Platts pre-report analyst survey suggests US EIA data to show a 145-to 149-Bcf Bcf withdrawal in natural gas stocks
Washington - December 29, 2010
The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) is expected Thursday to report a withdrawal of between 145 and 149 billion cubic feet (Bcf) from gas storage stocks for the week ending December 24, according to a Platts survey of analysts.
A draw within those estimates would be larger than the 130 Bcf reported in the same week of 2009 and the five-year-average pull of 118 Bcf. As a result, the 56-Bcf storage deficit to last year is likely to expand while the 264-Bcf surplus to the five-year average is expected to narrow.
Beyond the consensus, analysts’ estimates for the latest reporting week ranged from withdrawals of 135 Bcf to 187 Bcf.
"This week's number should be smaller than last week's (184 Bcf) thanks to milder weather – especially during the middle of the work week," said Kent Bayazitoglu, an analyst at Gelber & Associates. "If January starts off mild, as some forecasters think it will, a year-over-year surplus will ensue and storage will be at record levels for that time of year.”
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This analyst survey is conducted by Platts’ editorial team in Washington, DC and is published every Wednesday morning, one day ahead of the 10:30 a.m. (ET) Thursday release of the weekly natural gas storage report of the U. Energy Information Administration. Platts has been conducting this survey since January 2007. The survey includes 15 to 25 analysts, some on a rotational basis.
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