Dean Ferguson is the principal at Ferguson Energy Consulting. He spent 27 years at TC Energy with senior leadership roles in power generation and natural gas pipelines. His natural gas experience spans Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, providing unique insight into the relationships between the markets in all three countries.
ESG is quickly becoming one of the most frequently used acronyms in energy-company Zoom calls and quarterly earnings calls, joining the ranks of oldies-but-goodies like WTI, Bcf, and NGLs. Everyone — including investors — is pushing hydrocarbon producers, midstreamers, and end-users to improve their “environmental, social, and governance” performance nowadays. It’s not always easy, though, especially when the greener, pro-planet thing to do is a lot more expensive. The good news is that there are at least a few potential win-win opportunities out there where companies can both reduce their carbon footprint and save money. In today’s blog we’ll discuss why, in some situations, CNG makes sense as a clean fuel for use as a potential replacement for diesel, propane, and fuel oil in a wide range of energy, mining, forestry, and utility settings.
While it’s widely known that Canada’s natural gas prices and exports have been under increasing pressure from rising gas supplies in the U.S., forcing an ever-deeper discount for AECO — Canada’s primary gas price benchmark — versus U.S. benchmark gas prices, a homegrown development is making the situation worse. Growing unconventional gas supplies from the Montney and related plays in Western Canada are bumping up against insufficient pipeline takeaway capacity from this producing region. Will Canadian gas markets be able to adapt to all of these growing supplies on both sides of the border or simply wither away as U.S. supplies take more and more market share? Today, we kick off a multi-part series examining the highly complex problems facing Western Canadian gas producers.
