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The July natural gas wholesale contract rebounded Friday after a sharp decline on Thursday, as energy traders bet that hot weather in the coming weeks would lift demand for the power-plant fuel to cool homes and businesses. The July natural gas wholesale contract rose 8.9 cents, or 1.9%, to $4.763 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It seems that the weather forecasts for the middle of the month came in and these weather models are latching onto resiliency of intense heat across the South and are trending warmer across most of the Midwest and East in the 6-10 day period and beyond through late June. While lingering plus 90° heat currently in the mid Atlantic region will finally moderate for much in the upcoming week, the southern Plains will only get hotter, and this above average warmth remains forecast to return into the northeastern quadrant of the country in a less intense form (80s) during the 6-10 day period.
On the deregulated front this morning, state energy regulators have fined a Connecticut electricity supplier $100,000 after finding that it engaged in deceptive marketing practices, the Maryland Public Service Commission announced Friday. The commission also ordered North American Power and Gas to undertake a series of measures, including suspending all telemarketing activities in Maryland, to retain its license. The commission, responding to a complaint filed by its staff, held a hearing and concluded that NAP's advertisements contained four deceptive statements, such as there is "no contract to sign"; that NAP falsely stated that its terms and conditions were approved by state regulators; and that NAP failed to provide a "complete and accurate" price description in its terms and conditions, as well as the required PSC's toll-free number and Web address for complaints. NAP began service in March 2010 and has more than 100,000 customers in Maryland, Connecticut, New York and Pennsylvania. In Maryland, consumers can shop around for electricity and choose a supplier other than their area's traditional utility. Some 16 percent of Maryland's nearly 2 million residential customers have signed up with an alternative supplier as of April, according to the PSC's most recent data (sounds like a marketing opportunity with so many unsigned folks in Maryland). Under state law, alternative electricity providers must be licensed by the PSC.
In the state of Connecticut this morning, Connecticut electricity retailers and buyers say it will be years before it is known whether the energy-overhaul measure passed this week will deliver savings or send utility bills even higher in one of the most expensive markets in the nation. The 200-plus page bill that passed the Legislature and is expected to be signed by the Governor creates an energy and environmental regulatory authority called the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. The new regulator and the powers being granted to it will affect all persons in the state as it will enforce air and water standards and monitor the businesses that provide water, electricity, telecommunications and natural gas. Supporters of the bill say it will create a more competitive environment with fewer regulatory costs. But on the electricity side there is special concern, as the state embarks on another major policy change following the rocky rollout of deregulation that spanned years dating back to 1999. Manufacturers are among the largest users of electricity in the state, which has lost businesses due to energy prices. One of the most public examples was in 2007, when a large fruit manufacturing operation moved its operations from Bridgeport to Philadelphia, in part because electricity prices were lower in Pennsylvania. At 16.36 cents per kilowatt hour, the cost of electricity in Connecticut is the second highest in the nation, according to the U.S. Department of Energy with the national average at 11.64 cents.
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