Natural Gas Week articles from April 2004

Natural Gas Week archives from April 2004

Not guilty.(Late News ...)
April 5, 2004... Not guilty. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rules initially that New England generators broke no laws when selling gas instead of generating power during mid-January arctic blast. FERC investigation came at request of Connecticut Attorney...

Active season ahead.(Late News ...)
April 5, 2004... Active season ahead. Colorado State University's hurricane forecast team led by William Gray says 2004 Atlantic basin hurricane season will be about 145% more active than normal. Gray's team is predicting 14 named storms with eight becoming...

CPUC probe likely.(Late News ...)
April 5, 2004... CPUC probe likely. In face of FERC ruling it has jurisdiction over proposed liquefied natural gas terminal in Long Beach, California, the state Public Utilities Commission said it plans to open investigation of Sound Energy Solutions project....

Average cash prices & futures strip.(Late News ...)
April 5, 2004... A cool, wet Northeast and surging May contract sent cash soaring for the week. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED]

Enbridge wants in on plans to build North Slope gas pipeline.
April 5, 2004... Calgary-based pipeline firm Enbridge is angling for a piece of the proposed Alaska North Slope natural gas pipeline project. Enbridge announced last week that it plans to file an application with the state of Alaska that will allow the...

City gate prices.
April 5, 2004... CITY GATE PRICES April 5, 2004 ($/MMBtu) Bid Week Bid Week City for Apr. for Mar. Austin, Texas Valero Transmission Co. 4.90 4.76...

Gas price trends.
April 5, 2004... GAS PRICE TRENDS ($/MMBtu) ROCKY NEW CALIFORNIA MTNS MEXICO TEXAS Gulf Coast Gulf Coast South North ...

Howard Weil Conference reflects much transformed energy sector.
April 5, 2004... Three years ago, energy merchants--the high flying traders of natural gas and electricity--had leading time slots on the program at the annual Howard Weil Energy Conference in New Orleans. Two years ago, a number still presented at the...

2004 gas price outlook.
April 5, 2004... 2004 GAS PRICE OUTLOOK April 5, 2004/Week 14 12-Month Strip Wellhead Delivered-to-Pipeline Nymex $5.78 $5.91 $5.991 NOTES: (1) Prices are in $/MMBtu and are...

April fool's: storage squeeze, speculators push Nymex to $6.
April 5, 2004... Many traders were left dumbfounded by an eruption in natural gas prices last week that seemingly struck from out of the blue. Bucking a plunging crude market, Nymex Henry Hub futures have surged toward the $6/MMBtu level with only modest...

New Cove Point access pushes LNG imports up 83% in 1Q.
April 5, 2004... Maintaining a steady 600 MMcf/d average send-out in the first quarter, Dominion's Cove Point liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal in Maryland was the clear leader in LNG imports in the first quarter. Cove Point even surpassed the...

Pioneer's Gulf wells come up empty.
April 5, 2004... Pioneer Natural Resources warned investors last week that two of its high-profile exploration wells in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico have come up empty. The Dallas-based independent said the BP-operated Juno exploration well in Mississippi...

Another fertilizer plant shuts due to imports, high gas prices.
April 5, 2004... After numerous false starts, the owner of a major ammonia facility in Arkansas says it will shut down the plant--and there is reason to believe that this time it could really be the end. Blaming high natural gas costs, a lull in off-season...

BLM ruling on seismic testing stirs controversy in Utah.
April 5, 2004... A controversial initiative regarding exploration for oil and gas reserves in the western US is pitting environmental and preservation groups against federal regulators. Last month, the US Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management...

Barton predicts energy bill will pass with MTBE shelter intact.
April 5, 2004... The new chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee stood fast by his position that any energy bill moved by Congress this year must include liability protection for manufacturers of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE). "MTBE needs...

Composite spot delivered-to-pipeline price.
April 5, 2004... COMPOSITE SPOT DELIVERED-TO-PIPELINE PRICE January 1992 to Present ($/MMBtu) Jan. Feb. March April May June July August Sept. Oct. 2004 6.30 4.82 5.32 2003 5.40 7.10 7.25 5.07 5.53 5.69 4.92 4.97 ...

Wood: competitive markets, strong oversight preferred.
April 5, 2004... Competitive markets, coupled with proper oversight, are imperative for preserving the reliability of the US electric grid, according to one of the nation's top energy regulatory officials. That was the theme of a speech delivered by Federal...

Merchants' downfall ushers in new players, opportunities.
April 5, 2004... Natural gas buyers shouldn't fear the collapse of the energy merchant sector as a number of companies are eager to fill the void left by their downfall, ranging from end-users with a history of commodity expertise to financial companies hoping...

Miller targets gas play in southern appalachian basin.
April 5, 2004... After working the Appalachian Basin for more than three decades as a drilling contractor, Miller Petroleum is now trying its hand at the exploration and production business. Miller, based in Huntsville, Tennessee, once had 19 rigs running...

Spot prices on intrastate pipeline systems.
April 5, 2004... SPOT PRICES ON INTRASTATE PIPELINE SYSTEMS Delivered-to-Pipeline ($/MMBtu) April 5, 2004 This Weekly Bid Week Pipeline Week Change for Apr. Louisiana...

North American weekly gas storage.
April 5, 2004... NORTH AMERICAN WEEKLY GAS STORAGE (Billion Cubic Feet) Mar. 26 Mar. 19 Weekly Year Yr. Ago Region Week Week Change Ago Difference US East 474.0 507.0 -33.0...

Lost tax credit puts wind energy on brink.(Current)
April 5, 2004... The US wind generation sector teeters on the brink of a boom or bust cycle as a dam of regulatory delays keep industry developments walled up. In the past, wind generation held the title to the fastest growing renewable resource in the US....

