EIA to revise US gas export figures to Mexico

OREANDA-NEWS. June 26, 2015. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) plans to revise natural gas figures showing pipeline exports to Mexico hit record highs in March because of data collection errors.

The data inadvertently included duplicate reports, and the volumes for Mexico exports are lower as a result, a spokesperson for the US Department of Energy (DOE) told Argus.

The flawed data showed that pipeline exports to Mexico in March surged to about 2.6 Bcf/d (74mn m?/d), up by 11pc from February and 37pc higher than a year earlier. The increase occurred during a month when weather-related gas demand is typically low.

The EIA — the statistical arm of the DOE — provides fundamental information such as production, consumption and export figures to gas market participants. That information can act as a bellwether for prices and has been in the spotlight this year following a collapse in commodity prices.

Earlier this month, the EIA said it understated dry-gas and marketed natural gas production by about 1.5 Bcf/d for the first three months of this year. The revision showed that gas production had not yet fallen this year even as producers had reined in development.