for week ending December 20, 2006 | Release date: December 21, 2006 | Previous weeks
Overview: Thursday, December 21 (next release 2:00 p.m. on January 5, 2007)
Warmer-than-normal
temperatures throughout the country led to lower natural gas spot prices at
many trading locations in the Lower 48 States. For the week
(Wednesday-Wednesday, December 13-20), the price for next-day delivery at the
Henry Hub decreased 78 cents per MMBtu, or 10.8 percent to $6.43 per MMBtu. The
NYMEX futures contract for January delivery at the Henry Hub settled yesterday
(December 20) at $6.769 per MMBtu, which was 90 cents less than last
Wednesday's price. Natural gas in storage decreased to 3,167 Bcf as of December
15, leaving inventories at 9.5 percent above the 5-year average. The spot price
for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil moved up $1.74 per barrel or about
2.8 percent since last Wednesday to $63.08 per barrel or $10.88 per MMBtu.
Moderate
temperatures this week boosted an already favorable supply situation, leading
to widespread declines in natural gas spot prices in the Lower 48 States.The exceptions to the general price trend
could be found only at Rockies trading locations, as a winter storm enveloped
the region and colder-than-normal temperatures have increased heating demand. As
a result of the cold weather in the Rockies, the price at the Opal, Wyoming
trading increased 18 cents per MMBtu, or 3.8 percent to $4.87. But the trend
has been lower prices elsewhere. Since last Wednesday, December 13, price
declines were steepest at locations in the Gulf Coast region and in the Northeast,
where prices fell up to 92 cents per MMBtu. Before
gaining 17 cents per MMBtu in trading yesterday (December 20), the Henry Hub
average price dipped as low as $6.26 on Tuesday. This was the lowest daily average
price since mid-October, a signal that weather during this winter peak demand
season has not influenced buyers and sellers strongly to date. In the
Northeast, where temperatures were in the upper 50s, the price for natural gas
off Transcontinental Pipeline in New York City on the week decreased 77 cents
per MMBtu to $7.07. Declines at most other market locations in the California,
Texas, Midwest, and Midcontinent regions in the same
period were somewhat less pronounced. At the PG&E citygate in California,
the spot price declined 55 cents per MMBtu, or 7.3 percent. With these
declines, spot prices are now about half last year's hurricane-induced
historically high prices. For example, as of December 20, the price at the
Henry Hub was 53 percent below last year's level of $13.79 per MMBtu.
Estimated Average Wellhead Prices |
||||||
|
June-06 |
July-06 |
Aug-06 |
Sep-06 |
Oct-06 |
Nov-06 |
5.80 |
5.82 |
6.51 |
5.51 |
5.03 |
6.43 |
|
Price
($ per MMBtu) |
5.65 |
5.67 |
6.34 |
5.37 |
4.90 |
6.26 |
Note:
Prices were converted from $ per Mcf to $ per MMBtu using an average heat content
of 1,027 Btu per cubic foot as published in Table A4 of the Annual
Energy Review 2002. |
||||||
Source:Energy Information Administration, Office
of Oil and Gas. |
Working
gas in storage decreased to 3,167 Bcf as of Friday, December 15, 2006,
according to EIA's Weekly Natural Gas
Storage Report (See
Storage Figure). The implied net withdrawal was 71 Bcf,
which leaves storage levels at 9.5 percent above the 5-year average for this
time of year. At 3,167 Bcf, stocks are also 342 Bcf, or over 12 percent, higher
than this time last year. This report week's implied net withdrawal is 41
percent below the 5-year average of 121 Bcf and nearly 58 percent below last
year's net withdrawal of 168 Bcf. This week's below average withdrawal likely
resulted from the return of moderate temperatures across much of the Lower 48
States, especially in the major population centers of the Midwest and the
Northeast, as measured by National Weather Service heating degree-days (HDDs) for
the week ended December 14. HDDs in the East North Central Census Division,
which includes Chicago and other large consuming areas, and the West North
Central Census Division numbered 18 and 26 percent less than normal,
respectively (See Temperature Maps). In the Middle Atlantic, HDDs were
nearly 15 percent below normal. Indeed, HDDs for the Lower 48 States as a whole
were about 16 percent less than normal.
EIA Releases State Energy Profiles: The Energy
Information Administration (EIA) released a new web-based product site that
centralizes State energy data. State
Energy Profiles allows users to access individual State profiles
that contain key facts and statistics about energy industries within the
State. Each profile begins with a State
map showing major energy infrastructure such as natural gas flows, electric
transmission lines, and electric power plants. The maps also show renewable energy potential. Below the map, the profile lists details
about the State's economy, energy prices, reserves and supply, distribution and
marketing, consumption, and environmental data. Each of the statistics within these categories is presented in relation
to the United States as a whole. Additionally,
since this is a web-based product, readers can utilize web links within each
page to access EIA's historical data. Many of the statistics in the profiles will be updated as data on the
EIA web site are updated, and EIA plans to add more extensive updates to the profiles
periodically.