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The November wholesale exchange contract was higher yesterday by $0.028 on the day, settling at $3.598 after trading as low as $3.512 on the day. The meteorologist’s were having various opinions yesterday with some prognosticating that the 6-10 and 11-15 day forecasts would be warmer than normal in the major population centers in the Midwest and Northeast. Then at noontime one of the major models that they all use came out with some colder than normal scenario’s. This is the time of the year when everyone is looking a little bit more intently for cold weather to finally show up. On the overall economic picture, the financial markets have turned a short term corner and rallied over the last three days which gives some life to all other markets that is dependent on futuristic demand that is derived from the health of the economy.
The EIA storage figure came out with a 97 bcf storage injection yesterday which was above last year’s adjusted figure of 84 bcf and above the five year average of 74 bcf. Most energy traders (not traitors) expect the inventory shortfall compared to last year to narrow sharply this month, with some looking for three more triple-digit builds as mild weather slows demand. Early injection estimates for next week's EIA report range from 98 bcf to 113 bcf versus a year-ago build of 90 bcf and a five-year average increase for that week of 72 bcf. If weekly stock builds through October match the five-year average pace, inventories will begin next heating season with 3.608 tcf, 6 percent below last November's record high of 3.84 tcf but about flat with the average for that time of year. With six weeks left in the stock building season, most analysts expect storage to peak this year at about 3.7 tcf.
On the innovative front, ConEdison Solutions and Viridity Energy announced yesterday that they are working together on a major, new energy demand response offering through the introduction of "energy optimization," a first-to-market, automated, revenue-generating, energy management offering. The service, an enhancement to traditional demand response jointly marketed by ConEdison Solutions and Viridity Energy allows energy users to effectively transform themselves into energy suppliers (a virtual power plant) when market conditions present such opportunities. Customers will have the ability to generate revenue year-round by taking advantage of changes in energy market prices. Specifically, when prices rise, energy users will be able to reduce consumption and then benefit from ConEdison Solutions' and Viridity Energy's ability to sell the energy curtailment back into the market. In essence, the customer opportunistically becomes an energy supplier, deriving revenues from its ability to limit energy usage automatically enabled by the ConEdison Solutions/Viridity Energy team. The marginal reductions in energy use are managed in a way that should minimize any impact on customer convenience and comfort. To implement "Energy Optimization," ConEdison Solutions and Viridity Energy will integrate intelligent software with a customer's building management system and other control devices. They will then control the client's energy-consuming equipment, based on protocols previously agreed to by the client, when a demand response event occurs or when economic market opportunities present themselves. Customers will incur no up-front cost for the installation of the technology.
On the efficiency front, a public school in Virginia is going to be run on methane gas from the local landfill. The landfill closed in 1996 and produces enough methane to power the school for 10 years, according to the spokesperson. The city purchased a $656,000 waste-to-energy plant for the landfill last year, said Reed Fowler, director of Newport News public works. In addition to Passage, it intends to power the new Stoney Run Community Center in Denbigh and ball fields near Passage with landfill gas, he said. According to a draft agreement reviewed by the board Tuesday, the school system would buy the methane gas from the city's public works department. To begin the process, a boiler at the school needs to be converted so it can process methane gas rather than fuel from Virginia Natural Gas. The conversion will cost about $45,000, Webb said, and the city will pick up the tab in the form of billing credits to the school system. Using landfill gas requires transmitting it through a machine that scrubs out impurities, compresses it, adds oxygen to it and pumps it to the school, Webb said. Passage was chosen for the environmentally-friendly initiative because it borders the landfill. If the agreement moves forward, the school would use about 85 percent methane gas and 15 percent natural gas to heat its building. The transition should begin by late December.
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