13-06-08 Despite sharply higher natural gas prices during the first quarter compared with a year earlier, the amount of gas sold by North America's largest marketers continued to grow, according to Platts' latest quarterly survey. Some industry observers suggest that the price volatility itself may be prompting more companies to seek the services of experienced marketers.
"High prices are driving customers to us," said Fred Hunzeker, president of Tenaska Marketing Ventures.

Whether they are producers facing larger credit exposures or end-users needing help financing the purchase of gas, marketers are gaining customers in the current commodity market, he said.
"I would think that volatility tends to stimulate activity, certainly in the financial markets, but in the physical markets as well where customers need someone to provide transactions that are responsive to price changes," added Ben Schlesinger, president of consultancy Benjamin Schlesinger and Associates.

In the latest rankings, BP onceagain took the lead with 27.1 bn cfpd in North American sales for the first quarter. While a year-ago figure was unavailable, those sales are down somewhat from the 29.9 bn cfpd, BP reported for the fourth quarter of 2007.
In second place, Shell Energy reported sales of 15.4 bn cfpd, up from 12.5 bn cfpd a year earlier. ConocoPhillips said it sold 13.5 bn cfpd, compared with 13.2 bn cfpd last year. In fourth place, Constellation Energy Commodities reported 12.6 bn cfpd in sales, a significant gain from 8.2 bn cfpd a year ago.

In fifth place, Chevron reported 8.5 bn cfpd of sales, up from 8.6 bn cfpd. Louis Dreyfus Energy Services was close behind with 8.4 bn cfpd, a significant gain from last year's 5 bn cfpd.
Sempra's trading unit reported 7.1 bn cfpd in sales for the first quarter, down from 9.1 bn cfpd a year earlier. At the close of the quarter, Sempra finalized its joint venture with a division of the Royal Bank of Scotland and is now known as RBS Sempra Commodities. Including European volumes, the trading unit reported a total of 14.2 bn cfpd in physical sales for the most recent quarter.

Rounding out the top 10 for the first quarter are Nexen with 6.6 bn cfpd, up from 5.4 bn cfpd a year ago; Tenaska with 6.4 bn cfpd, up from 5.3 bn cfpd; and Lehman Brothers Commodity Services, which completed its purchase of Eagle Rock Energy Partners this past year, with sales of 4.6 bn cfpd.
It has now been a little over a year since AIG Financial Products purchased a 49 % interest in TMV, and that partnership has paid off in the current commodity environment, the company noted. Gas sales have risen 1.1 bn cfpd just in the past year.