Sponge

The closest thing to a sponge that would soak up some of the market’s excess natural gas is more gas-fired power generating capacity. And according to Bentek Energy LLC, producers have something to look forward to in that regard.

If one believes the shale gas story — that North America is swimming in the stuff — then it’s obvious that the market needs a sponge to soak up the supply. Gas-fired power generation is easily the largest and most likely, but its absorbency will be dictated by constraints on coal-fired power emissions that have yet to be worked out, let alone understood.