Niagara

Canada imports as much as 2 Bcf/d of natural gas from the US in the region around the Dawn trading hub. The Dawn system has traditionally been fed by Western Canadian supplies and long haul pipelines from the US Gulf, Midwest and the Rockies. Marcellus gas can already reach Dawn via the border crossing at Niagara to the East. The Nexus Gas Transmission project will bring 1 Bcf/d directly into Dawn from the Utica. Today we detail the changing flows.

Canadian natural gas exports to the Northeast US fell from about 3Bcf/d in 2008 to around 1 Bcf/d in 2011 and have been at that level ever since. Last November significant US exports began to flow northward across the border into Canada at Niagara. Natural gas demand in Ontario is forecast to reach 3.25 Bcf/d by 2020. Today we describe how projects on the Canadian side will allow Marcellus gas to replace traditional Western Canadian supplies.

Canadian National Energy Board (NEB) data released earlier this month shows that the flow of natural gas imports across the US border at Niagara reversed to become exports for the first time in 2012. In the “old world” before Marcellus in 2008 - Canadian gas flowed into the US at an average 0.9 Bcf/d at Niagara. Last year those imports ground to a halt from May to October 2012 before reversing to 0.3 Bcf/d of exports to Canada in November. The reversal confirms that expanding Marcellus supplies are not just pushing Canadian imports back over the border but also starting to penetrate the Canadian market. Today we look at the dynamics of the Northeast gas flow reversal.

Northeast bound interstate natural gas pipeline companies are busy reconfiguring their assets to accommodate significant supply growth expected by 2017. At the same time, regional natural gas supply and distribution companies are taking advantage of the opportunities that new local production brings.