For years, natural gas has been unloved and undervalued, a commodity whose price has faltered so badly that even some of it its biggest producers have written off the possibility of a comeback for nearly a decade.
But now, a growing number of observers say evidence is mounting that gas prices are nearing a turning point, and that the stage is being set for a revival as soon as the next few months.
A gas price recovery is “just a matter of when, not if,” said Peter Tertzakian, chief energy economist at Calgary-based ARC Financial. “It could be as early as this summer – but probably no later than the following winter. … The psyche of the gas market is going to start to change.”
The sudden optimism is driven by several factors. In the near term, forecasts of a hot summer are suggesting that demand for natural gas could surge for air conditioning. In the longer term, a recent U.S. initial approval for exports of liquefied natural gas has created expectations that demand from foreign markets, where gas is priced much higher, could help drive up domestic prices.
