FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

NWS Forecasts Thunderstorms in Central, Southern Plains, Mid-Atlantic; Hazardous Heat in South, West US

By

The US National Weather Service said there was a possibility of severe thunderstorms in the Mid-Atlantic through Tuesday, while the central/southern Plains were likely to experience severe thunderstorms and heavy rain on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Hazardous heat is likely to persist across the southern US and spread across the West through the middle of the week, while elevated to critical fire weather conditions are expected in the Four Corners region due to hot and dry weather, the agency said.

The NWS issued a red flag warning early Monday for Utah's Richfield, Delta, Milford, St. George, Zion National Park, Zion National Park, Escalante, Bryce Canyon National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Green River, Moab, Monticello, Blanding, Bluff and Cedar City. These places are primarily served by PacifiCorp's Rocky Mountain Power.

In Colorado, a similar warning was raised for Craig, Meeker, Steamboat Springs, Kremmling, Grand Junction, Aspen, Buena Vista, Rifle, Vail, Montrose, Nucla, Gunnison, Lake City, Telluride, Alamosa, Pagosa Springs, Durango, Cortez, Salida, South Fork, Creede, Wolf Creek Pass, Saguache, San Luis, Leadville, Canon City, Granby, Georgetown, and Fairplay. Xcel Energy (XEL) and Black Hills (BKH) unit Black Hills Energy are the primary service providers in the state.

Affected areas in Oregon included The Dalles, Maupin, Madras, Fossil, Condon, Hermiston, and Pendleton, primarily served by PacifiCorp's Pacific Power.

The NWS an extreme heat warning for Arizona's Parker, Yuma, Tucson, Globe, Phoenix, Wickenburg, Nogales, San Carlos, Oracle, Oro Valley, Benson, Green Valley, Sierra Vista, Safford, and Grand Canyon Village. Pinnacle West Capital (PNW) unit Arizona Public Service Company, and UNS Energy (UNS) subsidiaries Unisource and Tucson Electric Power are the major electric utility providers in Arizona.

An extreme heat warning was also raised for California's El Centro Imperial, and Blythe, primarily served by Edison International's (EIX) Southern California Edison.

The NWS issued a flash flood warning for Louisiana's Monroe and areas near Shreveport, while a flood warning was raised for Lake Charles, Jennings, Oberlin, Glenmora, Marksville, Opelousas, and areas bordering Mississippi and Arkansas. Entergy's (ETR) Louisiana unit, American Electric Power's (AEP) Southwestern Electric Power Company, and Cleco are among the major service providers in Louisiana.

In Texas, a flood warning was issued for George West, Beaumont, Bryan, and Lufkin. These places are majorly served by the Texas units of American Electric Power and Entergy, and Centrepoint Energy (CNP).

Mississippi's Hattiesburg, Gulfport, Vicksburg, Brookhaven, Laurel, Meridian, and Jackson, primarily served by Southern Co. (SO) unit Mississippi Power, were also placed under a flood warning watch.

Affected areas in Kansas, where Evergy (EVRG) is among the major service providers include, Wellington, Arkansas City, Hutchinson, Wichita, Iola, and Coffeyville.

The NWS also issued flood warnings for Pensacola and DeFuniak Springs in Florida, where NextEra Energy (NEE) unit Florida Power & Light is the primary service provider; and Demopolis, Monroeville, and Huntsville in Alabama, primarily served by Southern Company unit Alabama Power.

In Illinois, a flood warning was raised for Princeton, Peoria, Galesburg, Macomb, Canton, Decatur, Champaign, Havana, Jacksonville, Olney, and areas bordering Missouri and Indiana. Ameren's (AEE) Illinois unit and Exelon (EXC) subsidiary Commonwealth Edison are among the major service providers in Illinois.

The NWS also issued flash flood warnings for areas near Beckley and Charleston in West Virginia and small pockets of New Jersey and New York.

Flood warnings were also raised for certain pockets of Indiana, Oklahoma, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Washington, West Virginia and Massachusetts.

Related Articles

Commodities

US Rig Activity Holds Steady as Private Operators Expand Market Share, RBC Says

US drilling activity remained largely stable last week as operators maintained activity levels across major shale basins, RBC Capital Markets said in a Friday note.The Baker Hughes (BKR) US land rig count increased by one rig to 551. Rigs drilling for oil rose by one to 423, while rigs targeting natural gas also increased by one to 122, according to RBC.The Permian Basin held steady at 256 rigs, representing 61% of Lower 48 oil rigs and 46% of total US land rigs. Exxon (XOM) led operators with 34 rigs, followed by Devon (DVN) with 21 and Occidental (OXY) with 20.Private companies accounted for 43% of active Permian rigs, up from 42% a year earlier. Helmerich & Payne (HP) remained the leading contractor with 90 rigs, while Patterson-UTI (PTEN) and Nabors (NBR) operated 31 and 29 rigs, respectively.Eagle Ford activity remained unchanged at 44 rigs. ConocoPhillips (COP) operated seven rigs and EOG Resources (EOG) ran six, while private operators increased their share of active rigs to 45% from 42% a year ago.The Anadarko Basin added one rig over the week to reach 20. Continental remained the largest operator with eight rigs, followed by Mewbourne with seven, while private companies controlled 92% of active rigs.Haynesville drilling activity held steady at 55 rigs. Apex led operators with 13 rigs and Adamas followed with six, while private operators expanded their share to 73% from 66% a year earlier.Helmerich & Payne operated 11 rigs in Haynesville, ahead of ICD with nine, Precision Drilling (PDS) with eight and TG Natural Resources with six.Across the US market, private operators accounted for 57% of active rigs, up from 55% a year earlier. The six largest drilling contractors controlled 72% of active rigs nationwide.Oilfield services stocks fell 9.2% over the week as West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 13.1%. EFX-CA gained 1.6%, while SLB (SLB) and Nabors declined 14.1% and 14.6%, respectively, RBC said.

