Daily News Energy Headlines from April 6, 2017

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News highlights gathered by Industrial Info and IIR Energy (Sugar Land, Texas) dealing with the energy markets.

CRUDE OIL
Canadian Heavy Higher on Cut Oil Sands Production - Two oil sands producers in northern Alberta have cut production at their facilities due to a shortage of synthetic crude, market sources said on Thursday, helping send Canadian heavy crude prices surging higher. Synthetic supplies are scarce following a fire at the 350,000 barrel-per-day Syncrude plant in March that damaged the facility and forced the operator to bring forward maintenance and cut production for April to zero. (Reuters)

Crude Futures Climb Despite U.S. Stockpiles - Crude advanced to a one-month high on Thursday, despite reports of a new record high in U.S. stockpiles on Wednesday. Futures climbed 1.1% in New York. West Texas Intermediate for May delivery rose 55 cents to settle at $51.70 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. (Bloomberg)

NATURAL GAS
Natural Gas Market Remains Volatile: Too Much Supply Still Chasing Too Little Demand - For U.S. natural gas producers, this could be as good as it gets for the next few years. A weak winter heating season has caused one consulting firm, Drillinginfo Incorporated (Austin, Texas), to sharply reduce its average gas price forecast for 2017. In November 2016, the firm forecasted gas prices at Henry Hub would average $4.25 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) for 2017. That forecast assumed normal winter weather. But the just-concluded winter heating season was significantly warmer than normal, causing Drillinginfo to lower its 2017 price forecast to $3.50 per MMBtu, an 18% decline. (IIR)

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Energy asset information on power plants, oil refineries and natural gas infrastructure is now more important than ever. A unit of Industrial Info Resources, IIR Energy provides infrastructure information on these assets, as well as real-time tracking of planned and unplanned interruptions affecting the trading, logistics and marketing communities. We are the number one source for information about electricity outages, refinery turnarounds and midstream natural gas disruptions.

About Industrial Info
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.