July 13, 2018 – Natural Gas Intelligence
Northeast, Haynesville Flat as Natural Gas Drilling Drives Small Uptick in Rig Count
By: Jeremiah Shelor
The U.S. rig count inched higher during the week ended Friday, thanks to a small uptick in natural gas-directed drilling, though activity was flat in the largest gas-focused onshore plays, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI).
Two gas rigs returned to action during the week in the United States, putting the total number at 189, roughly in line with 187 rigs running a year ago. The total number of oil-directed units held at 863, but up from 765 a year ago.…
Read the full article here: http://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/115051-northeast-haynesville-flat-as-natural-gas-drilling-drives-small-uptick-in-rig-count
…Recently, RBN Energy LLC analyst Sheetal Nasta highlighted a rapid 1.5 Bcf/d surge in Lower 48 gas production over the final three weeks of June to help explain why prices have been heading lower as of late despite a persistently large storage deficit.
“It’s no surprise that Lower 48 production has been on a tear lately,” given capacity expansions in the Northeast and high rig counts, Nasta said. “What has taken the market by surprise, however, is the abruptness and sheer strength with which production has surged in just the past couple of weeks.
“...It wasn’t until the second half of June that output shifted into high gear,” she said. “If we compare average volumes in the week ended June 7, versus the week ended June 28, we see that total Lower 48 dry gas production zoomed higher by about 1.5 Bcf/d in that time to 81.8 Bcf/d by June 30, with the bulk of those gains occurring in the last week of the month.”
