Natural gas liquids, or NGLs, are valuable products derived from the processing of natural gas and refining of crude oil. Five major NGLs - ethane, butane, isobutane, propane and natural gasoline are used by petrochemical companies as feedstocks and by refineries as blending and processing components. Propane is an important heating fuel. NGLs are actively traded energy commodities with robust spot markets and growing forward and derivative markets.
NGLs are extracted from natural gas at natural gas processing plants. When NGLs are extracted from natural gas, the volume and Btu content of the gas are reduced. That makes NGL processing a key factor in the supply/demand balance for natural gas. In addition, some producing regions produce very rich (high Btu) gas that must be processed before the gas can be delivered to a pipeline for transportation to market. In areas where not enough natural gas processing capacity is available, gas production must be curtailed down to the available capacity.
BENTEK tracks NGL production, storage, demand, pricing and other market factors through a growing suite of NGL market analysis and data products.