Production Data Points to Record Rebuild for Natural Gas Storage Natural Gas Week (Monday, May 12, 2008) With US gas inventories exiting a drawn-out winter at an unexpectedly low 1,230 billion cubic feet -- just below the five-year average -- bulls have had a strong fundamental to underpin the recent gas rally. But the real math shows that the US could be headed for record gas inventories by the end of this refill season.

Colorado, New Mexico Mull Ways To Protect Species, Tighten Regs Natural Gas Week (Monday, May 12, 2008) Colorado regulators are proposing a new set of oil and gas drilling restrictions that would place three-month seasonal production bans during wildlife breeding and hibernation periods in areas populated by at least one of more than a dozen species, while the BLM last week placed parts of a thriving production region in the southeastern part of the state off limits to drilling to protect prairie chicken and sand dune lizard habitat.

Saudis Unlikely to Offer Bush More Crude Oil Daily (Monday, May 12, 2008) During his upcoming visit to the Mideast, US President George W. Bush will ask Saudi Arabia to urge Opec to produce more crude oil to help bring down prices, a senior White House official said last week. But Riyadh's response is unlikely to differ much from what it has said over the past half year: there is no shortage of crude oil in the market.

BP to Restart Azeri Oil Pipeline International Oil Daily (Monday, May 12, 2008) Azerbaijan's options for exporting its rising crude oil production will get a boost next month when the pipeline from Baku to the Georgian Black Sea port of Supsa is finally reopened after being closed for repairs in late 2006.

Industry Could Benefit From Lower Oil Price Petroleum Intelligence Weekly (Monday, May 12, 2008) Don't say it too loudly, but international oil company (IOC) executives would be unlikely to complain if oil prices were to fall $40 per barrel or more over time. Relentlessly rising oil prices are boosting upstream profits, but have also created headaches for the industry. Current oil prices have made refining an unprofitable business for some companies, fueled inflation in oil-field services and prompted calls for increasing oil company taxes.

Opec Keen To Keep Stock Levels Lean Petroleum Intelligence Weekly (Monday, May 12, 2008) US President George W. Bush heads to Saudi Arabia this week to ask for an increase in Opec oil output. He's likely to be disappointed. Opec has consistently argued that the current economic uncertainty is not of its making and that the current high oil price is the result of speculation and a weak US dollar, not a lack of oil -- a view reiterated by Opec Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri in an interview with PIW.

Iran: Switzerland Feels the Heat Energy Compass (Friday, May 9, 2008) When Swiss energy group EGL signed a 25-year gas purchase contract in Tehran, it could never have foreseen the political storm the agreement would whip up. It was not so much the deal itself that caused the outcry, but footage of a smiling Swiss foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey, meeting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Opec File: Holding Back Energy Compass (Friday, May 9, 2008) If markets work properly, high prices -- for oil or any other product or service -- should result in additional production capacity and greater supply. Yet oil prices of $120 per barrel are resulting in the opposite, with many Opec members sitting on spare capacity now and moving slowly, if at all, to add new capacity.