Energy Prospectus

Working gas in storage was 3,311 Bcf as of Friday, September 8, 2017, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 91 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 179 Bcf less than last year at this time and 43 Bcf above the five-year average of 3,268 Bcf. At 3,311 Bcf, total working gas is within the five-year historical range.

The hurricanes and mild weather across the eastern half of the U.S. lowered demand for power generation. Hurricane damage also lowered LNG exports.

The weather forecast (warmer than normal east of the Rockies) for second half of September should increase demand for power generation. Cheniere is ramping up LNG exports.

Hurricane Irma's Wrath Weighs On Natural Gas. The Oil Price. Hurricane Irma has left millions of people without power in Florida, a critical situation that could take a painfully long period of time to sort out. Estimates vary, but some 9 million people lost power during Hurricane Irma, according to the CEO of Florida Power & Light, the state’s largest utility.

For Gulf Coast LNG industry, 'cosmetic' storm damage equals success. E&E News. The natural gas export industry came through the one-two punch of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma with minimal damage, with the U.S.'s only currently operating export terminal producing through the storms and minimal reported damage at facilities under construction. Sabine Pass LNG, a liquefied natural gas import-export terminal just east of the Texas-Louisiana border that began shipping LNG early last year, suffered minor "cosmetic" damage following landfall of Harvey, according to a spokesman. "We were very fortunate as a company that we sustained only minor cosmetic impacts and kept operating throughout the storm," said Cheniere Energy Inc. spokesman Eben Burnham-Snyder. "Our facility was designed, engineered and constructed to withstand and operate through challenging weather events that can occur along the Gulf Coast."