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The natural gas industry was not quite ready to switch over to the storage injection season as proved by the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Thursday morning report that 29 Bcf was removed from underground stocks for the week ended March 28. Despite the withdrawal, natural gas futures traders — sticking to the recent trend of flip-flopping gains and losses (see Daily GPI, April 3) — watched the May contract finish Thursday at $9.417, down 41.5 cents from Wednesday’s close.

Coming off of yet another hurricane season that never quite lived up to the forecasts for overly active storm development, weather forecasters at Colorado State University (CSU) late last week predicted that the Gulf of Mexico and other areas surrounding the Atlantic Ocean’s storm breeding grounds can expect a somewhat above-average 2008 hurricane season.

Coming off of yet another hurricane season that never quite lived up to the forecasts for overly active storm development, weather forecasters at Colorado State University (CSU) late last week predicted that the Gulf of Mexico and other areas surrounding the Atlantic Ocean’s storm breeding grounds can expect a somewhat above-average 2008 hurricane season.

Higher costs and a sustained drop in natural gas prices appear likely to continue into 2008, forcing some of the largest producers in Western Canada to cut their capital budgets and leading more of the smaller gas-heavy independents to sell assets or consolidate, energy executives said at a conference in Toronto.

The Arkoma Basin has become a “tale of two shales” — it’s not quite the best of times yet, but it’s certainly not the worst. By 2010, natural gas volumes from the Fayetteville and Woodford shales may approach 970 MMcfe/d, a significant jump from this year’s expectation of 469 MMcfe/d.

The Arkoma Basin has become a “tale of two shales” — it’s not quite the best of times yet, but it’s certainly not the worst. By 2010, natural gas volumes from the Fayetteville and Woodford shales may approach 970 MMcfe/d, a significant jump from this year’s expectation of 469 MMcfe/d.

Tuesday’s cash trading was remarkably similar to that on Monday: mixed price movement with quite a bit of flatness and rising points commanding a bare majority over falling ones. A return of chilly weather in northern market areas was the chief instigator of the market’s continuing overall modest firmness.

It was close to a tie, but losses appeared to slightly outweigh gains in a decidedly mixed cash market Tuesday. There were quite a few flat points also. Moderate eastern weather and bearish storage issues continued to dog the market, while prices got some support from cold and snowy conditions in parts of the West and central U.S. and a nickel rise in February futures on the preceding Friday.

The U.S. power system managed the second hottest July in 100 years quite well this year, but the slow-down in power plant construction and the length of time required to permit the large number of proposed coal-fired power plants could put the system at risk in a few years, according to a new report by energy consulting firm Wood Mackenzie.