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May 15, 2023

May 2023 – Energy News

This year is shaping up to be very different from 2022, with a large amount of natural gas in storage, a decline in natural gas prices, and softening of demand.  This has producers pulling back on rigs to help match production with demand.

Domestic Demand

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that demand for natural gas fell slightly from last year to an average of 90.7 billion cubic feet per day.  The sharpest decline in demand was seen in the residential and commercial sectors, with a 19 percent drop to 13.2 Bcf per day.

International Demand  

The IEA (International Energy Agency) has reported that global gas markets are slowly rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. Due to mild weather, increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, and decreased natural gas demand Europe’s storage ended the heating season at 60 percent full, despite Russia reducing its pipeline gas deliveries by 80 percent in 2022.

According to the EIA, there is a projected increase in U.S. LNG exports due to the strong global demand, with LNG continuing to replace pipeline natural gas exports from Russia to Europe. Lower LNG prices have been observed this year, primarily influenced by mild winter temperatures and higher-than-average storage levels. The return to service of the Freeport LNG export terminal, along with the upcoming commissioning of new LNG export projects by the end of 2024, provides further support for the forecasted growth in exports.

Production & Supply  

This past week, the U.S. experienced the most significant decline in natural gas rigs since February 2016. Even with this decline, natural gas production remains 31 percent over last year and 18 percent over the five-year average. The decrease was primarily driven by producers cutting back to match natural gas prices.

According to the latest weekly update from the EIA's Natural Gas Storage Dashboard, a net withdrawal of 71 Bcf resulted in a total working natural gas in underground storage of 2,141 Bcf. The current natural gas inventory in underground storage is fifteen percent higher than the five-year average and twenty-two percent higher than the previous year. The EIA also provided information on the withdrawal rates from storage, indicating that the average rate of withdrawals is twenty-three percent lower than the five-year average for the current withdrawal season. This suggests a slower pace of depletion compared to previous years.

Market Data:

