Cove Energy Project LP and the associated Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline have called on FERC to deny a third-party request that the agency either conduct a supplemental environmental analysis of the projects or terminate their certificates.

With all forecasts pointing to continued strong growth in energy demand in the coming years, Chevron Corp. is investing in a “world-class queue of projects,” with most of the money now gas-focused, company executives said Wednesday.

The consensus forecast for the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season is pointing increasingly towards an unusually active season, with Andover, MA-based WSI Corp. now calling for 18 named storms, including 10 hurricanes, five of them intense (Category Three or greater). The hurricane season, which officially begins Tuesday (June 1), will be “hyperactive” with a magnified threat to the Northeast United States, the forecaster said.