California generators, industries, businesses, and consumers are paying less for natural gas than they have since 2009, according to Energy Information Administration data. EIA reports that by the end of 2011, the average price of natural gas imports to California had trended down to $3.36/MMBtu on Dec. 21. In December 2010, gas averaged $4.74/MMBtu, according to EIA data. The spot price for gas at Henry Hub--a major national gas distribution hub used as a benchmark for the cost of gas--hit $3.05/MMBtu on Dec. 21. In 2010, gas sold for as much as $6/MMBtu at Henry Hub and generally stayed above $4/MMBtu throughout the year. Goldman Sachs analysts last month forecasted that natural gas prices will average $3.70/MMBtu this year, down from the bank’s previous forecast of $4.25. In the long-run, environmental policies to cut emissions from coal plants and use more gas for transportation should firm prices, according to the bank. The low gas prices last month came after what EIA called large drops in the gas futures market in November amid record high gas storage and bulging supplies of shale gas. It said conditions in the gas market today reduce the outlook for gas price volatility in the year ahead, indicating a stable market outlook. EIA’s findings echo a similar analysis by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission late last year. FERC energy analyst Omar Cabrales called this winter’s market conditions “generally positive.” He said that despite higher gas demand over the past year, “prices remain among the lowest in the past decade, due to continued production growth and new pipelines transporting gas from the producing areas to consumers.”