Pacific Northwest Gas Market Outlook Natural Gas Supply, Prices, Demand Calgary
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Fort Liard Fort Nelson Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin Fort St. 2020 John Pacific Northwest Gas Market Outlook Natural Gas Supply, Prices, Demand Calgary and Infrastructure Projections Vancouver Avista Utilities Cascade Natural Gas Intermountain Gas through October 2029 Victoria Sumas North Kingsgate FortisBC Energy NW Natural MONTANA Puget Sound Energy This report, compiled by the Northwest Gas Association Seattle Spokane Wenatchee FortisBC System (NWGA), provides a consensus industry perspective on Enbridge BC Pipeline TC Energy GTN the current and projected natural gas supply, prices, TC Energy NGTL Williams Northwest Pipeline demand and delivery capabilities in the Pacific Northwest Other Pipelines Portland through the 2028/29 heating year (Nov-Oct). Rocky Mountain For purposes of this report, the Pacific Northwest includes Basin I D A H O British Columbia (BC), Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Bend Boise O R E G O N W Y O M I N G Additional information can be found at www.nwga.org. Pocatello Medford Malin Klamath Falls Salt Lake City C A L I F O R N I A N E V A D A U T A H NORTHWEST GAS ASSOCIATION 2 0 2 0 O U T L O O K OVERVIEW The Value of Natural Gas in the Pacific Northwest This Outlook contains two new What does natural gas offer to the region? sidebars exploring the timely • Warmth and comfort to 10 million people topics of RNG and carbon • Efficient and affordable space heating, water heating, and heat for cooking and laundry (gas emissions. The RNG sidebar heat is about one-third the cost of electric heat) summarizes current regional efforts • More than half of the total energy consumed in the region – either used directly for space and to capture renewable gas sources water heat or in industrial processes, or as gas-generated electricity. (Excludes transportation from landfills, agricultural waste and wastewater treatment plants, and some of the policies helping uses.) to drive RNG project development. Our carbon • A low carbon footprint – natural gas used for space and water heat in 3.2 million homes emissions discussion takes a frank look at the natural and more than 300,000 non-industrial businesses accounts for less than 10 percent of the gas emissions stream from production to delivery, region’s total carbon emissions, according to EIA data and state and provincial emissions providing data and perspective on a hotly contested inventories issue. • 128,000 miles of installed pipeline infrastructure that safely and reliably delivers energy, This year’s report also combines the Supply and supplemented by underground and above-ground storage facilities capable of delivering Prices discussion into one Market Fundamentals up to 40 percent of required energy during the coldest days section. To ensure the Outlook provides a complete • An invaluable input to some industrial processes for which there is no suitable substitute, picture, we are continuing to provide current data including glass recycling and the manufacture of perlite (a common soil additive), steel and and narrative on supply and prices, but largely as aluminum, paper products and food processing, among many others background information because North American • An alternate fuel source for medium and heavy-duty vehicles that is both more economical natural gas supply will continue to be an ample, and cleaner than diesel engines (see sidebar on natural gas vehicles [NGVs] on p. 10) low-priced commodity for the foreseeable future. • Reliable 24/7 electricity production to replace retired coal plant generation and balance However, where the Outlook truly provides the region’s growing sources of intermittent renewable power, such as wind and solar value – aggregating and analyzing regional demand and delivery infrastructure data to inform And our source of natural gas is increasingly renewable itself – market forces and policymakers and other stakeholders throughout government policy are driving the development of renewable natural gas (RNG; see the Northwest – remains the report’s core focus. sidebar on p. 7), which transforms human and agricultural waste into useful energy. This Updated numbers and our forecast are presented provides even greater prospects for a cleaner mix of natural gas resources to contribute to our in the Demand section and an expanded Capacity energy and environmental future. section, and in the appendices. NORTHWEST GAS ASSOCIATION 2 0 2 0 O U T L O O K • Page 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY IN THIS REPORT, we examine the Supply: North American natural gas supply is projected to remain abundant Natural gas will be amply dynamics affecting Pacific for the foreseeable future, despite pressures from continuing low prices. The available for several supply basins on which the Pacific Northwest depends have demonstrated Northwest natural gas generations to come consumers. The Outlook that the resource will be amply available for several