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Permian shale gas pipeline to Mexico announced

ONOEK Partners announces plans to build pipeline to carry gas from the Permian shale basin in Texas to the Mexican market. UPI/Hamid Forotan/ISNA TULSA, Okla., April 2 (UPI) — A new 200-mile long pipeline will carry natural gas from a shale basin in Texas to an international connection at the Mexican border, ONEOK Partners announced. The company, which has headquarters in Oklahoma, said it formed a joint venture with Mexican gas transmission company Fermaca Infrastructure to build the Roadrunner pipeline that would transport gas from the Permian shale basin in Texas to the Mexican market. "We see Roadrunner as a gateway asset that will connect Mexico’s rapidly growing natural gas markets with U.S. producers in the developing Permian basin," ONEOK President and Chief Executive Officer Terry Spencer said in a statement. Roadrunner will extend 200 miles from ONEOK’s existing WesTex gas transmission system in Texas to an international connection […]

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Shale Crews Being Watched From Above as Emissions Levels Tested

There is an eye in the sky above U.S. shale oil and natural gas basins. Well, more like a nose. Through April, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration will be flying above the basins from North Dakota to Texas collecting air samples to document if drilling is adding to ground-level ozone, said Joost de Gouw , a research scientist at NOAA’s Earth Systems Research Lab in Boulder, Colorado. “We do that with a focus on air quality,” said de Gouw, also a senior scientist and fellow at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado at Boulder. “What are the reactive trace gases that are being released? How much methane is released from these activities?” Breathing ozone triggers a variety of health problems for children, the elderly and anyone with lung diseases such as asthma. It’s produced when sunlight mixes with nitrogen oxides and […]

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US Lower 48 gas production falls 1.4% month on month in January: EIA

Natural gas production in the Lower 48 states totaled 82.23 Bcf/d in January, 1.2 Bcf/d, or 1.4%, from revised December 2014 output of 83.43 Bcf/d, the Energy Information Administration said Tuesday. January’s figure constitutes a nearly 9.2% increase from the January 2014 production level of 75.33 Bcf/d, the EIA said in its monthly gross production report. The Other States category — which includes regions like Pennsylvania and North Dakota, with unconventional gas production from shale plays — had the largest volumetric decrease, at 2% or 69 MMcf/d. Texas — at 1.2% or 29 MMcf/d — showed the second-largest volumetric decrease, Production fell in both regions primarily because of freezing weather, well maintenance and natural production declines, EIA said. Article continues below… The Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico had the largest volumetric increase at 4.4%, or 15 MMcf/d, with several operators reporting shut-in wells returning to production, the EIA said. […]

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Chesapeake Energy Cuts Capital Budget, Production Outlook

Chesapeake Energy Corp. on Monday slashed its 2015 capital budget by more than 10% and sharply lowered its production outlook, becoming the latest energy company to do so in response to lower oil prices. Separately, billionaire investor Carl Icahn said he has boosted his stake in Chesapeake Energy to nearly 11% from nearly 10%. Mr. Icahn now owns 73.1 million Chesapeake shares, financial filings show, but he isn’t the company’s largest investor. The No. 1 spot still belongs to Southeastern Asset Management Inc., which has 76 million share, or an 11.4% stake. Oil producers have announced plans to curb billions of dollars in capital spending this year, aimed in part at stabilizing the recent declines in energy prices. The Oklahoma City-based oil and natural gas driller reduced its spending plans to between $3.5 billion and $4 billion, down from a previous range of $4 billion to $4.5 billion. The […]

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Are The Good Times Over For Growth In US Shale Gas?

US natural gas production could decline in 2016 for the first time in 10 years, driven by low oil prices after a decade of gangbusters growth from shale plays. March 17 (Reuters) – U.S. natural gas production could decline in 2016 for the first time in 10 years, driven by low oil prices after a decade of gangbusters growth from shale plays. While most analysts forecast gas production will continue growing year-over-year, albeit at a slower pace, a couple of outlier analysts believe low oil and gas prices will prompt drillers to cut spending enough to reduce gas production next year. Any talk of cutbacks is an early sign that low oil prices have slowed the U.S. shale gas boom that has revolutionized global markets and is expected to transform the nation into a net exporter of gas by the end of the decade. U.S. gas production has increased […]

