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Press Releases | |
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U.S. ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION EIA Reports Reclassification of Natural Gas in Underground StorageThe Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced today that 47 billion cubic feet of natural gas in underground storage has been reclassified from working gas to base gas. This change contributed to the level of 1,430 billion cubic of working gas in underground storage at the end of March 1999, the end of the 1998- 1999 heating season. The reclassified gas reduced the March level of working gas by about 3 percent from the 1,477 billion cubic feet it would have been. The revised end-of-March working gas level is 362 billion cubic feet lower than the level at the end of February 1999 and 245 billion cubic feet higher than the working gas level at the end of March 1998.
Base gas (or cushion gas) is the volume of gas needed as permanent inventory in a storage reservoir to maintain adequate pressure and deliverability. The amount of base gas required in a reservoir depends on how the operator intends to operate or manage the storage facility. Working gas is the volume of gas in the reservoir above the designed level of the base gas. It is gas that is temporarily stored in a reservoir with the express purpose of being withdrawn at a future date. Operators of underground storage facilities are required to report gas storage information each month to EIA. Periodically, underground storage companies may evaluate the physical operation of their facilities and these evaluations can result in the reclassification of gas. The March 1999 reclassification is a result of such an engineering evaluation by one company. Underground natural gas storage information is published in Natural Gas Monthly which is available on the EIA Internet site at: http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/natural_gas/data_publications/natural_gas_monthly/ngm.html Monthly storage data can also be automatically e-mailed each month by signing up for "Monthly Underground Natural Gas Storage" at: http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/email/index.htm#ng.
EIA Program Contact: Roy Kass, 202/586-4790 EIA-99-14 Contact:
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