Chris McGill Natural Gas Market Indicators

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Chris McGill | 2 Comments


100415.ngmi .sm 300x101 Natural Gas Market Indicators

According to the Energy Information Administration and after 37 years of reporting data, January 2010 was the all time record month for natural gas delivered to consumers in the United States. Daily delivered volumes of gas averaged 85.4 Bcf, establishing the new record.

Entering the net injection season for underground storage, natural gas supply remains strong, domestically, with hints of incremental gains in LNG imports for 2010. Even though the absolute wellhead acquisition price for natural gas remains unpredictable from day to day, the current forward view of gas prices is one of relative stability, given all of the market fundamentals that are now observable.

Visit this link to download the full Natural Gas Market Indicator. Topics covered include: Reported Prices, Weather, Working Gas in Underground Storage, Natural Gas Production, Rig Counts, Pipeline Imports and Exports, and LNG Markets.

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Andrew Soto The AGA FERC Manual is now on sale

Posted on April 14, 2010 by Andrew Soto | 1 Comment


AGA has made available for sale to the general public the AGA FERC Manual: A Guide for Local Distribution Companies. You can visit AGA’s web site to pick up a copy of the manual.

In the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Congress gave the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) powerful enforcement authorities, including the ability to assess civil penalties of up to $1 million per day for violations of any FERC rule, regulation or order.  Users of pipeline services, in general, and gas utilities, in particular, have been the subject of a large number of FERC enforcement settlements in which civil penalties have been assessed.  These settlements have focused on the interstate transportation and sale of natural gas by LDCs, the relationship of an LDC to its affiliates, and LDCs as shippers on interstate pipelines.

In response to this increased scrutiny, AGA, with the support of over 30 sponsoring members, has published the AGA FERC Manual: A Guide for Local Distribution Companies.  The Manual, written by lawyers at Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, is a comprehensive guide to FERC’s regulation of the natural gas industry.  It was intended to be one of the first places to which industry participants can turn for quick answers about FERC’s rules as well as for more detailed explanations and guides to additional research.  It was also written with the front line employee involved in buying and selling wholesale natural gas and arranging transportation and storage transactions in mind.  Its language is straightforward and not overly legalistic.

While the Manual was developed for AGA members with the needs of gas utilities in mind, anyone involved in the wholesale natural gas markets would find the Manual useful.  It broadly discusses rules regarding buying and selling natural gas, obtaining and releasing pipeline and storage capacity, preparing compliance plans, and other topics of general interest to natural gas market participants.  A set of DVDs accompanying the Manual contain lectures on each of the major topics of the Manual that are useful for training.

We hope that users of the Manual find it a valuable tool for building and maintaining a robust plan for compliance with FERC rules and regulations.

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Dan Gibson Safety and National Safe Digging Month

Posted on April 13, 2010 by Dan Gibson | Comments Off


The most important issue for our members, and the one that comes up most often around the AGA offices, is safety. Without a doubt and for good reason. With that in mind, we’re once again celebrating and promoting National Safe Digging Month.

090415811web Safety and National Safe Digging Month

National Safe Digging Month is “dedicated to increasing awareness of safe digging practices across the country and to celebrate the anniversary of 811, the national call-before-you-dig number.” In plain English, what that means is if you can dial 811 on your phone you can notify utilities that you will be digging on your property. The utility companies will then come to your property and mark the approximate locations of all utility-owned lines with paint or flags. It usually only takes them a few days to come out. And, best of all the 811 service is free and worth the time to prevent an accident.

Here’s some great stats from the “Did you know” section on call811.com

Did you know?

  • More than 200,000 underground utility lines are struck each year in the U.S.?
  • 37% of all U.S. digging damages result from not calling before digging.
  • Utilities are buried only a few inches underground, making them easy to strike even during shallow digging projects.

You can read more in the press release on National Safe Digging Month we issued at the beginning on the month. I worked my way through college on construction sites so I can testify that the “utilities are buried only a few inches underground, making them easy to strike even during shallow digging projects” line is a real concern.

Get the full scoop at call811.com. While you’re there you can also view their page with state specific information on 811. All of our members have their own safety programs and usually something that goes along with this month so feel free to leave a link in the comments below to anything that is helpful.

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Dave Parker Domestic Access = Security

Posted on April 7, 2010 by Dave Parker | Comments Off


nationaljournalblog2 Domestic Access = SecurityRead my latest response on the National Journal’s Energy and Environment Experts blog to the question, “Drill, Barry, Drill?”

President Obama’s plan to expand offshore natural gas exploration is a clear sign that his administration understands the importance of achieving American energy security on all fronts. While AGA is happy that the president sees the vital short- and long-term role that natural gas plays in a low-carbon future, greater inroads to capturing natural gas’ inherent efficiency and robust domestic resource base are still needed.

Just this Tuesday, AGA reported that at year-end 2009 the known reserves of natural gas in the United States likely increased for the 11th straight year, approaching 250 trillion cubic feet. Combined with the most current estimate of undiscovered resources, we have a total future supply equaling more than 100 years at the current rate of use. This is the highest level in more than 35 years. Much of the supply optimism can be traced to the influences of unconventional onshore resources such as natural gas from shale and tight sands. Access to offshore natural gas reserves will provide additional strength to domestic resources.

This kind of robust supply base reinforces the pivotal role that natural gas will continue to play in the years ahead. When used directly in homes, businesses and industry, natural gas is at its most efficient. And when used for power generation, natural gas is the cleanest of fossil fuels. All of these benefits point to the need for continued domestic exploration for natural gas onshore and off, unconventional and conventional.

The goal of a diverse stable of carbon-neutral alternatives for power generation is an important one; it is certainly a goal worth pursuing. To that end, AGA has long supported the development of a diverse domestic energy supply, including oil, nuclear, coal, wind, hydro, solar and, of course, domestic, abundant and clean natural gas.

But we as a nation also need to get behind the best low carbon fuel that is domestically accessible, already abundant, available and ready right now. Natural gas meets all of these criteria and expanded offshore access will help to ensure it continues to do so.

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