Rises

The shale gas industry contributed $76.8 billion to U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and supported more than 600,000 jobs in 2010, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg, according to a report issued Wednesday by the World Economic Forum (WEF) at IHS CERAWeek 2012 in Houston.

Production from the nation’s shale plays will grow to 12.2 Tcf in 2035, when it will be 47% of total U.S. production, up from 16% in 2009, according to the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) “Annual Energy Outlook 2011” (AEO2011), which was released Tuesday.

Alberta’s role as an international natural gas supply mainstay will shrink as aging wells are depleted and domestic consumption rises, the province’s Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) confirms.

Alberta’s role as an international natural gas supply mainstay will shrink as aging wells are depleted and domestic consumption rises, the province’s Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) confirms.

Continuing rises in heat levels in many market areas and the furtherance of screen support (the September natural gas contract extended into its seventh day a run-up that had begun on the previous Tuesday with the August contract set to expire the next day) kept cash prices on the rise Tuesday. Double-digit increases ruled at all points, with gains being measured from about 15 cents to half a dollar.

One of the current hotspots in the drive to bring on new gas supplies from the Rocky Mountains involves the Roan Plateau, which rises 3,000 feet northwest of the town of Rifle, CO, in the mineral-rich Uinta-Piceance Basin.

One of the current hotspots in the drive to bring on new gas supplies from the Rocky Mountains involves the Roan Plateau, which rises 3,000 feet northwest of the town of Rifle, CO, in the mineral-rich Uinta-Piceance Basin.

Gas futures prices soared 38.9 cents Friday to $5.108 and most cash prices rose 5-15 cents on average in response to preliminary indications of Gulf Coast region infrastructure damage from Hurricane Ivan, which as of Friday had forced the shut-in of a cumulative 23 Bcf of Gulf of Mexico gas production, according to the Minerals Management Service (MMS). Late Friday MMS reported four production platforms missing and presumed sunk, others damaged, three pipeline leaks and five drilling units adrift.

Notching a small drop-off from the previous year’s earnings, Oneok Inc. posted full-year 2003 net income of $112.5 million, or $1.22 per share, compared to $166.6 million, or $1.39 per share for 2002. Despite the fall-off in full-year earnings, net income for 4Q2003 jumped to $62.9 million, or 66 cents per diluted share, compared to $37.9 million, or 33 cents per diluted share during 4Q2002.