May 15, 2023

Weekly Natural Gas Storage (Values listed in Bcf)
Year to Year 5-year average
Region 5/5/23 5/5/22 net change Bcf net change
East 422 271 151 322 31.1
Midwest 497 339 158 379 31.1
Mountain 104 95 9 102 2
Pacific 114 182 -68 202 -43.6
South Central 1002 745 257 803 24.8
Total 2,141 1,632 509 1,809 18.4
CME (Henry Hub) Natural Gas Futures (Values listed in dekatherms) 
Date Price
5/9/23 $2.22
4/11/23 $2.19
3/3/23 $2.50
2/7/23 $2.35
1/4/23 $3.75
12/1/22 $6.03
11/1/22 $4.57
10/12/22 $6.60
9/13/22 $8.49
8/9/222 $7.87
7/12/22 $6.81
6/14/22 $7.68
5/17/22 $8.26
4/4/22 $5.72
3/7/22 $4.93
2/8/22 $4.30
1/11/22 $4.16
12/7/21 $3.60
11/5/21 $5.33
10/4/21 $5.80
9/13/21 $5.21
8/13/21 $3.95
7/6/21 $3.68
https://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/rngwhhdD.htm
Utility Costs of Gas (Values listed in dekatherms)
Month Mid American - IA Alliant - IA Black Hills - IA Black Hills - NE Xcel Small Volume Xcel Large Volume Kansas Gas Service Midwest Energy
May '23 $3.56 $7.94 $3.51 $4.85 $4.19 $4.14 $8.85 $4.64
April '23 $3.17 $5.75 $4.95 $6.21 $4.19 $4.14 $8.94 $5.19
March '23 $4.18 $7.93 $7.43 $8.61 $4.60 $4.48 $8.46 $7.90
February '23 $5.71 $9.00 $9.02 $9.08 $5.98 $5.91 $9.07 $10.05
January '23 $7.34 $7.90 $10.29 $10.49 $7.87 $7.80 $9.60 $9.99
December '22 $7.49 $8.72 $9.01 $8.76 $10.04 $9.99 $8.89 $7.77
November '22 $6.58 $8.54 $7.34 $7.82 $10.04 $9.99 $9.21 $7.89
October '22 $6.16 $8.06 $6.72 $6.76 $10.04 $9.99 $12.21 $10.76
September '22 $9.60 $9.33 $9.27 $9.65 $9.38 $9.32 $12.26 $10.86
August '22 $5.79 $5.09 $6.50 $9.26 $9.38 $9.32 $10.36 $8.89
July '22 $6.45 $3.08 $4.54 $7.22 $9.38 $9.32 $10.99 $10.05
June '22 $10.33 $9.48 $4.97 $9.18 $5.27 $5.22 $9.80 $9.41
May '22 $9.16 $6.34 $5.50 $6.69 $5.27 $5.22 $8.61 $7.90
April '22 $9.81 $5.56 $6.78 $6.03 $5.27 $5.22 $8.22 $7.03
March '22 $9.29 $6.62 $6.78 $5.53 $4.93 $4.87 $8.35 $8.43
February '22 $9.25 $8.01 $6.86 $5.95 $4.93 $4.87 $7.58 $7.96
January '22 $9.36 $8.01 $7.10 $6.83 $4.93 $4.87 $7.46 $7.64
December '21 $9.76 $8.08 $6.27 $6.08 $5.31 $5.25 $7.49 $8.19
November '21 $9.67 $8.69 $6.49 $6.54 $5.31 $5.25 $6.46 $7.65
October '21 $9.25 $8.60 $6.69 $6.81 $5.31 $5.25 $6.22 $6.54
September '21 $7.99 $7.27 $5.51 $5.64 $4.11 $4.06 $5.85 $6.23
August '21 $7.53 $7.14 $5.06 $5.30 $4.11 $4.06 $5.55 $5.86
July '21 $7.11 $6.85 $4.94 $4.80 $4.11 $4.06 $5.11 $5.38
June '21 $6.35 $6.42 $4.97 $4.40 $3.38 $3.27 $5.08 NA
Local First of the Month Markets (Values listed in dekatherms)
Month NNG Ventura Chicago Citygates Colorado Interstate Gas SouthernStar Panhandle
May '23 $1.90 $1.97 $1.94 $1.87 $1.81
April '23 $1.97 $2.01 $2.02 $1.89 $1.74
March '23 $2.59 $2.49 $2.27 $3.90 $5.74
February '23 $6.65 $4.44 $5.31 $5.20 $3.81
January '23 $7.98 $6.04 $8.63 $8.43 $5.74
December '22 $7.50 $7.00 $7.08 $6.88 $6.52
November '22 $4.97 $4.95 $4.88 $4.65 $4.48
October '22 $5.47 $5.68 $5.23 $5.41 $4.96
September '22 $8.55 $8.79 $8.54 $8.40 $8.29
August '22 $8.25 $8.45 $8.26 $8.08 $8.08
July '22 $6.20 $6.34 $5.84 $6.20 $8.00
June '22 $8.51 $8.72 $7.42 $8.50 $8.31
May '22 $6.87 $7.11 $6.13 $6.65 $6.62
April '22 $4.83 $5.10 $4.84 $4.77 $4.76
March '22 $4.52 $5.53 $4.35 $4.41 $4.62
February '22 $6.02 $7.02 $4.77 $6.68 $6.58
January '22 $7.21 $5.68 $5.38 $5.95 $5.38
December '21 $5.50 $5.62 $4.91 $5.59 $5.42
November '21 $5.95 $6.29 $4.57 $5.96 $6.01
October '21 $5.44 $5.70 $4.79 $5.58 $5.40
September '21 $4.01 $4.22 $3.67 $4.00 $3.96
August '21 $3.76 $3.89 $3.78 $3.78 $3.72
July '21 $3.41 $3.46 $3.16 $3.48 $3.33
June '21 $2.74 $2.85 $2.67 $2.83 $2.76

May 15, 2023

May 2023 – Energy News

This year is shaping up to be very different from 2022, with a large amount of natural gas in storage, a decline in natural gas prices, and softening of demand.  This has producers pulling back on rigs to help match production with demand.

Domestic Demand

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that demand for natural gas fell slightly from last year to an average of 90.7 billion cubic feet per day.  The sharpest decline in demand was seen in the residential and commercial sectors, with a 19 percent drop to 13.2 Bcf per day.

International Demand  

The IEA (International Energy Agency) has reported that global gas markets are slowly rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. Due to mild weather, increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, and decreased natural gas demand Europe’s storage ended the heating season at 60 percent full, despite Russia reducing its pipeline gas deliveries by 80 percent in 2022.

According to the EIA, there is a projected increase in U.S. LNG exports due to the strong global demand, with LNG continuing to replace pipeline natural gas exports from Russia to Europe. Lower LNG prices have been observed this year, primarily influenced by mild winter temperatures and higher-than-average storage levels. The return to service of the Freeport LNG export terminal, along with the upcoming commissioning of new LNG export projects by the end of 2024, provides further support for the forecasted growth in exports.

