Briefly Noted

The US Energy Information Administration expects that US consumption of natural gas will decline by less than 1% this year despite increased residential, commercial and industrial use. The slight decrease in overall demand is pegged to a drop in gas-fired power generation as gas prices rise. In its April Short-Term Energy Outlook, the EIA said gas share in power generation will fall to 36%, down 3% from 2020. Coal's share will rise to 22%, up 2% from last year, while renewables increase from 20% to 21% and nuclear declines to 20% from 21%. * * * Whitecap Resources plans to acquire privately held Montney Shale operator Kicking Horse Oil & Gas. The stock and cash deal valued at C$300 million (US$239 million) includes the assumption of C$54 million in net debt. The acquisition adds 8 Mboe/d (78% gas) and 90 sections (60 net) of Montney land to Whitecap's portfolio. Whitecap plans to spend C$75 million on the assets over the next 12-15 months to reach 18-19 Mboe/d from the acquired assets by 2022. The deal is set to close before the end of May. * * * Pioneer Natural Resources will buy privately held DoublePoint Energy for $6.4 billion. Pioneer is adding a mostly undeveloped 97,000 contiguous net acres overlapping its existing operations in the Permian Basin, known for its prolific production of associated gas. But Pioneer is not expected to ramp up output. DoublePoint is currently running seven rigs in the Midland Basin, which Pioneer intends to reduce to five rigs on that acreage.