By the OGJ Online Staff
HOUSTON, Mar. 14 -- Energy futures were mixed Wednesday as traders digested bullish reports of lower US petroleum inventories and prepared for the meeting Friday of ministers from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in Vienna.
OPEC's ministerial monitoring subcommittee is meeting Thursday to prepare a report on the world oil market for Friday's session. Members of that subcommittee include the energy ministers of Iran, Kuwait, and Nigeria, in addition to OPEC Secretary Gen. Alí Rodríguez Araque.
Although not members of OPEC, representatives from Russia, Mexico, Oman, Egypt, Angola, and Syria also are scheduled to attend Friday's meeting.
The April contract for benchmark US sweet, light crudes dipped 4¢ to $24.16/bbl Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while the May contract slipped 1¢ to $24.54/bbl. Both positions continued to decline to $23.90/bbl and $24.27/bbl, respectively, in after-hours electronic trading.
Heating oil for April delivery gained 1.33¢ to 64.82¢/gal. Unleaded gasoline for the same month was up 0.66¢ to 79.2¢/gal. But the April natural gas contract lost 14.8¢ to $2.87/Mcf on the NYMEX.
The American Gas Association reported Wednesday 140 bcf of natural gas was withdrawn from US underground storage last week, compared with withdrawals of 132 bcf the previous week and 74 bcf during the same period a year ago.
Robert Morris of Salomon Smith Barney Inc. is still projecting a 2% decline in US gas production this year, despite the start up of several deepwater projects. If not for an expected increase in deepwater gas, Morris said, total US gas production would drop 3%.
Over the long run, he said, US gas market fundamentals remain tight, reviving interest in alternative supplies such as LNG and stranded gas reserves in the Arctic and offshore Nova Scotia.
Earlier this week, the American Petroleum Institute reported US refineries set a gasoline production record of more than 8 million b/d during February. As a result, gasoline deliveries were up 3%, for the largest single increase since last July.
In London, the April contract for North Sea Brent crude settled at $23.89/bbl, up 19¢ for the day after trading in a range of $23.60-24.25/bbl on the International Petroleum Exchange. The April natural gas contract also inched up 0.72¢ to the equivalent of $2.23/Mcf on the IPE.
Brokers said the IPE oil market remains poised for additional rallies on any fresh bullish news. If OPEC and non-OPEC producers quickly confirm their commitment to continue curbs on oil production and exports through the second quarter, IPE oil futures prices could stabilize near $24/bbl, they said.