Natural Gas News – March 7, 2018

Cove Point Becomes 2nd U.S. Liquefied Natural Gas Export Terminal

Forbes reported: And so it begins. Friday was a historic day for the U.S. energy industry and our always evolving natural gas business in particular. After a series of delays, Dominion Energy shipped out its first LNG cargo from $4 billion Cove Point export terminal in Maryland. This becomes our second LNG export facility following Cheniere Energy’s startup at Sabine Pass in Louisiana two years ago. Cove point started construction back in 2014 and liquefaction started in January. There’s no immediate word on Gemmata’s destination, and officials didn’t say where the ship went, but signs point to the Dragan LNG terminal in the UK as colder weather upped prices. Cove Point centers on deliveries to Europe because the journey is three days shorter than from the Gulf Coast, saving Cove Point shippers roughly $0.20 per MMBtu on transport costs. Cove Point has long-term contracts with Gail India and a joint venture involving Japan’s Sumitomo and Tokyo Gas. The first cargo from Cove Point marks a milestone in the northeast and a new demand outlet for Appalachia producers that now account for 35% of all U.S. gas production. For more on this story visit forbes.com or click http://bit.ly/2G0UgRg

NYMEX April Gas Settles at $2.749/MMBtu, Up 4.5 Cents on Higher Demand

Platts reported: The NYMEX April natural gas futures contract settled 4.5 cents higher Tuesday at $2.749/MMBtu, as a cold weather outlook and an expected uptick in demand trumped robust production continuing across the US. The colder-thanaverage weather over the next week raise the possibility of a demand spike, as over the next seven days US demand is expected to average 84.2 Bcf/d, a 3.1 Bcf/d jump from the 81.1 Bcf/d averaged over the next seven days , according to S&P Global Platts analytics. For more visit platts.com or click http://bit.ly/2oSFyUa