NGI Mexico GPI

The growth prospects for natural gas exports and re-exports from the United States to Mexico over the coming years are strong for multiple reasons, a panel of experts said last Wednesday.

After 12 straight days of losses, natural gas futures bounced back in a big way Thursday as weather models shifted a bit colder for mid-October. Even after dipping into the red early in the session, the November Nymex gas futures contract settled 8.2 cents higher at $2.329/MMBtu. December rose 4.9 cents to $2.500.

Editor’s Note: NGI’s Mexico Gas Price Index, a leader tracking Mexico natural gas market reform, is offering the following column as part of a regular series on understanding this process, written by Eduardo Prud’homme.

Latin America’s oil production could see a small uptick in 2020 after four consecutive years of hefty declines, according to analysts at Raymond James & Associates Inc.

The losing streak for natural gas futures continued for a 12th straight day on Wednesday as the long-term weather pattern was relatively stable and traders set their sights on another potential triple-digit storage injection in upcoming government data. The Nymex November gas futures contract fell 3.6 cents to settle at $2.247/MMBtu. December slid 2.9 cents to $2.451.

With only pockets of demand across the United States, a significant drop in production on Tuesday did little to stop a slide in natural gas prices that has left the prompt month nearly a quarter lower than it was a week ago. The November Nymex gas futures contract fell another 4.7 cents to settle at $2.283/MMBtu. December dropped 2.4 cents to $2.48.

Mexico’s state power utility, Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), will issue tenders for six power plants — five of them fired by natural gas — “within the coming weeks.”

Forecasts showing weak weather-related demand by the second week of October, along with indications of further production growth, saw natural gas futures follow through to the downside Monday. After selling off late last week, the November Nymex contract fell another 7.4 cents to settle at $2.330/MMBtu. December settled at $2.504, off 6.1 cents.

Mexico’s private oil industry expects to reach crude oil production of 50,000 b/d by the end of this year, according to the Asociación Mexicana de Empresas de Hidrocarburos (AMEXHI).