Posts Categorized: Articles

U.S. ethane markets have evolved from being “ethane short” pre-2012 to “ethane long,” owing to the success of the U.S. shale revolution. Successful shale drilling started in gas-rich basins such as the Barnett and the Haynesville, quickly spread to NGL-rich gas drilling in the Appalachian basin, and by 2012, U.S…. Read more »

Barring an exogenous event, such as the development of a new COVID-19 variant, a pipeline hack, an armed conflict, etc, world oil markets will likely be characterized by low volatility and relatively stable prices for the rest of 2021. While world crude demand is rising on vaccination successes, crude supply… Read more »

Natural gas risks are largely to the upside and gas markets will likely be tight for the remainder of the year. We’ve said for a while that Henry Hub prices may be undervalued and the forward strip is starting to reflect that optimism: HH futures at this writing exceed $3/MMBtu… Read more »

Natural gas’ most important competitor for baseload demand, coal, is experiencing a recovery of sorts. U.S. coal production and consumption, along with electricity demand, are rising as the COVID-19 pandemic recedes. While the U.S. coal industry faces immense, probably insurmountable obstacles in the medium and long-terms, coal will continue to… Read more »

Corpus Christi and Moda Midstream are well-positioned to benefit as the U.S. and world economies recover from COVID-19. Moda’s Ingleside Energy Center terminal is the largest export terminal in the Gulf Coast’s hottest market, can partially load more economically efficient Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), appears to enjoy the fastest… Read more »

“Mont Belvieu fractionation capacity is not overbuilt – it is ahead of its time by few quarters.” At least, that is what one executive from a midstream company with a frac and storage position at Mont Belvieu told me in a recent conversation. While he was directionally correct, he was… Read more »