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Platts, the leading global energy information provider and division of McGraw Hill Financial, yesterday introduced the first in a series of daily price assessments designed to help companies from producers to end users such as petrochemicals manufacturers to better understand price differentials and profitability factors in the U.S. shale natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) markets.
“Our new Shale Value Chain series seeks to quantify the close relationship between natural gas and NGL prices, put it into context and provide that value to market players striving to make business and trading decisions around that relationship,” said Samantha Santa Maria, Platts managing editor on North American natural gas. “Our new assessments, for example, enable gas producers to optimize margins, originators to determine which supply basin provides the most competitively priced raw products, and end-users to compare competing supply and fractionation sources.”
Platts’ Shale Value Chain consists initially of six daily price assessments, which were priced as noted at market close on May 19, 2014:
• Gulf Coast Ethane Fractionation Spread: The price differential between Mont Belvieu ethane and Platts’ benchmark Houston Ship Channel gas price. (-0.993 cents/gallon)
• Gulf Coast E/P Mix Fractionation Spread:The price differential between Mont Belvieu ethane/propane mix and the benchmark Houston Ship Channel gas price. (0.007 cents/gallon)
• E/P Mix Midcontinent to Rockies Fractionation Spread:The price differential between Conway ethane/propane and Platts’ Colorado Interstate gas price in the Rockies. (-0.481 cents/gallon)
• E/P Mix Midcontinent Fractionation Spread:The price differential between Conway ethane/propane and Platts’ benchmark Natural Gas Pipeline Co. of America, Midcontinent zone, gas price. (-1.345 cents/gallon)
• National Raw NGL Basket Price:The Raw NGL basket price is a national valuation of the total components of the NGL barrel. (90.680 cents/gallon)
• National Composite Fractionation Spread:The price differential between the National Raw NGL Basket price and the benchmark Houston Ship Channel gas price. (61.187 cents/gallon)
“Even while tightening today, the fractionation spreads clearly show that overall NGL recovery economics remain strong,” said Patrick Badgley, Platts associate editor, natural gas. “It is clear why producers continue to show interest in drilling in plays with a significant NGL presence.”
All six assessments are available as Platts’ new Shale Value Chain market data package, which contains historical data going back to January 1, 2011. They are also now available on Platts Gas Alert, a real time service, and in two Platts’ publications, Gas Daily and Oilgram Price Report.
By year-end, Platts expects to launch six additional Shale Value Chain assessments related to production from the Eagle Ford, Marcellus and Bakken shale plays.
To learn more about Platts’ new Shale Value Chain assessments and their market relevance, tune into a Platts.com podcast on May 21. Look for it in the Energy Spotlight Podcast Archives in the Platts.com News & Analysis section.
About Platts
Founded in 1909, Platts (platts.com) is a leading global provider of energy, petrochemicals, metals and agriculture information and a premier source of benchmark prices for the physical and futures markets. Platts' news, pricing, analytics, commentary and conferences help customers make better-informed trading and business decisions and help the markets operate with greater transparency and efficiency. Customers in more than 150 countries benefit from Platts’ coverage of the biofuels, carbon emissions, coal, electricity, oil, natural gas, metals, nuclear power, petrochemical, shipping and sugar markets. A division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Platts is headquartered in New York with approximately 900 employees in more than 15 offices worldwide.
About McGraw Hill Financial
McGraw Hill Financial (mhfi.com) is a leading financial intelligence company providing the global capital and commodity markets with independent benchmarks, credit ratings, portfolio and enterprise risk solutions, and analytics. The Company's iconic brands include Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, S&P Capital IQ, S&P Dow Jones Indices, Platts, CRISIL, J.D. Power and McGraw Hill Construction. The Company has approximately 17,000 employees in 29 countries.
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