据美国彭博新闻社2022年4月18日报道，美国天然气价格飙升至13年来高位，国内强劲的需求考验着美国页岩气钻井商扩大供应的能力。
纽约天然气期货价格4月18日一度上涨4.8%，至每百万英热单位7.652美元，超过1月份的做空挤压涨幅，比年初水平约翻了一倍。
天然气价格上一次达到如此高位是在2008年，当时飓风威胁着墨西哥湾的海上天然气平台，炎热的夏季天气推高了空调用电需求。 当时，在历史性的全球金融危机到来之前，更广泛的经济前景变得黯淡，价格才开始下跌。
今年天然气价格上涨是由全球燃料短缺推动的。全球燃料短缺正在波及各个市场，供应商难以应对疫情后的消费激增，军事冲突进一步加剧了这一局面。 由于页岩气储量丰富，美国天然气价格一直远低于欧洲和亚洲，但这一折扣一直在缩小。
地下洞穴的备用天然气库存量低于往年同期的正常水平，产量持平。与此同时，美国正在出口所有可能的液化天然气，以帮助欧洲减少对能源大国供应的依赖。
据美国国家海洋和大气管理局预测，从4月25日到5月1日，美国北部部分地区的气温将低于正常水平。这可能会增加对供热和发电厂燃料的需求，导致通常在每年这个时候被储存起来的供应分流。 美国煤炭短缺也推动了天然气价格上涨，限制了发电企业转换燃料的能力。
美国能源情报署(EIA)上周公布，截至4月8日当周，美国天然气库存增加了150亿立方英尺，但不到过去五年平均增幅的一半。 美国天然气库存仍比正常水平低18%。
李峻 编译自 美国彭博新闻社
原文如下：
USA Natural Gas Surges to 13 Year High
U.S. natural gas prices surged to a 13-year high as robust demand tests drillers’ ability to expand supplies.
Futures rose as much as 4.8% to $7.652 per million British thermal units on Monday in New York, topping January’s short squeeze rally and roughly double levels from the start of the year.
The last time prices were this high was 2008, when hurricanes menaced offshore gas platforms in the Gulf of Mexico and searing summer weather stoked demand for power to run air conditioners. Back then, prices only began to drop when the broader economic outlook turned dark ahead of the historic worldwide financial crisis.
This year’s gas rally has been driven by a global fuel crunch that’s rippling across markets as suppliers struggle to meet a post-pandemic surge in consumption, further exacerbated by war. While U.S. gas prices have remained well below rates in Europe and Asia thanks to a bounty of shale fields, that discount has been shrinking.
Backup inventories held in underground caverns and aquifers are below normal for this time of year and production is holding flat. Meanwhile, the U.S. is exporting every molecule of liquefied natural gas possible to help Europe reduce its reliance on energy supplies.
Below-normal temperatures are forecast across parts of the northern U.S. from April 25 to May 1, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. That could increase demand for the heating and power-plant fuel, diverting supply that normally goes to storage during this time of year. A shortage of coal in the U.S. has also helped fuel the gas rally, limiting power generators’ ability to switch fuels.
Inventories grew by 15 billion cubic feet in the week ended April 8, less than half the average gain for the period over the past five years, the Energy Information Administration said last week. Stockpiles remain almost 18% below usual levels.
免责声明：本网转载自其它媒体的文章，目的在于弘扬科技创新精神，传递更多科技创新信息，宣传国家科技政策，展示国家科技形象，增强国家科技软实力，参与国际科技舆论竞争，提高国际科技话语权，并不代表本网赞同其观点和对其真实性负责，在此我们谨向原作者和原媒体致以崇高敬意。如果您认为本网文章及图片侵犯了您的版权，请与我们联系，我们将第一时间删除。