generations to come. relies primarily on external, publicly Prices: The relentless quest to drive production costs lower is Economical operations available resources allowing producers to operate economically even in a low-price allow production to for information on environment. Natural gas spot prices at Henry Hub (2017 real US$) are continue at low prices continental natural projected to remain below $5/dekatherm (Dth) until 2050.1 Higher oil gas supply prospects prices also support drilling operations in fields that contain associated and commodity prices, most natural gas supplies. notably the U.S. Energy Information Demand: The forecast growth rate for natural gas use in the region across all sectors Forecast growth in the Administration’s (EIA) 2020 Annual Energy is 1.0 percent/year, about the same as in the last Outlook (1.1 percent/yr.). Forecast residential, commercial Outlook and the Canada Energy Regulator's demand growth in the residential and commercial sectors is slightly less, while industrial and power generation Canada’s Energy Future 2019. demand growth has dropped by half (from 0.5 to 0.2 percent/yr.). Demand for natural gas to generate electricity is forecast to grow slightly, mostly when coal-fired generation sectors is comparable to Regional demand and capacity data are plants are retired in the region. last year's forecast drawn from NWGA member company planning processes, including the most Capacity: NWGA members are constantly evaluating whether there is enough Capacity is sufficient recent Integrated Resource Plans that our pipeline capacity to transport the gas from where it is produced (hundreds of miles with continued members have filed with utility commissions away) to where it is needed and whether we have enough storage capacity to serve throughout the region. loads during the coldest weather. The current answer is yes, as long as infrastructure is infrastructure operating at its maximum total capacity, and storage levels are high. At this time, organic operation at maximum regional growth doesn’t require any new capacity. However, the lead time to bring capacity infrastructure into service is approaching five years, so vigilance remains important. 1EIA AEO, January 2020. Page 2 • NORTHWEST GAS ASSOCIATION 2 0 2 0 O U T L O O K REGIONAL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK Dr. Grant Forsyth, Chief Economist, Avista Corp IN 2020 the U.S. and Canada are facing the most uncertain economic pricing in at least one, maybe two, 0.25 percent rate cuts by the end of 2020. This outlook since America’s expansion started over a decade ago. In both suggests financial markets, unlike the Fed, are less sure that the three rate cuts in 2019 countries, consumers will ultimately decide whether or not North America will be sufficient stimulus for the economy going forward. In contrast, the BOC has falls into an outright recession or continues with lower, non-recessionary held its overnight rate unchanged since October 2018, but has acknowledged growth. consumer spending and housing activity must be closely monitored in 2020. In 2019, U.S. GDP growth was 2.3 percent in the U.S. Canadian GDP More regionally, the Pacific Northwest (Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and British data through the third quarter of 2019 suggests that Canadian growth Columbia) continued to be relatively strong performers in 2019. Employment growth will be around 1.6 percent. However, given weak business investment, in ID-OR-WA combined was 1.9 percent in 2019. Although better than the U.S., it was limited fiscal stimulus, and disrupted international trade, should the slowest growth since 2012. Assuming the correlation between the U.S. and consumers falter, there would be little to stop a recession-like ID-OR-WA holds, then the combined growth of these states should be between 1 slowdown. Specifically, the emergence of the coronavirus is just percent and 1.5 percent in 2020. Thanks to the service sector, BC’s employment the type of shock that could cause both consumers and growth has been unexpectedly strong in 2019—growth was 2.6 percent. However, businesses to pull-back in 2020. the 2020 consensus forecast is for BC’s growth to drop to around 1 percent. Perhaps Averaging across forecasters, both U.S. and Canadian BC can manage another growth surprise in 2020. GDP growth in 2020 is expected to be just under 2 In addition to the coronavirus, it’s useful to consider other shocks that might percent, assuming consumer spending does not slow weaken household and business spending in 2020. One could be a sharp correction significantly. If the U.S. forecast is accurate, this will be in North American equity prices due to a worsening global trade war or a contentious the lowest growth rate for the U.S. since 2013. 2020 U.S. presidential election. A contentious election could create enough policy Inflation rates in both countries are expected to uncertainty that households and businesses pull back on spending. Finally, a hover near the 2 percent target maintained by both significant political crisis outside the U.S.