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Canadian natural gas E&P outlook weak: analyst

Houston (Platts)–17Mar2015/412 pm EDT/2012 GMT The outlook for Canada’s natural gas exploration and production industry will remain weak over the next several years as boosted US production, high North American stock levels and low prices continue to weigh on the profitability of the industry, the Conference Board of Canada said Tuesday. The dramatic rise in US shale gas production in the last several years, particularly in the Appalachian Basin’s Marcellus and Utica Shale plays has led to a decreased demand for imports of gas from Canada, said Michael Shaw, a CBC economist and co-author of a board study. "I think the US natural gas industry is going to do quite well," Shaw said in an interview. "I think that it doing so well it is going to push out Canadian imports and really hurt the Canadian industry." Canadian gas production, which last year averaged about 14.7 Bcf/d, can be […]

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US EIA holds natural gas price projections steady

Washington (Platts)–10Mar2015/330 pm EDT/1930 GMT The US Energy Information Administration added just a few pennies to month-ago estimates for quarterly and annual US natural gas prices, pointing to relatively strong production, demand and storage numbers. In its latest short-term energy outlook, EIA put the new first-quarter Henry Hub average spot price target at $2.92/MMBtu, up 3 cents from last month’s forecast. The second-quarter average now figures to be $2.93/MMBtu, 2 cents more than the February report, the agency said. Similar hikes were predicted for this year, up 2 cents to $3.07/MMBtu, and 2016, up 1 cent to $3.48/MMBtu. EIA noted that the Henry Hub spot price averaged $2.87/MMBtu in February, a decline of 12 cents from January. Article continues below… Gas Daily offers the most detailed coverage of natural gas prices at interstate and intrastate pipeline and pooling points in major U.S. markets. Gas Daily keeps you informed about […]

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Changes in spot natural gas prices not soon reflected in US consumer prices: EIA

Houston (Platts)–9Mar2015/422 pm EDT/2022 GMT Because of the structure of the US natural gas market, changes in gas spot prices are not immediately felt by consumers at the end of the pipeline, the Energy Information Administration said Monday. "While natural gas wholesale spot prices have dropped to relatively low levels since the end of 2014, these low prices have not translated directly into lower retail prices for consumers who use natural gas to heat their homes and businesses," the EIA said on its website. "This short-term lag is largely due to the nature of utility regulation," EIA said. "Over longer periods, changes in natural gas spot and residential prices are much more closely correlated." EIA economist Katie Teller said Monday that the regulated nature of the gas market distinguishes it from the oil market, where a correlation between commodity prices and end-user prices is more clearly evident. Article continues […]

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Outlook for US industrial gas use trimmed

HOUSTON, Mar. 9 03/09/2015 Industrial demand for natural gas in the US will rise to 22.1 bcfd in 2020 from 19.8 bcfd in 2012, according to an updated analysis of projects in progress by the Center for Energy Economics (CEE), Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas at Austin. CEE maintains a database of projects in gas-intensive industries. Its first projection, in June last year, estimated industrial gas demand in 2020 of 23.5 bcfd in the reference case ( OGJ Online, July 7, 2014 ). The reference case includes projects completed, in front-end engineering and design, obtaining permits, under construction, or otherwise in progress. In the update , CEE sees fewer projects completed or in progress during the study period: 83 vs. 103. The biggest change, CEE says, is suspension of Sasol Ltd.’s plans for a gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant at Westlake, La. ( OGJ Online, Jan. 28, […]

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New European gas pipeline progressing

Sign up for our daily Energy Newsletter Planning consortium invites bidders for construction of new gas pipeline for the European market. (UPI/Shutterstock/tcly) ZUG, Switzerland, March 3 (UPI) — Planners behind a new natural gas pipeline for the European market said contractors are invited to bid on offshore construction work in the Adriatic Sea. "I am delighted to invite companies, including those from TAP’s host countries, to submit expressions of interest [for offshore work]," Knut Steinar Kvindesland, procurement director for the Trans Adriatic pipeline, said in a Tuesday statement. The TAP project consortium said it’s inviting companies to bid on the construction and supply of 65 miles of pipeline through the Adriatic Sea. The greatest depth of the planned pipeline section between the coasts of Albania and southern Italy is about one half mile. British energy company BP leads a project consortium tapping into natural gas off the coast of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple