CANADIAN GAS CURTAILMENTS SEEN

A cold snap this winter could trigger curtailment of Canadian natural gas deliveries to some customers, say industry officials in Alberta.

Scotty Cameron, president of Pan Alberta Gas Ltd., a gas marketing unit of Nova Corp., says the Nova pipeline system, which moves gas to Alberta export points, is currently full.

Nova also reported a 22% increase in volumes carried in its system for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with the same period in 1991.

And the Alberta Energy Department said customers with interruptible contracts could face brief gas flow interruptions.

Meanwhile, Ziff Energy Group, a Calgary industry research firm, says it plans a comprehensive study of Alberta productive capacity, pipeline capacity, and demand. It will focus on 170 gas fields in Alberta.

SUPPLY CONCERNS

Cameron said Pan Alberta normally moves a maximum of 1.2 bcfd in November but is now moving 1.5 bcfd, and other shippers are moving record volumes.

That likely won't pose a problem for buyers with firm contracts, but there could be concern for those with interruptible contracts, he said.

Cameron also noted there has not been an interruption in deliveries for 7 8 years, but he contends supply and demand are now almost in balance.

Rick Hyndman, an assistant deputy energy minister, said buyers in a deregulated market have been unwilling to pay high enough prices to guarantee deliveries in peak demand periods. He said buyers may have to switch occasionally to alternate fuels for brief periods.

THIRD QUARTER VOLUMES

Nova shipped 822 bcf of gas in the third quarter on its Alberta system compared with 674 bcf for the same period last year.

Increased export volumes to markets in the U.S. and Central Canada via deliveries to Alberta border points were responsible for the increase.

Total export volumes from Alberta were up 16.8% for the first 9 months compared with 1991. There was a 21% increase in export volumes to Central Canada and the U.S. East and a 19.3% increase to the U.S. Midwest.

The company said volumes in the first 9 months totaled 2.47 tcf, up 13% from the same period in 1991.

Nova plans capital spending of $500 million (Canadian)/year through 1995 to meet demand for system expansion. The company has recorded annual increases in throughput the past 5 years.