Production & Supply  

This past week, the U.S. experienced the most significant decline in natural gas rigs since February 2016. Even with this decline, natural gas production remains 31 percent over last year and 18 percent over the five-year average. The decrease was primarily driven by producers cutting back to match natural gas prices.

According to the latest weekly update from the EIA's Natural Gas Storage Dashboard, a net withdrawal of 71 Bcf resulted in a total working natural gas in underground storage of 2,141 Bcf. The current natural gas inventory in underground storage is fifteen percent higher than the five-year average and twenty-two percent higher than the previous year. The EIA also provided information on the withdrawal rates from storage, indicating that the average rate of withdrawals is twenty-three percent lower than the five-year average for the current withdrawal season. This suggests a slower pace of depletion compared to previous years.

Year to Year 5-year average
Region 5/5/23 5/5/22 net change Bcf net change
East 422 271 151 322 31.1
Midwest 497 339 158 379 31.1
Mountain 104 95 9 102 2
Pacific 114 182 -68 202 -43.6
South Central 1002 745 257 803 24.8
Total 2,141 1,632 509 1,809 18.4

May 15, 2023

May 2023 – Energy News

This year is shaping up to be very different from 2022, with a large amount of natural gas in storage, a decline in natural gas prices, and softening of demand.  This has producers pulling back on rigs to help match production with demand.

Domestic Demand

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that demand for natural gas fell slightly from last year to an average of 90.7 billion cubic feet per day.  The sharpest decline in demand was seen in the residential and commercial sectors, with a 19 percent drop to 13.2 Bcf per day.

International Demand  

The IEA (International Energy Agency) has reported that global gas markets are slowly rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. Due to mild weather, increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, and decreased natural gas demand Europe’s storage ended the heating season at 60 percent full, despite Russia reducing its pipeline gas deliveries by 80 percent in 2022.

According to the EIA, there is a projected increase in U.S. LNG exports due to the strong global demand, with LNG continuing to replace pipeline natural gas exports from Russia to Europe. Lower LNG prices have been observed this year, primarily influenced by mild winter temperatures and higher-than-average storage levels. The return to service of the Freeport LNG export terminal, along with the upcoming commissioning of new LNG export projects by the end of 2024, provides further support for the forecasted growth in exports.

Production & Supply  

This past week, the U.S. experienced the most significant decline in natural gas rigs since February 2016. Even with this decline, natural gas production remains 31 percent over last year and 18 percent over the five-year average. The decrease was primarily driven by producers cutting back to match natural gas prices.

According to the latest weekly update from the EIA's Natural Gas Storage Dashboard, a net withdrawal of 71 Bcf resulted in a total working natural gas in underground storage of 2,141 Bcf. The current natural gas inventory in underground storage is fifteen percent higher than the five-year average and twenty-two percent higher than the previous year. The EIA also provided information on the withdrawal rates from storage, indicating that the average rate of withdrawals is twenty-three percent lower than the five-year average for the current withdrawal season. This suggests a slower pace of depletion compared to previous years.

May 15, 2023

May 2023 – Energy News

This year is shaping up to be very different from 2022, with a large amount of natural gas in storage, a decline in natural gas prices, and softening of demand.  This has producers pulling back on rigs to help match production with demand.

Domestic Demand

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that demand for natural gas fell slightly from last year to an average of 90.7 billion cubic feet per day.  The sharpest decline in demand was seen in the residential and commercial sectors, with a 19 percent drop to 13.2 Bcf per day.

International Demand  

The IEA (International Energy Agency) has reported that global gas markets are slowly rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. Due to mild weather, increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, and decreased natural gas demand Europe’s storage ended the heating season at 60 percent full, despite Russia reducing its pipeline gas deliveries by 80 percent in 2022.

According to the EIA, there is a projected increase in U.S. LNG exports due to the strong global demand, with LNG continuing to replace pipeline natural gas exports from Russia to Europe. Lower LNG prices have been observed this year, primarily influenced by mild winter temperatures and higher-than-average storage levels. The return to service of the Freeport LNG export terminal, along with the upcoming commissioning of new LNG export projects by the end of 2024, provides further support for the forecasted growth in exports.

