Unlikely

ConocoPhillips CEO Jim Mulva said it’s unlikely the company will pursue any significant acquisitions or consider any merger opportunities for the foreseeable future.

While small increases in energy prices are expected, spikes to last year’s record high levels are unlikely, according to a new survey of treasury and finance professionals conducted last week at the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) annual conference.

While small increases in energy prices are expected, spikes to last year’s record high levels are unlikely, according to a new survey of treasury and finance professionals conducted Monday at the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) annual conference.

Barring a lot of hurricane activity in the Gulf of Mexico this year, it’s unlikely that natural gas prices will rise to the level of 2005 prices, Virginia-based Energy and Environmental Analysis Inc. (EEA) said Wednesday. EEA is forecasting average 2006 Henry Hub prices at around $6.90/MMBtu, or $1.90 lower than the $8.80 average in 2005, with a “significant” rise due in 2007 and 2008.

Summer officially began early Tuesday morning, and it’s highly unlikely that many people will be mistaking it for any other seasons. Actually it will be feeling more like typical midsummer heat throughout much of the U.S. Tuesday, and the big boost in power generation load, aided and abetted by residual screen strength from late last week, sent cash prices higher by double-digit amounts in most cases Monday.

It may have seemed unlikely that the Northeast would repeat the price fireworks of last Friday and Tuesday when Transco Zone 6-New York City topped out at $30 in leading multi-dollar gains at area citygates. Well, not only were Northeast numbers skyrocketing again Thursday, but they surpassed the earlier super-bullishness.

As sources had predicted Friday, a sharp rebound from huge weekend price plunges was in store for Monday. Sure enough, all points rallied Monday by amounts ranging from about 40 cents to more than $1.30, with nearly all of the gains of a dollar or more being recorded in the West.

As sources had predicted Friday, a sharp rebound from huge weekend price plunges was in store for Monday. Sure enough, all points rallied Monday by amounts ranging from about 40 cents to more than $1.30, with nearly all of the gains of a dollar or more being recorded in the West.

The consensus Tuesday had seemed to be that a new cash price rally was unlikely this week, if not through the end of the month, because of a trio of bearish influences: mild weather in most regions, great comfort with current storage levels, and the lack of any tropical storm activity that could possibly disrupt offshore production.