Refiners Prep for Summer Driving Season

Refiners Prep for Summer Driving Season
Here is a preview of what to watch this this week in the oil and gas markets.

(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the attributed sources and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rigzone or the author.)

Inventories of U.S. gasoline and natural gas supplies will likely rank among some of the key focus areas this week in the oil and gas markets, according to one of Rigzone’s regular prognosticators. Keep reading for more details, along with a preview of other developments to watch for this week.

Tom Seng, Director – School of Energy Economics, Policy and Commerce, University of Tulsa’s Collins College of Business: The market will be dissecting the Biden administration’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan, as well as assessing the likelihood of its passage in the U.S. Congress. The spread of COVID-19 variants and lockdowns in Europe will remain a concern for energy demand. And, U.S. refiners have just two months to store-up gasoline for the summer driving season which commences at the end of May.

April 1st represented the start of the re-injection period for natural gas ahead of next winter. And, despite what will be viewed as a “harsh” winter, storage levels are only 2% below where they are normally on a five-year average. But, the re-injections can certainly provide some level of support for the next seven months.

Barani Krishnan, Senior Commodities Analyst, Investing.com: More volatility for certain. The one-way trade – up – that was seen in oil from end-October to mid-March is certainly over for now.

Jon Donnel, Managing Director, B. Riley Advisory Services: ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) reaffirmed its production and capital spending guidance for 2021 as first quarter came to an end. Operational and fiscal discipline was a theme on 4Q20 conference calls across the E&P and oilfield services industries, with production forecast to be flat in 2021 compared to 2020 exit levels on lower CAPEX, driving higher operating cash flows. Hopefully this confirmation, despite crude prices coming in higher than originally forecast, is the first of many as companies begin to report earnings over the next few weeks.

To contact the author, email mveazey@rigzone.com.



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