National Fuel Gas
Encyclopedia
National Fuel Gas , Co. is an energy
company
. It consists of five business
segments:
Utility, Pipeline and Storage, Exploration and Production, Energy Marketing, and Timber. National Fuel Gas was
incorporated
in 1902 and is based in Williamsville
, New York
.
The Utility segment sells natural gas
or provides natural gas transportation services. The Pipeline and Storage
segment provides interstate natural gas transportation and storage
services for affiliated and
non-affiliated companies. The Exploration and Production segment is engaged in prospecting
for, and development
and purchase of, natural gas and oil reserves
. The Energy Marketing segment markets natural gas to
industrial
, commercial
, public authority and residential end users. The Timber segment markets timber
from its New York
and Pennsylvania
land holdings, owns two sawmill operations in northwestern Pennsylvania,
and processes timber.
, National Fuel Gas witnessed a number of technological firsts at its company or its subsidiaries. Engineers at the company discovered that depleted underground gas fields could be modified to act as storage reservoirs. Thus, the first such storage facility in the US was implemented at Zoar Field, about forty miles south of Buffalo
. This turned out to be a great financial asset to NFG in the 1940s and 50s, when skyrocketing demand for natural gas led to extensive pipelines
in the eastern states being connected to new pipelines and fields in the southwestern states. NFG could thereby purchase huge quantities of cheaper summer gas from the southwest, pipe it to its New York storage fields, inject it into the ground, then retrieve it when demand and prices rose in the winter months.
The company was also the first in the industry to develop a gas-fired generator to produce electricity for cathodic protection
to fight corrosion on pipelines.
In 1975, with the introduction of "Balanced Billing", the company claimed that it was "the only gas utility in the country" with a flexible plan for customers to pay bills in eleven equal monthly payments, with settlement of any overpayment or underpayment in the twelfth month. This is a modified system of installment credit
.
LFG, Inc.; Leidy Hub, Inc.; Data-Track Account Services, Inc.; Horizon Power,
Inc.; and Empire Pipeline, Inc.
under the ticker symbol NFG. Its fiscal year ends September 30.
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
company
Company
A company is a form of business organization. It is an association or collection of individual real persons and/or other companies, who each provide some form of capital. This group has a common purpose or focus and an aim of gaining profits. This collection, group or association of persons can be...
. It consists of five business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
segments:
Utility, Pipeline and Storage, Exploration and Production, Energy Marketing, and Timber. National Fuel Gas was
incorporated
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
in 1902 and is based in Williamsville
Williamsville, New York
Williamsville is a village in Erie County, New York in the United States. The population was 5,573 at the 2000 census. The village is named after Jonas Williams, an early settler...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
The Utility segment sells natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
or provides natural gas transportation services. The Pipeline and Storage
segment provides interstate natural gas transportation and storage
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
services for affiliated and
non-affiliated companies. The Exploration and Production segment is engaged in prospecting
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
for, and development
and purchase of, natural gas and oil reserves
Oil reserves
The total estimated amount of oil in an oil reservoir, including both producible and non-producible oil, is called oil in place. However, because of reservoir characteristics and limitations in petroleum extraction technologies, only a fraction of this oil can be brought to the surface, and it is...
. The Energy Marketing segment markets natural gas to
industrial
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
, commercial
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
, public authority and residential end users. The Timber segment markets timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
from its New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
land holdings, owns two sawmill operations in northwestern Pennsylvania,
and processes timber.
History
As one of the earliest gas utility companies in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, National Fuel Gas witnessed a number of technological firsts at its company or its subsidiaries. Engineers at the company discovered that depleted underground gas fields could be modified to act as storage reservoirs. Thus, the first such storage facility in the US was implemented at Zoar Field, about forty miles south of Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
. This turned out to be a great financial asset to NFG in the 1940s and 50s, when skyrocketing demand for natural gas led to extensive pipelines
Pipeline transport
Pipeline transport is the transportation of goods through a pipe. Most commonly, liquids and gases are sent, but pneumatic tubes that transport solid capsules using compressed air are also used....
in the eastern states being connected to new pipelines and fields in the southwestern states. NFG could thereby purchase huge quantities of cheaper summer gas from the southwest, pipe it to its New York storage fields, inject it into the ground, then retrieve it when demand and prices rose in the winter months.
The company was also the first in the industry to develop a gas-fired generator to produce electricity for cathodic protection
Cathodic protection
Cathodic protection is a technique used to control the corrosion of a metal surface by making it the cathode of an electrochemical cell. The simplest method to apply CP is by connecting the metal to be protected with another more easily corroded "sacrificial metal" to act as the anode of the...
to fight corrosion on pipelines.
In 1975, with the introduction of "Balanced Billing", the company claimed that it was "the only gas utility in the country" with a flexible plan for customers to pay bills in eleven equal monthly payments, with settlement of any overpayment or underpayment in the twelfth month. This is a modified system of installment credit
Installment credit
Installment credit is a type of credit that has a fixed number of payments, in contrast to revolving credit.-Examples:* Land loan* Home construction loan* Home mortgage* Some equity loans* Home improvement loan* Automobile loan...
.
Subsidiaries
National Fuel's direct, wholly owned subsidiaries include Horizon Energy Development, Inc.; HorizonLFG, Inc.; Leidy Hub, Inc.; Data-Track Account Services, Inc.; Horizon Power,
Inc.; and Empire Pipeline, Inc.
Shareholder information
National Fuel Gas Co. is traded on the New York Stock ExchangeNew York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
under the ticker symbol NFG. Its fiscal year ends September 30.
External links
- National Fuel Gas, Co., official website
- Company profile at Google Finance