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On Wednesday, March 3, Jerry Burin and I will be attending the North American Energy Conference sponsored by Enbridge Gas Services. This annual event, to be held this year at the Westin Lombard Yorktown Center, provides background on the U.S. natural gas market—where it has been, where it is now, and where it may be going. The first of two scheduled keynote speakers is a director from the American Gas Association. He is expected to provide fundamental analysis of natural gas supply, demand, production, and consumption. The second speaker, a vice president from United ICAP, is expected to provide a technical and financial perspective on the natural gas market and the economy as a whole. Previous conferences have provided a wealth of information. This year, it will be particularly interesting to hear what the speakers may have to say about prospects for climate legislation, including cap-and-trade. Over the past few years, the natural gas market has certainly been in flux. Prices rose to multi-year highs in t ...

  After the holidays, some people can’t wait for spring’s arrival, while others are enjoying the chill in the air and snow on the ground. The middle of winter is also an important time to examine oil and natural gas markets, understand how weather has impacted them, and speculate about where they could be headed for the remainder of the season.   Based on my analysis of leading industry information, we can expect near-term upward pressure on oil prices in the face of continuing cold weather, a weakened dollar, optimistic economic data, and geopolitical issues. Monthly employment numbers announced at the end of this week could, however, lead to a sell-off and drop in prices if the figures are surprisingly negative.   Severe cold across much of the U.S. has contributed to higher heating prices than predicted before we headed into winter two months ago—regardless of whether heat is provided by oil, natural gas, or electricity. Expect short-term pressure on prices for January and February, but ...

Craig Sieben has remarked at Crain's Chicago Business on the development of wind energy in Illinois and its potential for helping advance a new energy economy