During the report week (January 5-12, 2011), the Henry Hub spot price increased $0.03 to $4.55 per million Btu (MMBtu).
EIA has reported the projected Henry Hub natural gas spot price averages $4.02 per million Btu (MMBtu) for 2011, $0.37 per MMBtu lower than the 2010 average. It further expects the natural gas market to begin to tighten in 2012, with the Henry Hub spot price increasing to an average $4.50 per MMBtu.
EIA expects the higher forecast production during the first half of 2011 combined with a decline in consumption, to moderate natural gas spot prices. The projected spot price falls to a low of $3.73 per MMBtu in June then rises to $4.61 in December.
U.S. Electricity Retail Prices. EIA expects the U.S. retail price for electricity, distributed to the residential sector, to increase only slightly above the 2010 average of 11.6 cents per kilowatt-hour by 0.6 percent in 2011 and by 1.0 percent in 2012.
