EIA Natural Gas Report

The EIA Natural Gas Report is a weekly report provided every Thursday by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The report applies to natural gas reserves that are stored underground in the U.S. The amount of gas stored in inventory is a primary determinant for natural gas prices. Each report lists the data gathered from the previous week.

The EIA Natural Gas Report provides a current reading on the law of supply and demand as it applies to natural gas reserves, just as it does with any other commodity. When reserves are low, prices increase and vice versa. Therefore, investors use reserve reports as a means of anticipating price movements. The EIA Natural Gas Report is the preeminent natural gas report in the United States.

Natural gas, which is a colorless, odorless, gaseous hydrocarbon is often stored underground under pressure in one of three kinds of facilities: depleted reservoirs , aquifers, and salt caverns. It can also be stored as a liquid or a gas in tanks above ground. Natural gas that is stored underground is classified as base gas or working gas.

The EIA provides weekly estimates of working gas volumes held in underground storage facilities in the lower 48 states and five regional levels.  The American Gas Association (AGA)  first provided weekly estimated for stored working gas in 1994. The AGA discontinued it's reporting on May 1, 2002. The EIA took up the mantle and released its first estimates of underground storage on May 9, 2002. The goal of the weekly report is to provide weekly estimates of the level of working gas in underground storage for the United States and five regions.

To make sure that data is collected accurately, the EIA uses different editing processes. For example, the EIA compares the current week's data to recent data reports and compilations of monthly data reports. If a company's response is outside the edit bounds or if it notes any special issues, survey personnel will contact them to confirm data or make any corrections.