Scorching

“Persistent, scorching heat” in the eastern and central United States made last month the fourth warmest July on record nationally and exacerbated drought conditions in the South, according to scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Climatic Data Center.

Weather related stories were big news in 2007, with heat and drought scorching the South and Southeast, wildfires burning their way through southern California and global warming worries worldwide, but perhaps the biggest weather story of the year was the Atlantic hurricane season that wasn’t.

Weather related stories were big news in 2007, with heat and drought scorching the South and Southeast, wildfires burning their way through southern California and global warming worries worldwide, but perhaps the biggest weather story of the year was the Atlantic hurricane season that wasn’t.

Scorching temperatures blanketing much of the U.S. last week resulted in another round of new power demand records being set. Electrical grid operators were able to meet the demand without any significant disruptions in service. Demand records tumbled like dominoes in the Northeast, the Midwest and Ontario.

Scorching southern heat, northwestern cold and mild temperatures in the Midwest and Northeast provided a wide variety of weather fundamentals for the cash market Tuesday, but prices climbed up another 20-50 cents largely in response to continued futures market gains, in particular a new all-time high for near-month crude oil futures.

Scorching summer heat, high oil prices and a weak hydropowersupply should lead to a significant increase in gas demand thisyear, according to a report issued last week by Friedman, Billings,Ramsey & Co., Inc. (FBR), a Virginia-based financialinstitution. Prices will probably increase throughout the summer,the firm predicted.

Scorching temperatures in the Northeast and Midwest made forexciting times in the power market last week, which also saw therelease of three portions of a nationwide power study that predictsmore excitement ahead.

Scorching temperatures in the Northeast and Midwest made for anexciting Monday in the power market on a day when a new studypredicts gas-fired generation development in the Northeast couldeasily cause gas demand in the sector to double by 2010. And evenwith the addition of Sable Island gas, the Northeast will need tocontinually add capacity to keep up with new generation additions.