Production & Supply  

This past week, the U.S. experienced the most significant decline in natural gas rigs since February 2016. Even with this decline, natural gas production remains 31 percent over last year and 18 percent over the five-year average. The decrease was primarily driven by producers cutting back to match natural gas prices.

According to the latest weekly update from the EIA's Natural Gas Storage Dashboard, a net withdrawal of 71 Bcf resulted in a total working natural gas in underground storage of 2,141 Bcf. The current natural gas inventory in underground storage is fifteen percent higher than the five-year average and twenty-two percent higher than the previous year. The EIA also provided information on the withdrawal rates from storage, indicating that the average rate of withdrawals is twenty-three percent lower than the five-year average for the current withdrawal season. This suggests a slower pace of depletion compared to previous years.

May 15, 2023

May 2023 – Energy News

This year is shaping up to be very different from 2022, with a large amount of natural gas in storage, a decline in natural gas prices, and softening of demand.  This has producers pulling back on rigs to help match production with demand.

Domestic Demand

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that demand for natural gas fell slightly from last year to an average of 90.7 billion cubic feet per day.  The sharpest decline in demand was seen in the residential and commercial sectors, with a 19 percent drop to 13.2 Bcf per day.

International Demand  

The IEA (International Energy Agency) has reported that global gas markets are slowly rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. Due to mild weather, increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, and decreased natural gas demand Europe’s storage ended the heating season at 60 percent full, despite Russia reducing its pipeline gas deliveries by 80 percent in 2022.

According to the EIA, there is a projected increase in U.S. LNG exports due to the strong global demand, with LNG continuing to replace pipeline natural gas exports from Russia to Europe. Lower LNG prices have been observed this year, primarily influenced by mild winter temperatures and higher-than-average storage levels. The return to service of the Freeport LNG export terminal, along with the upcoming commissioning of new LNG export projects by the end of 2024, provides further support for the forecasted growth in exports.

Production & Supply  

This past week, the U.S. experienced the most significant decline in natural gas rigs since February 2016. Even with this decline, natural gas production remains 31 percent over last year and 18 percent over the five-year average. The decrease was primarily driven by producers cutting back to match natural gas prices.

According to the latest weekly update from the EIA's Natural Gas Storage Dashboard, a net withdrawal of 71 Bcf resulted in a total working natural gas in underground storage of 2,141 Bcf. The current natural gas inventory in underground storage is fifteen percent higher than the five-year average and twenty-two percent higher than the previous year. The EIA also provided information on the withdrawal rates from storage, indicating that the average rate of withdrawals is twenty-three percent lower than the five-year average for the current withdrawal season. This suggests a slower pace of depletion compared to previous years.

May 15, 2023

May 2023 – Energy News

This year is shaping up to be very different from 2022, with a large amount of natural gas in storage, a decline in natural gas prices, and softening of demand.  This has producers pulling back on rigs to help match production with demand.

Domestic Demand

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that demand for natural gas fell slightly from last year to an average of 90.7 billion cubic feet per day.  The sharpest decline in demand was seen in the residential and commercial sectors, with a 19 percent drop to 13.2 Bcf per day.

International Demand  

The IEA (International Energy Agency) has reported that global gas markets are slowly rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. Due to mild weather, increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, and decreased natural gas demand Europe’s storage ended the heating season at 60 percent full, despite Russia reducing its pipeline gas deliveries by 80 percent in 2022.

According to the EIA, there is a projected increase in U.S. LNG exports due to the strong global demand, with LNG continuing to replace pipeline natural gas exports from Russia to Europe. Lower LNG prices have been observed this year, primarily influenced by mild winter temperatures and higher-than-average storage levels. The return to service of the Freeport LNG export terminal, along with the upcoming commissioning of new LNG export projects by the end of 2024, provides further support for the forecasted growth in exports.

Production & Supply  

This past week, the U.S. experienced the most significant decline in natural gas rigs since February 2016. Even with this decline, natural gas production remains 31 percent over last year and 18 percent over the five-year average. The decrease was primarily driven by producers cutting back to match natural gas prices.

According to the latest weekly update from the EIA's Natural Gas Storage Dashboard, a net withdrawal of 71 Bcf resulted in a total working natural gas in underground storage of 2,141 Bcf. The current natural gas inventory in underground storage is fifteen percent higher than the five-year average and twenty-two percent higher than the previous year. The EIA also provided information on the withdrawal rates from storage, indicating that the average rate of withdrawals is twenty-three percent lower than the five-year average for the current withdrawal season. This suggests a slower pace of depletion compared to previous years.

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