EUCI Blog

Energize Weekly, March 6, 2019 U.S. shale operators face a cash pinch in 2019 as rising debt servicing will leave them with “barely” enough cash to pay dividends, according to an analysis by Oslo, Norway-based Rystad Energy. “Indebted shale exploration and production companies (E&Ps) spent the second half of 2018 reducing their leverage ratios,” according…

Energize Weekly, March 6, 2019 Extreme cold at the end of January pushed Midwest natural gas consumption to record levels and near-record levels for electricity demand on Jan. 31—the single coldest day when temperatures dropped to as low as minus 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Natural gas, the primary heating fuel in the region, hit a record…

Energize Weekly, February 27, 2019 Montana-Dakota Utilities (MDU) said it will close three aging coal-fired generation units in the next three years, replacing the capacity with cheaper natural gas-fired and wind generation. “Low-cost power available on the market, due to low-cost natural gas and increasing wind resources, as well as rising costs to operate these…

Energize Weekly, February 20, 2019 A surge in global oil production while demand remains relatively stable will leave markets struggling to absorb production in 2019, according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) monthly market forecast. The IEA raised its estimate for crude oil production growth in 2019 to 1.8 million barrels a day (MBPD) from…

Energize Weekly, February 13, 2019 Oil and coal, once the dominant sources of electricity generation in New England, have all but disappeared, primarily replaced by natural gas, according to ISO New England, the region’s grid operator. Since 2000, coal’s share of energy production has dropped to 1 percent from 18 percent, and oil is now…

Energize Weekly, February 6, 2019 The United States will become a net-energy exporter by 2020—as crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids production surpasses domestic energy consumption, according to a forecast by the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). The last time the U.S. was an exporter was in 1953. The U.S. has been an…

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 Brent oil prices will rise to $61 a barrel in 2019 and $65 a barrel in 2020, while natural gas prices will remain below 2018 levels for both years, according to federal Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts. West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices will average about $8 a barrel lower…

Energize Weekly, January 23, 2019 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has launched programs to find new markets for coal and boost oil recovery from shale plays. Under the Maximizing the Coal Value Chain program, $9.5 million in federal cost-sharing funds will be available for developing ways to improve coal as a fuel, as a…

Energize Weekly, January 16, 2019 New natural gas-fired generation capacity in 2018 accounted for nearly three-quarters of the total 24,808 megawatts (MW) installed for the year—and was double the amount of gas-fired capacity installed in 2017, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. The 18,550 MW of natural gas-fired capacity more than offset the 16,900…

Energize Weekly, January 16, 2019 U.S. carbon dioxide emissions linked to energy use rose for the first time in three years in 2018—with all sectors from power generation to manufacturing to home heating—posting increases. There was a 3.4 percent increase in emissions, according to a study by the Rhodium Group, an energy and economic analytics…

Energize Weekly, January 16, 2019 Natural disasters worldwide caused $160 billion in damage and killed 10,400 people in 2018, making it the fourth mostly costly year for the insurance industry since 1980, according to the international insurer Swiss Re Group. “The indications at the start of 2018 were that it would be a more moderate…

Energize Weekly, January 9, 2019 Energy commodity prices—hit by a weak oil market—fell 21 percent in the last quarter of 2018 after having been strong for most of the year, according to in the S&P Goldman Sachs Commodity Index (GSCI). It was the first time since 2015 that crude oil prices ended the year lower…