Propane Imports Jump, Exports Edge Up
Monday, March 17, 2014
While propane exports from U.S. shores barely rose during December compared to a month earlier, imports jumped a significant 60.1%, with an additional 2,128,401 bbl arriving compared to November, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), which pegged December levels at 5,671,308 bbl. For the year, imports showed a more modest 8.1% increase, stepping up by 426,240 bbl.
RRC Commissioner Porter Meets Mexican Energy Officials
Monday, March 17, 2014
Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) commissioner David Porter traveled to Mexico in early February to meet with officials and discuss energy policy as the country works to reform regulations governing the oil and gas industry. In December, the Mexican Congress passed a constitutional amendment that would open the oil and gas sector to private participation for the first time in 75 years. Officials are now in the process of formulating the statutory and regulatory framework to support the change.
New York Landowners Sue For SGEIS Release Date
Monday, March 17, 2014
The Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY) has filed a lawsuit against the State of New York seeking to compel the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to identify a date when a final supplemental generic environmental impact statement (SGEIS) will be released and permit applications for hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling will be processed.
North American Production Continues to Accelerate
Monday, March 17, 2014
ICF International (Fairfax, Va.), in its first-quarter “2014 Detailed Production Report,” notes that production in liquids-rich natural gas plays is expected to continue to grow, and will likely double by 2035. ICF adds that liquids-rich plays have fared much better than dry-gas plays in the relatively low-gas-price environment that has persisted throughout much of 2013. Consequently, U.S. NGL production has increased by more than 600,000 bbld over the past five years.
Price Floor Collapses at Trading Hubs
Monday, March 17, 2014
Spot propane at both Mont Belvieu and Conway, Kan. crashed Thursday, with mid-morning trading showing Belvieu spots losing 17 to 17.25 over the week and the Group 140 (Conway) market giving up 19.5 cents. The late-week losses followed Mont Belvieu dropping 7.5 cents Monday and the Group shedding 4.25 cents. The reversals came despite sustained frigid temperatures in the Upper Midwest and Northeast, although the needle indicating U.S. propane inventories didn’t budge the week ended Feb. 21, with volumes standing firm at 26.7 MMbbl from to a week earlier.
Europe Moves Closer to Commercial Shale Production
Monday, March 17, 2014
It has been 10 years since there were more conventional than unconventional wells being drilled annually in the U.S., but hydraulic fracturing has yet to make an impact elsewhere in the world, where operators continue to face environmental worries and logistical challenges, say analysts with the research and consulting firm GlobalData.
Propane Engine Fuel Summit To Feature Industry OEMs
Monday, March 17, 2014
The 2014 Propane Engine Fuel Summit in Irving, Texas March 27 will bring together one of the nation’s largest gatherings of original equipment manufacturers of propane autogas technology. The panel will discuss the future of the alternative fuel and corporate plans for propane autogas vehicles.
RRC Commissioner Calls for Public Education on Energy
Monday, March 17, 2014
Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) commissioner Christi Craddick, speaking at the winter North American Prospect Expo (NAPE) meeting in Houston Feb. 5, encouraged those attending to proactively work together to educate the public about the importance of the current shale energy revolution. NAPE attracts 16,000 investors from the energy exploration and production sectors from across the globe.
Crystal Flash Acquires Owens Petroleum, Propane
Monday, March 17, 2014
Crystal Flash (Grand Rapids, Mich.) has acquired Owens Petroleum Inc. and Owens Propane Service Inc. of Albion, Mich. The transaction will add two new locations, including two Pacific Pride fuel stations, to the Crystal Flash energy distribution company. Joe Owens launched the business as a Standard Oil agent in 1968, later incorporating to become Owens-Raymond Oil Co. He changed the name to Owens Petroleum in the 1980s, and ran the company until he sold it to his daughter, Shelley Purucker, and her husband, Randy, in 1994.
COMMENTARY: Down, Down, Down
Monday, March 17, 2014
More precipitous declines were seen for principal postings Thursday, which doubled down on the double-digit freefalls of early in the week to give up another 17 to as much as 42 cents compared to the Monday email Update. The deep discounts prompted all but one seller to resume providing postings for publication, however, Plains Marketing’s U.S. prices were still not available (NA).
