• Frac Spreads Improve, but Inventories Remain High

  
  
  Although NGL prices were mixed last week, frac spread margins improved at both hubs, aside from one case. While these improved margins were helped by some of the improved NGL prices, it was largely the decreases in natural gas prices that spurred on the margins improvements.
  - Jan. 21 2009
  

• Frac Spread Margins Continue to Improve

  
  
  Frac spread margins continue to rise, due to increased NGL prices and decreased natural gas values at Conway and flat feedstock prices at Mont Belvieu. 
  - Jan. 14 2009
  

• October C5+ Storage Levels Emphasize Industry’s Reverse Trend

  
  
  Stock levels in October for C5+ fell 22% from storage levels in the same period in 2007. While the decreased storage levels coincided with the winter heating season, the reduced storage levels are at least partially due to more ethane rejection and the lack of NGL production as producers attempt to reduce costs by selling the product in gas rather than liquid form. 
  - Jan. 14 2009
  

• Frac Spread Margins Improve at Both Hubs

  
  
  Frac spread margins gained traction for the second time in the last three week, with the exception of C5+ at Conway, which was down 3% from the previous week. The improved margins mean that all NGLs are profitable to fractionate at both hubs, although ethane is just barely profitable at Conway despite a 1,067% improvement in margin. Frac spread tables for the last two weeks are included here for your convenience.
  - Jan. 7 2009
  

• Frac Spread Analysis

  
  
  Frac Spread Analysis Story Index
  - Dec. 23 2008
  

• Frac Spread Margins Improve on Price Increases

  
  
  Frac spread margins were up this week due to the continued improvement in NGL prices and drops in feedstock prices. For the first time in over a month, the margin to fractionate ethane at Mont Belvieu is no longer negative, although it isn’t exactly a moneymaker at the moment despite the 10000+% margin improvement. Conway’s frac spread remains negative for ethane.
  - Dec. 23 2008
  

• Higher Gas Prices Keep Margins Down

  
  
  Despite an increase in NGL prices, frac spread margins were mixed due to the continued strengthening of natural gas prices at both Mont Belvieu and Conway.Butane’s margins in both hubs were the most improved this week. The margin on fractionating to make butane in Texas improved 24%, while the Kansas margin was up 19%.
  - Dec. 17 2008
  

• Iso-Butane, Butane Margins Fall Heavily

  
  
  Frac spread margins took a large tumble across the board this week at Conway and Mont Belvieu as NGL prices and feedstock prices both dropped. The two largest drops in margin were iso-butane and butane at both hubs. The Mont Belvieu margin for iso-butane fell over 100% to 9¢/gal. The Conway margin to make the same NGL is stronger by 6¢ after its frac spread margin fell 77%.
  - Dec. 10 2008
  

• September Propane Inventory Levels Up 44% from August

  
  
  Propane inventory levels took a sharp upturn in August as 2008 levels were just short of the same month’s storage levels in the previous year. The September levels were up 46% from the prior year and increased 44% from August 2008 levels.
  - Dec. 10 2008
  

• Conway Margins Fall as Feedstock Prices Rise

  
  
  Higher feedstock prices at Conway pushed frac spread margins down this week, especially in the cases of butane and pentanes-plus. After several weeks of Conway margins being better than those at Mont Belvieu, weekly Texas margins for butane and C5+ improved more than in Kansas.
  - Dec. 3 2008
  

• September Ethane Inventory Levels Up 162% from 2007

  
  
  September ethane inventory levels, which are the most recent available from the Energy Information Administration, show that producers were placing ethane in storage in large quantities just as NGL prices took a sharp nosedive.
  - Dec. 3 2008
  

• Propane Highlights Conway Frac Spreads

  
  
  Frac spread margins continued to tumble this week. The butane frac fell by more than 27% at both Conway and Mont Belvieu. The margin on pentanes-plus plunged 85% at Mont Belvieu and 26% at Conway.
  - Nov. 26 2008
  

• September Iso-butane Stock Levels Down 4% from August

  
  
  Following a high build of iso-butane in August, when its inventory levels rose 82% from July, the storage levels for September were down 4% from the same time in the prior year.Iso-butane inventories also are down 18% from the highs reached in August.
  - Nov. 26 2008
  

• Midwest Demand for Propane Continues to Push Up Conway Margins

  
  
  Week-on-week margins on the frac spread continue to be stronger at Conway than at Mont Belvieu due to the stronger demand for propane in the Midwest. Although NGL prices continue to be higher in Texas than those in Kansas, the higher feedstock price in Mont Belvieu is limiting the margin growth there compared to Conway.
  - Nov. 19 2008
  

• Butane Stocks Up 83% from 2007 to 2008

  
  
  Recent inventory data from Energy Information Administration provides a possible reason for the low butane pricing seen in June 2008. In that month, there was a 52% increase in stock levels from the prior year.
  - Nov. 19 2008
  

Frac Spread Sample Data: Login Or Subscribe To See Current Prices

Aug 14, 2011
Ethane	55.52		82.33
Shrink	27.85		28.18
Margin	27.67	1.78%	54.15	5.59%
Propane	143.92		155.66
Shrink	38.47		38.93
Margin	105.45	1.45%	116.73	3.56%
Normal Butane	168.84		193.08
Shrink	43.55		44.07
Margin	125.29	0.07%	149.01	3.51%
Isobutane	196.00		210.25
Shrink	41.83		42.33
Margin	154.17	-1.69%	167.92	0.61%
Pentane+	222.23		245.92
Shrink	46.58		47.13
Margin	175.65	-1.78%	198.79	-0.63%
NGL ($/Bbl)	55.41	-0.71%	63.64	1.03%
Shrink	15.34		15.53
Margin	40.07	-0.08%	48.11	2.39%
Gas ($/mmBtu)	4.20	-2.33%	4.25	-2.97%
Gross Bbl Margin (in cents/gal)	92.34	0.05%	112.41	2.53%
NGL Value in $/mmBtu
Ethane	3.06	-0.32%	4.53	2.50%
Propane	5.00	0.41%	5.40	1.85%
Normal Butane	1.82	-0.56%	2.09	1.93%
Iso-Butane	1.22	-1.82%	1.31	-0.13%
Pentane+	2.87	-1.89%	3.17	-1.09%
Total Bbl Val.	13.96	-0.55%	16.50	1.30%
Margin	9.76	0.23%	12.25	2.87%