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LATEST UPDATE
May 2023 Energy News
“Exelon expects to take a $173 million loss on a lawsuit related to the bribery scandal at its Commonwealth Edison utility, Jeanne Jones, Exelon chief financial officer, said May 3rd. “We have made substantial changes to our contracting, lobbying and compliance operations to ensure that the conduct that was at issue in the trial does not happen again.” Calvin Butler, Exelon president and CEO, said during an earnings conference call a day after a jury found former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore and three other defendants guiltyof conspiring to bribe a state lawmaker. "
Exelon President & CEO Calvin Butler and Exelon CFO Jeanne Jones (Utility Dive)
Azi Feifel
COO PROSPECT RESOURCES
Trends in the Energy Market
NYMEX futures continue to be bearish / neutral, well below $3.00 per MMBtu through October 2023. Prompt month is now June 2023.
Spring has had an uneven start in many parts of the country. Some cooler air in the Great Lakes region provides some demand in the very near term. The East will warm up to seasonal levels. Texas and the Southwest get some rain and stay normal or slightly below normal. California and the Pacific Northwest to see significant warming.
Natural gas production for May is up at 100.5 Bcf/day. That is down 0.2 Bcf/day month-over-month, but 3.7 Bcf per day greater than the same period last year.
Demand for natural gas-fired electric generation is up nearly 10% year-over-year.
Natural gas inventories in storage have continued to rise. EOM April inventories are 20% greater than the five-year average and 33% greater than the same time last year.
Crude oil continues to be range bound between $72-$80/bbl..
The economy continues to give off mixed signals. Employers added 253,000 jobs in April and unemployment fell to 3.4%. The debate over increasing the debt ceiling is weighing heavily on some sectors. U.S. trade with the rest of the world increased in March -- companies shipped more oil, natural gas, and vehicles overseas.
Forward electricity prices remain down, though there has been some upward pressure the past week.
There is tremendous debate around PJM's plan to delay upcoming capacity auctions. FERC expected to issue a ruling in short order.
Energy Sector in the News
U.S. natural gas power burn during the heating season was the highest on record this past winter (EIA)
Natural gas consumed for electric power generation in the United States during the 2022–2023 winter heating season (Nov. 1–Mar. 31) averaged 30.6 billion cubic feet
per day (Bcf/d), the highest winter heating season average on record, based on data from S&P Global Commodity Insights. Natural gas consumed for electric power generation has increased most winter heating seasons since 2016–2017 with the continued reductions in coal-fired electricity generationand the overall growth in electricity demand.
Norway is Europe's largest supplier of natural gas following a sharp reduction in Russian deliveries amid the war in Ukraine
Equinor's (EQNR.OL) Hammerfest LNG plant in Arctic Norway suffered a compressor failure on Thursday May 4th and is expected to remain offline until May 19. Hammerfest LNG has capacity to deliver about 6.5 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year, enough to cover energy demand for about 6.5 million European homes, or 5% of all Norwegian gas exports, Equinor has said. (Reuters)
U.S. power consumption is expected to slip about 1% in 2023 from the previous year as milder weather slows usage from the record high hit in 2022, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said.
EIA projected that electricity demand is on track to slide to 4,000 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) in 2023 from a historic high of 4,048 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) in 2022, before rising to 4,062 billion kWh in 2024 as economic growth ramps up.
How PRI Provides Savings for Commercial Properties
Rental properties manager saved $1.3 Million over 6 years with PRI’s proven approach to energy procurement. By switching the client to a long-term energy procurement strategy based on the layered hedges approach, Prospect Resources achieved great results for this client.
When you introduce us to a friend, we’ll give them a free analysis and recommendation for how to optimize their energy usage. You’ll get a Visa gift card if they become a paying client. To refer your friend, simply email an introduction to your friend and to Azi Feifel.
Did You Know?
Less demand coupled with more electricity generation from cheap renewable power sources and lower natural gas prices is forecast to slash wholesale power prices this year. As capacity for renewables like solar and wind ramp up and as natural gas prices ease, the EIA expects coal-fired power generation to be 17% less in the spring of 2023 than in the spring of 2022.
P.S.
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