Light, sweet crude oil prices declined slightly to settle at just above $45/bbl lower on the New York market Sept. 30 after weekly inventory statistics showed a build in US oil and product inventories.
The market was choppy, starting out Sept. 30 with crude oil prices climbing based on reports of a hurricane threatening the East Coast from North Carolina to New York. The US National Hurricane Center tracked Hurricane Joaquin on Oct. 1, saying it was expected to make landfall next week.
But crude oil dropped on the New York market before closing after the US Energy Information Administration estimated oil supplies increased 4 million bbl for the week ended Sept. 25 compared with the previous week. That latest total was reported at 457.9 million bbl (OGJOnline, Sept. 30, 2015).
For natural gas in underground storage across the Lower 48, EIA estimated levels at 3.5 tcf as of Sept. 25, which was a net increase of 98 bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 454 bcf higher than last year at this time and 152 bcf above the 5-year average of 3.38 tcf, the Gas Storage Report said Oct. 1.
Meanwhile, international oil analysts said Brent crude oil prices rose slightly on the London market Sept. 30, supported by news of Russian jets making air strikes against Islamic State targets in Syria.
A Bloomberg survey of oil companies and analysts showed output from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries fell in September by 233,000 b/d to 32.048 million b/d. The production drops came from Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Iraq.
Energy prices
The November crude oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange dropped 14¢ to $45.09/bbl on Sept. 30 while the December crude oil contract was down 8¢ to $45.56/bbl.
The natural gas contract for November dropped 62¢ to a rounded $2.52/MMbtu. The Henry Hub, La., gas price dropped 6¢ to $2.47/MMbtu.
Heating oil for October delivery gained 1.5¢ to a rounded $1.51/gal. The price for reformulated gasoline stock for oxygenates blending for October was up 2.6¢ to a rounded $1.39/gal.
The November ICE contract for Brent crude added 14¢ to $48.37/bbl, and the December contract gained 19¢ to settle at $49.05/bbl. ICE gas oil for October settled at $464/tonne, up $8.
The average price for the OPEC basket of 12 benchmark crudes was $43.58/bbl on Sept. 30, down 7¢ from the previous day.
Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].
*Paula Dittrick is editor of OGJ’s Unconventional Oil & Gas Report.
