Smidgen

Primarily due to some serious cooling load developing across the southern half of the U.S. (especially in the more heavily populated South) and abetted by a smidgen of chilly weather remaining in the forecast for the upper Northeast, the cash market was able to shrug off the previous day’s 2.9-cent decline by May futures and rise at a majority of points Wednesday.

Prices rallied by mostly small amounts at a majority of points Thursday, deriving support from the previous day’s 9.1-cent screen gain, a smidgen of heating load in the Rockies and areas near the Canadian border, and not much else. Moderate mid-October temperatures dominate much of the weather picture, and evidence continues to mount that storage injection capacity has grown very scarce.

With a smidgen of flatness mixed in here and there, prices were in rally mode Tuesday at all other points. Traders cautioned against reading too much into the new cash firmness, though, saying it seemed stronger than it was only in comparison to the holiday weekend’s softness. Also, a plunge just shy of 60 cents in natural gas futures Tuesday should turn cash quotes downward again Wednesday, they said.

Except for a smidgen of flatness at two Northwest Pipeline points, prices increased across the board Thursday as freezing temperatures — in some places approaching zero degrees — threatened to spread from the already frigid Midwest into the Northeast and to a limited extent into parts of the South.

Anadarko Petroleum has started production from three wells at its massive Marco Polo deepwater field in Green Canyon Block 608 in the Gulf of Mexico and expects the field to reach full production sometime in 2005. However, associated gas production from Marco Polo will be a small fraction of the total 300 MMcf/d of available platform capacity and much less than some analysts had previously predicted.

Anadarko Petroleum has started production from three wells at its massive Marco Polo deepwater field in Green Canyon Block 608 in the Gulf of Mexico and expects the field to reach full production sometime in 2005. However, associated gas production from Marco Polo will be a small fraction of the total 300 MMcf/d of available platform capacity and much less than some analysts had previously predicted.

A few flat points, mostly in the Gulf Coast, were conspicuous amid an overall softer market Thursday. Weak weather fundamentals in most areas and the associated lack of electric utility load were responsible for declines ranging from a little under a nickel to a little more than 20 cents, sources said.

With just a smidgen of mild softness in the mix, prices mostly ranged from flat to up about 15 cents Monday. A clear majority of gains were in single digits. Forecasts calling for chilly to cold but hardly severe weather in much of the U.S. and Canada this week — seasonable conditions, in other words — plus returning industrial load after the weekend were chiefly responsible for the modest rally.

Other than continuing consolidation of Northeast citygates and a smidgen of Pacific Northwest softness, the cash market saw a broad-based rally Tuesday. A soaring screen was an obvious positive influence on cash. But despite predictions last week of moderating weather by now, winter storm warnings for the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and eastern parts of the Midwest also played a part in the new burst of bullishness.