Infrastructure

Physical natural gas for Thursday delivery rose nearly across the country on Wednesday with the exception of eastern points, many of which posted stout double-digit losses. The NGI National Spot Gas Average fell a penny to $2.61.

Previously announced plans for expanding natural gas storage to serve expanded gas-fired power generation in the Pacific Northwest are moving along on schedule through the Oregon regulatory process, Portland-based NW Natural CEO Gregg Kantor said Tuesday during a quarterly earnings conference call.

FERC will conduct an environmental assessment (EA) of the potential impacts of the 1.1 Bcf/d San Elizario Crossing Project, a border project in Texas that would export natural gas to Mexico via the proposed intrastate Comanche Trail Pipeline.

The Obama administration unveiled the final version of its Clean Power Plan (CPP) on Monday, establishing for the first time federal limits on carbon emissions for the nation’s power plants, but apparently through the embrace of renewables, solar and wind power, rather than natural gas.

NextEra Energy Partners LP has agreed to pay $2.1 billion to buy NET Midstream LLC, giving it seven natural gas pipelines in Texas able to transport up to 3 Bcf/d and the potential to expand by another 1 Bcf/d.

TransCanada Corp. is digging in for a fight with its natural gas customers, calling their protest against costs that they blame on its Energy East plan to switch part of its Mainline into oil service a “patent and extreme” attack on its ability to manage the system.

Oneok Partners LP said it will expand capacity on its intrastate WesTex Transmission system by 260 MMcf/d as part of a broader plan to increase access to markets in Mexico for gas from West Texas and the Midcontinent.

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a transportation fuel option is back on the competitive race track, thanks to a part of the temporary (three-month) highway funding bill passed by the U.S. Senate Thursday, according to natural gas vehicle (NGV) advocates. The House-passed version had a similar provision.

PJM Interconnection has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with nine major gas pipeline companies that serve power generators in its footprint to work together to improve operational planning and address the growing interdependence of the electricity and gas markets.