$BKR$COP$DVN$HP$NBR$OXY$PDS$PTEN$SLB$XOM
Commodities

US DOE Awards 500,000 Barrel SPR Crude Exchange to Vitol

The US Department of Energy awarded a contract covering 500,000 barrels under its Strategic Petroleum Reserve crude exchange program to commodity trader Vitol, according to award information released Monday.The award was made under a Request for Proposals seeking the exchange of up to 40 million barrels from the SPR.As of June 22, the Department of Energy said Vitol had been awarded a contract covering 500,000 barrels.The solicitation covers up to 40 million barrels of sour crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve's Bryan Mound and Big Hill sites. The DOE said offers will compete on overall value to the government.DOE plans to supply 8 million barrels from Bryan Mound in July 2026 and another 7 million barrels in September 2026. Both exchange programs require a minimum return volume of 3 million barrels per month.At Big Hill, DOE is offering 11 million barrels in August 2026 and 14 million barrels in September 2026. The associated return periods begin in 2027 and extend into 2028, according to the department.DOE said bidders are responsible for securing sufficient pipeline and terminal capacity, adding that lower inventory levels could reduce delivery rates and require buyers to manage any resulting logistical constraints.DOE said Strategic Petroleum Reserve crude includes a blend of domestic and international grades, including Isthmus, Urals, Alaskan North Slope, Arabian Light, Saharan and Dubai crude streams.The agency requires returned crude to meet quality specifications and reserves the right to reject barrels that fail compatibility standards. Offerors must submit quality information 90 days before the return period begins.DOE said that oils with elevated light-end gas content or vapor pressure could affect storage integrity and limit the reserve's ability to deliver oil when needed.The minimum offer size stands at 3 million barrels for both pipeline and vessel deliveries. DOE said awards to a single bidder generally will not exceed 20 million barrels unless additional volumes remain available.The notice did not disclose financial terms or delivery schedules for the Vitol award, nor did it mention whether additional awards may be made under the solicitation.

Commodities

US Natural Gas Update: Futures Edge Up on Hotter Early July Forecasts

US natural gas futures continued to decline from earlier highs but managed to remain in positive territory in after-hours trade on Monday, despite forecasts for hotter weather across much of the country that point to stronger demand.The front-month Henry Hub contract and the continuous contract rose by 0.15% to $3.238 per million British thermal units.Barchart said natural gas prices rallied to a three-week high in the nearest futures contract on Monday as weather forecasts signaled increased cooling demand. It cited the Commodity Weather Group on Monday, which said above-average temperatures are expected across most of the US from July 2-6.Forecasts also indicate Lower 48 population-weighted temperatures are expected to rise above the 10-year seasonal average during the first week of July after generally below-average temperatures prevailed through much of June, Aegis Hedging said Monday.Warmer summer weather typically increases electricity demand for air conditioning, boosting natural gas consumption by power generators.On the supply side, US dry gas production remained steady at a robust 109.5 billion cubic feet per day, Aegis said, citing data from S&P. Barchart, citing BNEF data, said Lower 48 dry gas production on Monday was 109.6 Bcf/d, up 1.5% from a year earlier.Regarding demand, BNEF said US gas demand on Monday totaled 71.0 Bcf/d, down 2.0% from a year earlier. Celsius Energy said power burn on June 20 was 34.2 Bcf/d, down 2.5 Bcf/d from the previous day and down 1.2 Bcf/d from the same day last year.Over the preceding seven-day period, natural gas accounted for 39% of the fuel mix, up 1 percentage point from a year earlier, according to Celsius Energy. The week ending June 20 saw power burn average 35.8 Bcf/d, down 1.7 Bcf/d from the comparable period a year ago.Meanwhile, estimated LNG net flows to US LNG export terminals were 19.3 Bcf/d on Monday, up 0.9% from the prior week, according to BNEF. Feedgas volumes have remained mainly above 19 Bcf/d since June 14 as the maintenance schedules among LNG facilities on the US Gulf Coast wind down.On the export side, Gelber & Associates said Europe, the primary destination for US LNG, continues to show strong demand and is currently experiencing a heatwave of undetermined duration.Looking ahead at the US market, Gelber & Associates said: "For now, July appears to be building a firmer base above $3.00, but a sustained move higher likely needs heat to keep expanding across major load centers and storage injections to come in lighter than expected over the next couple of reports."