Wind

As the mild winter continues to wind down, the natural gas industry — in looking for the next gas price indicators — will soon change focus to the summer cooling season and the Atlantic hurricane season.

Aside from a series of Pacific rainstorms and wind that buffeted all of the West Coast over the New Year’s holiday, Pacific Gas and Electric Company said late last Friday its residential natural gas utility customers could expect a 43.5% rate hike this month compared to January 2005. PG&G’s utility attributed Midwest and Northeast storms last month for “significantly” increasing wholesale natural gas prices, meaning its average retail gas bill would be about $156/month in January.

If the United States’ fuel mix included a “three-legged stool” of coal, natural gas and nuclear energy, with some reliance on wind, “it would really take the pressure off of natural gas prices,” Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX) said Tuesday.

Many energy industry insiders currently are forecasting that gas and oil prices will wind up being higher than current Wall Street estimates in 2005, analysts at Raymond James & Associates said based on an informal survey of energy companies at the recent North American Prospects Expo in Houston.

Many energy industry insiders currently are forecasting that gas and oil prices will wind up being higher than current Wall Street estimates in 2005, said analysts at Raymond James & Associates. Based on an informal survey of energy companies at the recent North American Prospects Expo in Houston, analysts at Raymond James said industry representatives believe that analysts currently are underestimating the 2005 performance of exploration and production companies.

Dynegy Inc. said Wednesday that it has agreed to exit four long-term natural gas transportation contracts as part of its plan to wind down its third-party marketing and trading business. The move will eliminate nearly $300 million of future fixed payment obligations, according to CEO Bruce Williamson.

Dynegy Inc. said Wednesday that it has agreed to exit four long-term natural gas transportation contracts as part of its plan to wind down its third-party marketing and trading business. The move will eliminate nearly $300 million of future fixed payment obligations, according to CEO Bruce Williamson.

In a move that has some observers suggesting the market may have shed its bear coat, natural gas futures prices climbed near key resistance Thursday morning on the news that a whopping 224 Bcf was pulled from storage last week. However, after coming fast out of the gate, the March contract disappointed bulls late in the session by failing to test key pivot points at $5.56 and $5.60. It closed at $5.451, up 19.1 cents on the day.

The cold north wind certainly helped blow out the price difference, or basis, this winter between the Gulf Coast producing region spot price points and the northeastern gas market, but pipeline capacity constraints to the market region have been known for several years. Unfortunately, there are few projects available that can provide any relief in the near term, according to consultants at Arlington, VA-based Energy and Environmental Analysis Inc. (EEA).