Updates
August 18, 2020: See comments. I'm still curious what might explain the record increase in US natural gas storage -- broke through the five-year maximum. See graph below. Some suggest it may be due to decreased usage due to warmer temps in/along the mid-Atlantic states this past winter. That may be be an important contributor but the EIA graph would not have predicted that back in the winter of 2019 - 2020. A google search (US natural gas storage at all-time record) suggests the major reason for the US natural gas underground storage breaking through the five-year maximum was due to less LNG exports.
Good news: it appears exports are forecast to rise again, resulting in a jump in natural gas prices.
Original Post
I find this incredible and for the most part, being reported nowhere in the mainstream media and I doubt most Americans are even aware of this.
From the most recent issue of Focus on Fracking (edited):
The natural gas storage report from the EIA for the week ending August 7th indicated that the quantity of natural gas held in underground storage in the US
- rose by 58 billion cubic feet to 3,332 billion cubic feet by the end of the week:
- which left our gas supplies 608 billion cubic feet, or 22.3% greater than the storage same time one year ago; and,
- 15.3% above the five-year average for the same week.
The 58 billion cubic feet that were added to US natural gas storage this week:
- was more than the average 51 billion cubic feet increase that was forecast by analysts polled by S&P Global Platts;
- more than the 51 billion cubic feet addition of natural gas to storage during the corresponding week of 2019; and,
- it was well above the average of 44 billion cubic feet of natural gas that has been added to natural gas storage during the same week over the past 5 years.
From the EIA (a dynamic link):
Working gas in storage was 3,332 Bcf as of Friday, August 7, 2020, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 58 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 608 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 443 Bcf above the five-year average of 2,889 Bcf. At 3,332 Bcf, total working gas is above the five-year historical range.
