Weeks

March natural gas is expected to open 3 cents higher Thursday morning at $2.86 as overnight weather forecasts edged colder and traders look beyond this week’s expected release of modest gas usage figures. Overnight oil markets fell hard.

January natural gas is set to open 2 cents higher Thursday morning at $3.73 as traders brace for what looks to be the first in a series of lean storage withdrawal reports, yet forecasters see a hint of cold by the end of the month. Overnight oil markets eased.

November natural gas is set to open 3 cents lower Wednesday morning at $3.68 as weather forecasts remain stubbornly locked in moderate mode and the technical environment continues to deteriorate. Overnight oil markets rose.

Natural gas prices for Wednesday physical delivery overall averaged a penny lower Tuesday despite some significant individual point gains in the Marcellus Shale. Elsewhere, most gains and losses were more or less equally dispersed, with most points trading a nickel on either side of unchanged.

North American exploration and production (E&P) companies will begin to unveil their second quarter results over the coming weeks, and while there aren’t expected to be any big surprises, analysts are hoping for details on natural gas market fundamentals — particularly in the Marcellus Shale — along with insight into emerging plays and more information on ethane rejection in natural gas liquids (NGL) plays.

North American exploration and production (E&P) companies will, over the next few weeks, unveil their earnings and operations results for the second quarter, but analysts aren’t expecting any big upside surprises. Instead, they hope for details on Marcellus Shale pricing, emerging sweet spots in the Utica Shale and details about wells in several big onshore basins.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. transferred nearly 1,100 oil and natural gas leases in and around an underground natural gas storage field in Columbiana County, OH, to Hilcorp Energy Co. in February.

Energy technology breakthroughs introduced in recent weeks are offering a peek at the future of the oil and gas industry, which is less H.G. Wells and more J.J. Abrams.

Energy technology breakthroughs introduced in recent weeks are offering a peek at the future of the oil and gas industry, which is less H.G. Wells and more J.J. Abrams.