Blossman Offering Certified Mowing Conversion Kits
Monday, March 17, 2014
Blossman Services Inc.’s (BSI; Ocean Springs, Miss.) small engine division is designing and manufacturing an engine-specific propane mower conversion kit that will meet Environmental Protection Agency certification standards. Available for purchase this spring, the Blossman conversion kit is aimed at providing cost savings and a high-quality conversion kit to landscape contractors and the mowing industry.
Another Topping Off....
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
…The average U.S. residential propane price jumped 105.00 cents/gal. the week ended Jan. 27 to 401.00 cents, nearly 172.00 cents/gal. higher than the same time last year, notes the Energy Informa­tion Administration (EIA). The jump was the largest single-week increase since EIA began the price survey in 1990. Ten Midwest states had price increases of 97.00 cents or more. Wholesale prices increased 143.00 cents/gal. to nearly 355.00 cents…

NPGA Advises Membership On Strategy for Propane Crunch
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
With the conclusion of the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA) winter board of directors meeting Feb. 4, NPGA president and CEO Rick Roldan outlined a short- and long-term strategy aimed at preventing a repeat of the current supply, demand, and distribution nightmares.
Energy Industry Seen Keeping Tighter Rein on Expenditures
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Amid a positive outlook for the energy industry in 2014, senior oil and gas professionals are forecast­ing tighter monitoring of capital expenditures this year, according to research published by Norway’s DNV GL, a technical advisor to the oil and gas industry.
ECI Acquires Superior Holdings; Adds Gas Flow, Control Products
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Engineered Controls International LLC (ECI; Elon, N.C.) said Feb. 1 it had acquired Superior Hold­ings LLC, owner of Macro Technologies LLC and Superior Products LLC. ECI noted that the acquisi­tion adds to its expanding portfolio of companies representing brands of gas flow and control products. Those brands now include RegO Products, Goddard Valve, Superior Products, and Macro Technologies.
Midwest Spots Plunge, Mont Belvieu Climbs
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
With a more restrained winter draw of 0.8 MMbbl reported for the nation by the Energy Information Administration the last week of Janu­ary, and an actual build of that same amount in the Midwest, fears seemed to have been calmed somewhat of the calamity of draining the Heartland dry before the end of the heating season. Once again the markets reacted immediately and decisively and spot propane at Conway, Kan.
HHS Releases Additional $454 Million in LIHEAP Funds
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Administration for Children and Families is making available $454 million in support of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). In November, HHS released $2.9 billion in LIHEAP funding while awaiting action on final fiscal year 2014 appropriations.
Propane Inventories Fall 0.8 MMbbl
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
U.S. propane stocks fell by 0.8 MMbbl the week ended Jan. 31 to stand at 30.8 MMbbl, 24 MMbbl, or 43.8%, below year-ago levels, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its Feb. 5 “This Week in Petroleum” report. Gulf Coast volumes decreased by 1 MMbbl, while conversely Midwest supplies climbed by 0.8 MMbbl. East Coast inventories gave up 0.5 MMbbl, and stocks in the Rocky Mountain/West Coast region dipped by 0.2 MMbbl.
U.S. Energy Imports Trending Down; Exports on Horizon
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) “2014 Annual Energy Outlook” projects declines in U.S. oil and natural gas imports as a result of increasing domestic production from tight oil and shale plays. U.S. liquid fuels net imports as a share of consumption is pro­jected to decline from a high of 60% in 2005 and about 40% in 2012 to about 25% by 2016. The U.S. is also forecast to become a net exporter of natural gas by 2018.


New Reserve Assessment Solidifies Fayetteville Forecast
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
A new study by the Bureau of Economic Geology (BEG) at the University of Texas at Austin forecasts that one of the nation’s most productive shale gas basins, the Fayetteville Shale, will continue to be a major contributor to U.S. natural gas supplies for years to come, with eco­nomically recoverable reserves of 18 Tcf through 2050.
Railroad Commissioner Porter Testifies on EPA Overreach
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) com­missioner David Porter Feb. 5 testified before Congress on what he termed is the “egregious overreach” of the federal government, specifically the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology held a hearing titled “Examining the Science of EPA Overreach: A Case Study in Texas.”
COMMENTARY Big Moves Again
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Significant swings higher on the Dixie Pipeline and steep discounts in the Midwest were seen Thursday compared to postings provided for the Monday email Update. And while changes up or down on TEPPCO and at Mont Belvieu were appreciably more moderate, in any other market they would raise eyebrows, not prompt a yawn.