Historical Comparisons Stocks billion cubic feet (Bcf) Year ago (02/28/13) 5-Year average (2009-2013) Region 02/28/14 02/21/14 net change implied flow (Bcf) % change (Bcf) % change East 525 607 -82 -82 933 -43.7 895 -41.3 West 190 217 -27 -27 346 -45.1 304 -37.5 Producing 481 524 -43 -43 825 -41.7 754 -36.2 Salt 88 96 -8 -8 193 -54.4 131 -32.8 Nonsalt 393 428 -35 -35 […]
WASHINGTON, March 6 (UPI) — Ukraine and Eastern European allies could benefit for the U.S. shale gas revolution, but bureaucracy is in the way, the American Petroleum Institute said. API Upstream Director Erik Milito said exporting more liquefied natural gas from the United States could help allies in Europe who are dependent on Russia for their natural gas supplies. An "energy revolution" in the United States means the country is now one of the world’s leading natural gas producers. More exports in the form of liquefied natural gas could add a layer of security to the European energy market, he said. "Unfortunately, the slow pace of federal approval for U.S. LNG export facilities has stalled the construction of infrastructure, weakening our competitive position," he said in a statement Wednesday. The majority of Russian natural gas sent to European markets passes through the Soviet-era transit network in Ukraine. Russian energy […]
The polar vortex will soon be history, but its impact could linger for months in one vital industry. The U.S. natural gas market is entering the final month of "withdrawal season," when gas is taken out of storage to meet demand, with surprisingly low inventories. The government is expected to report Thursday that storage fell by about another 140 billion cubic feet last week. Citigroup estimates that the period from April through October, when gas stores are traditionally replenished, could start with inventories of 875 billion cubic feet—a little over half as much as a year ago. Some of the traditional levers for rebalancing gas supply and demand have become rusty after years of glut caused by the shale boom. For example, elevated prices between 2003 and 2008 forced industrial gas users to cut consumption. Today, gas-dependent industry is resurgent and gas-fired power plants have taken market share from […]
The polar vortex will soon be history, but its impact could linger for months in one vital industry. The U.S. natural gas market is entering the final month of "withdrawal season," when gas is taken out of storage to meet demand, with surprisingly low inventories. The government is expected to report Thursday that storage fell by about another 140 billion cubic feet last week. Citigroup estimates that the period from April through October, when gas stores are traditionally replenished, could start with inventories of 875 billion cubic feet—a little over half as much as a year ago. Some of the traditional levers for rebalancing gas supply and demand have become rusty after years of glut caused by the shale boom. For example, elevated prices between 2003 and 2008 forced industrial gas users to cut consumption. Today, gas-dependent industry is resurgent and gas-fired power plants have taken market share from […]
Oil and gas giants Chesapeake Energy and Encana Corp. were charged on Wednesday with colluding to keep oil and gas lease prices artificially low in the state of Michigan, the state Attorney General Bill Schuette said. The announcement follows a lengthy investigation by Schuette’s office into whether the firms — the biggest land leasers during a speculative oil and gas leasing boom in Michigan’s Collingwood Shale region during 2010 — colluded to avoid prices from rising as they acquired land leases from landowners. Michigan began looking into the companies’ activities in 2012 after a Reuters investigation found that executives from the two firms discussed proposals to divide bidding responsibilities in the state for nine private landowners and counties in Michigan. "I will aggressively prosecute any company who conspires to break the law," Schuette said in a statement. The companies were charged with one count each of antitrust […]
The US holds ample reserves of natural gas to help supply rising world gas demand, particularly for gas-fired electric power generation in Asia, speakers told the IHS CERAWeek energy conference during the Mar. 5 opening gas keynote speech and the global gas plenary. “It’s clear that no country has found greater opportunity in recent years than the United States,” said Joe Kaeser, Siemans AG president and chief executive officer. “The US will most likely become the world’s largest oil and gas producer this year. That’s affordability, availability, and sustainability all in one.” An abundance of shale gas has reshaped advantages that the US can offer the global economy, he said. “I believe we are witnessing, and participating in, the reindustrialization of the United States,” Kaeser said during the opening keynote speech. “And I think it’s fair to say that the development of horizontal drilling may have been the biggest […]
The changing landscape of the North American unconventional gas is causing the industry and forcing the federal government to examine how to best regulate the business, a panel discussed Wednesday at IHS CERAWeek. “The economic benefits of natural gas is substantial,” stated Marvin Odum, president of Shell Oil Company, “the environmental benefits of creating natural gas is a topic that is often debatable between the industry and some communities.” As the production of natural gas increasingly plays a vital role in North America’s energy future, the environmental impacts and regulatory safeguards are viewed as major challenges and is a process that the industry fine tunes as it moves forward, commented Odum. Both state and federal government continue to develop and strengthen regulations to address some of these impacts, the panel stated, but the two major concerns from a citizen standpoint are air pollution and methane emissions, […]
Recent progress at shale gas projects operated by China’s state-owned giants Sinopec and China National Petroleum Corp. suggest the country is on track to meet the 2015 production target set by the central government, analysts said Monday. China is targeting shale gas output of 6.5 billion cubic meters/year by 2015 and 60 billion-100 billion cu m/year (5.8-9.7 Bcf/day) by 2020 under its official plans. Analysts had earlier criticized these targets as unrealistic given the huge challenges facing operators in China’s nascent shale gas sector. The country’s total shale gas output in 2013 was just 200 million cu m, the Ministry of Land and Resources said in January. Article continues below… Request a free trial of: International Gas Report International Gas Report International Gas Report is a biweekly report that intelligently analyzes what is happening in the natural gas industry, improving your vision and sharpening […]
With the successful Ukrainian uprising underway, Europe must start thinking about coping strategies if the conflict were to escalate. What would happen if Russia decides to up the ante and retaliate with higher gas prices or even a cutoff of supplies, in an effort to strong-arm the new administration in Kiev? What is the status of Europe’s energy security strategy? Map of the major existing and proposed Russian natural gas transportation pipelines to Europe (15 November 2009). Source: Samuel Bailey via Wikiimedia Commons . [Added by Resilience editor.] It takes two to tango. But what about when there are 28 dance partners, each trying to show off their own dance moves, while pretending to follow the same tune? This is how one can begin to interpret the uncoordinated steps coming from the principal dance hall of Europe, Brussels. Take energy security for example. Since the start of 2014, Gazprom […]
Gas in Underground Storage This winter has been one of the coldest on record. It’s been the coldest winter in at least 30 years, and I saw a report today that there is a chance that this will be Chicago’s coldest winter on record. Presently it is the 3rd coldest on record for Chicago, but another blast of cold air is just moving into the Midwest and East Coast. Natural gas is a major energy source for heating homes, and prices have been spiking periodically in recent weeks as the weekly draws on natural gas inventories are higher than normal. Natural gas consumption in the US is highly seasonal, so producers use a system of underground pressurized storage that builds inventories until mid-fall, which are then depleted through the winter. Natural gas can be stored in depleted oil or gas reservoirs, in natural aquifers, or in salt caverns. The […]
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