Oil & Gas Prices - April 28

[dan_s]

Opening Prices:
> WTI is down $0.09 to $101.93/bbl, and Brent is down $0.28 to $105.04/bbl.
> Natural gas is down -12.5c to $7.142/MMBtu.

AEGIS Notes
Oil

EIA reported a smaller-than-expected 692 MBbl build in crude stocks last week to 414.4 MMBbls
> Distillate inventories, which include diesel and jet fuel, fell by 1.4 MMBbls to 107.3 MMBbls, their lowest since May 2008
> Distillate stocks have steadily fallen, owing in part to increased demand for U.S. petroleum products overseas following Russia's invasion of Ukraine
> The U.S. is exporting 6.3 MMBbls of refined products daily, up 25% year-on-year < We are also exporting SPR oil to Europe, which I doubt that the American people would approve of since Biden's reason for draining the SPR was to reduce U.S. gasoline prices.

The US Dollar Index recently rose 0.8 percent, reaching a 20-year high (BBG)
> A stronger dollar is bearish for crude prices or any other dollar-denominated commodities as it requires less units of currency to purchase the same goods
> "With the Fed poised to increase rates by 50 basis points [next week], with the possibility of a 75-basis point increase, it would seem highly unlikely that we have seen the last of new multi-year increases in the dollar," said Robert Yawger, executive director of energy futures at Mizuho Securities

Continental Resources, Hess, and Matador Resources signaled plans to raise production from U.S. shale basins
> This additional production is minimal on its own, but if other public and private operators follow suit, it might signal that U.S. shale is moving up to alleviate the global crude supply crisis and capitalize on the $100/bbl price
> Exxon Mobil and Chevron to report earnings on April 29

Natural Gas

The prompt-month (Jun' 22) gas contract is down by 12.5c this morning in its first session as the prompt contract, near $7.142
> The May '22 Henry Hub contract rallied 41.7c yesterday to expire at $7.267
> Lower-48 dry gas production is down by 2.0 Bcf/d since last Friday, at 92 Bcf/d, with the northeast region accounting for 0.91 Bcf/d of the fall, and the Rockies region, 0.82 Bcf/d
> LNG feedgas demand is at around 12.9 Bcf/d. Freeport LNG flows are increasing finally, as maintenance on T1 wraps up
> Canadian imports are down by almost 2 Bcf/d, thanks to pipeline maintenance. The maintenance should only last two days, but Gas Transmission Northwest (GTNW) has extensive work planned for May

The EIA is expected to report an injection of 42 Bcf for the week ending April 22 (Platts)
> Responses to the survey ranged from 35 Bcf to 50 Bcf
> It would also contrast the five-year average injection of 53 Bcf, and the 18 Bcf addition reported during the corresponding week in 2021
> Current inventory levels would fall to 1.492 Tcf, while the deficit to last year would narrow to 404 Bcf, and the deficit to the five-year average would expand to 303 Bcf

The European Commission is advising European Union countries to refuse any Russian demands to pay for its contracted gas in Roubles (Reuters)
> The commission said that countries should stick to the euro or dollar currencies in their existing gas contracts with Russia and not pay for gas in roubles
> Austrian energy group OMV, one of the largest importers of Russian gas, is preparing to open Rouble accounts at Gazprombank in Switzerland
> Germany's Uniper will transfer payments for Russian gas to a Russian bank and no longer to a Europe-based bank, the power utility said on Thursday
> EU energy ministers are meeting on Monday to discuss the situation, which has divided member states
> Italian energy group Eni has yet to make a decision regarding Russian demands and is waiting for clarity on whether it amounts to a breach of sanctions, according to Reuters

[Fraser921]

Now that NG has settled yesterday at 7.276 yesterday , it's down to 7.053 down 22.3 cents...hmmmm

[mikelp]

+40 Bcf

let's light this candle

[dan_s]

Closing Prices:
> Prompt-Month WTI (Jun 22) was up $3.34 on the day, to settle at $105.36
> Prompt-Month Henry Hub (Jun 22) was down $-0.379 on the day, to settle at $6.888