Pressures

Houston-based Fayetteville Shale pioneer Southwestern Energy Co. took a hit last quarter from low natural gas prices in the form of a large ceiling test impairment and lower operating income.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) on Monday filed a final report on its reclassification of its pipelines, but it said validating operating pressures will take more time. As result of the latest effort, nearly 10% of the utility’s natural gas transmission pipelines (544 miles, or 2,837 segments) had classifications changed.

Despite pressures from lower natural gas prices, solar energy — both utility-scale and distributed generation projects — continues to be an attractive investment, according to senior executives with Sempra Energy and NRG Energy Inc. who talked bullishly about the renewable energy resource on separate earnings conference calls on Tuesday.

Citing unplanned engine maintenance at Buttermilk Compressor Station in its Southwest Gathering Area, ANR said based on high line pressures and current operating conditions it was required to reduce receipt nominations at its CenterPoint interconnect in the area to zero Tuesday through Dec. 10.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) will file Wednesday with California regulators its final agreement to pursue an accelerated verification of operating pressures for up to 700 miles of transmission pipeline in heavily populated areas, along with paying a $3 million fine and agreeing to pay an additional $3 million in fines if it fails to meet the new deadlines for completing the pressure testing.

Utah and PacifiCorp’s Rocky Mountain Power utility struggle with climate change pressures that bump up against the state’s cheap source of electricity from abundant coal-fired generation. The utility thinks there is room to accommodate both, and state officials have not proposed new restrictions on existing generators.

Yielding to pressures from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the $4.4 billion United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) announced last Wednesday it would reduce its holdings of natural gas futures contracts, and said it may not pursue its plans to expand.

Rising pipeline and gathering system pressures over the next few months “will likely result in involuntary natural gas production curtailments across the industry,” Chesapeake Energy Corp. officials said last week.

Rising pipeline and gathering system pressures over the next few months “will likely result in involuntary natural gas production curtailments across the industry,” Chesapeake Energy Corp. officials said Thursday.