The Energy Buyer's Guide | 02.24.2025

The rally in natural gas futures extends for the third straight week of sharp gains.

- Natural gas futures gained ground for the third straight week, with the prompt-month contract posting its highest weekly settlement since December 2022

- A major cold shot focused mainly in the Midwest led to elevated demand levels and could yield a storage draw approaching 300 Bcf in the upcoming EIA report

- Spot natural gas and power prices were up sharply in most regions in response to increased heating needs, with only the West spared from elevated energy pricing

- ERCOT set a new record for winter peak load, surpassing 80 GW last week amid cold weather conditions, as battery discharge and solar output also set new all-time records to help dull the impact of the spike in demand