Shale Boom Shines Light On Natural-Gas Liquids -- WSJ, October 30, 2014

This really is quite remarkable.

For newbies, two data points:

• the Bakken is an oil play, not a gas play; 90% - 95% of hydrocarbons coming out of the Bakken is crude oil, not gas
• however, 5% to 10% of a gazillion boe is still a lot of natural gas 
• the second data point: Bakken natural-gas liquid is said to be particularly "rich"

Now the WSJ is reporting:

An unsung byproduct of oil and natural-gas production is getting more attention from hedge funds and investors as they seek new ways to bet on the U.S. shale boom.

Natural-gas liquids, which include ethane, propane, butane, isobutane and natural gasoline, are separated out from crude oil and natural gas. They are known as the fuels in propane grills and butane lighters and as feedstocks to make plastics and chemicals. Until recently, they attracted little investor consideration.

Feedstock.

Remember that word.

Regular readers are aware of the $4 billion significance.

Let's see if the article mentions the Bakken. Nope.

Other comments from the article:

“I don’t think the market really truly appreciates just what [NGLs] can do” for oil-and-gas producers, added Mr. MacDonald, who manages the $1.4 billion Invesco Energy Fund.

“I’m actually beginning to move some of my businesses more into the NGL side because of the demand,” said Steve Reese, chief executive of Reese Energy Consulting and Reese Energy Training in Edmond, Okla., who said he is planning to start a propane business. “The trading activity has definitely increased.”

It helps that unlike oil and natural gas, NGLs can easily be exported overseas, where prices are higher. Connections to the global market make it less likely NGLs will meet the same fate as natural gas, which saw prices crash when production swamped U.S. demand. NGLs fetch an average of $9.94 a million British thermal units, more than double the price of natural gas.

Remember: this is not an investment site. Do not make any financial, investment, relationship decisions or change any travel plans based on anything you read at this site or anything you think you might have read at this site. Perhaps this is a red flag:

The lack of transparency in the market is keeping OppenheimerFunds Inc. from trading NGLs, said George Zivic, portfolio manager for the $420 million Oppenheimer Commodity Strategy Total Return Fund.

“Unless you’re privy to what [producers and manufacturers] are doing on a month-to-month basis, you can really get squeezed,” Mr. Zivic said.