Tampa plant turns from coal to gas.(Current)
April 5, 2004... Tampa Electric, one of Florida's top five utilities, will meet some of its summer demand with a new gas-fired power plant that was converted from a coal-fired power plant as part of a 2000 settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency...

Two groups pursue nuke licenses.(Current)
April 5, 2004... Two separate groups of companies have formed recently with plans to apply for licenses that could allow the first new US nuclear power plant to be built in more than 25 years. There is no plan at this time to actually build a new nuclear...

TransCanada acquires US plants.(Current)
April 5, 2004... TransCanada Power has bought two US power plants from its parent company, TransCanada Corp., for C$531 million (US$403 million). TransCanada Power said it was buying the 60-MW Curtis Palmer hydroelectric facilities near Corinth, New York,...

Aquila, Calpine reach plant deal.(Current)
April 5, 2004... Aquila has agreed to transfer its 50% stake in a 585-MW gas-fired power plant in Missouri to Calpine. Aquila said it will take a loss of about $46.5 million on the deal. The Kansas City, Missouri-based company also said it ended a 20-year...

Dynegy sells stakes in two plants.(Current)
April 5, 2004... Dynegy has sold interests in two power plants for a combined $103 million as part of the company's plan to raise cash and restore its financial balance sheet to health. Houston-based Dynegy said the deals to sell its 50% stakes in the...

PPL seeks 9.8% rate increase.
April 5, 2004... PPL Electric Utilities has asked Pennsylvania regulators to raise electric distribution rates by about 9.8%. The company said it is seeking the rate hike--the first since 1995--to account for increasing costs to provide service to its 1.3...

Upstart Targa buys midstream assets from ConocoPhillips.(Regional Market Roundup)
April 5, 2004... Targa Resources signed a definitive agreement to acquire major midstream assets owned by ConocoPhillips in West Texas and Louisiana for an undisclosed sum. The West Texas assets consist of an integrated gathering and processing system with...

Bucking others' NIMBY fears, LNG project finds open arms.(Canadian Markets)
April 5, 2004... When a little known group called Access Northeast Energy proposed construction of the Bear Head liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal on the Strait of Canso near Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia, the announcement met a fair bit of...

Canada's Talisman signs deal sharing Malaysian production.(World Roundup)
April 5, 2004... Malaysia has signed a new production sharing contract with Canada's Talisman for the offshore Block PM-314. The block was earlier awarded in 1998 to Amerada Hess, whose contract expired recently. Under the terms of the new contract,...

More Texas gas plants shut in "efficiency effect" shakeout.
April 5, 2004... The shakeout appears far from over in many regional electricity markets glutted by the relentless construction of efficient new gas plants. TXU Energy last week joined the list of Texas utilities forced to shutter older gas units made...

Murphy sells assets.(Late News ...)
April 12, 2004... Murphy sells assets. Pengrowth Energy Trust has acquired C$550 million (US$414 million) worth of oil and natural gas properties in Canada's oil patch from Murphy Oil. Murphy reportedly sold properties to fund its deepwater project offshore...

Reliant indicted.(Late News ...)
April 12, 2004... Reliant indicted. A grand jury indicted Reliant Energy Services and four of its energy traders with manipulating California energy markets in 2000 and 2001. The indictment alleges Reliant intentionally drove up electricity prices by shutting...

NGPL open season.(Late News ...)
April 12, 2004... NGPL open season. Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America began a binding open season Friday for proposed expansion of its Oklahoma Extension system (Segment One). Ninety-mile segment would run from Devon Bridgeport gas processing plant in Wise...

Average cash prices & futures strip.(Late News ...)
April 12, 2004... Strong futures prices held cash aloft this week despite bearish storage, milder weather. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED]

In the hands of MMS, a little data can be a dangerous thing.
April 12, 2004... Is it possible that the natural gas industry could have too much data on its hands? The question seems absurd on its face given a chronic shortage of timely government statistics free from future cycles of revision. But the US Minerals...

Kerr-McGee's Rockies acreage jumps with Westport purchase.
April 12, 2004... Kerr-McGee plans to acquire Westport Resources in a $2.5 billion stock swap that will boost its low-risk US onshore gas operations and thus provide a counterweight to its deepwater exploration activities in the US Gulf of Mexico. The...

Gas prices hang firm as traders prepare for bullish spring.
April 12, 2004... Gas markets glided into the Easter Holidays in relatively tame and light trading following the fireworks of May bid-week (NGW Apr. 5,p1). Markets appear well supplied near term given healthy storage levels, but many traders and analysts are...

Bahamas set to approve project; FGT may be wrench in the works.
April 12, 2004... While the Bahamas Minister of Trade believes that AES' Ocean Express project will receive its final approval from the Bahamian government in the next 30 days, a brewing conflict with Florida Gas Transmission (FGT) may slow the project down even...

Canadian energy trusts continue their oil patch buying spree.
April 12, 2004... Consolidation in Canada's oil patch continued last week, with two rapidly growing energy income trusts acquiring rivals in a series of transactions. In one deal, announced last Wednesday, APF Energy Trust is acquiring publicly traded Great...

Cove Point expansion highlights LNG's new regulatory direction.
April 12, 2004... Dominion is planning a massive expansion of its Cove Point liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal that highlights some quirks in the US regulatory policy since the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in late 2002 allowed for the...

Connecticut asks court to shut down Cross-Sound Power Cable.
April 12, 2004... Claiming that an emergency no longer exists, Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Arthur J. Rocque asked the US Court of Appeals in New York to rescind an emergency...

High prices drive rig count to 1,000 mark.(E & P Update)
April 12, 2004... A steady revival in onshore gas drilling drove the US gas rig count to exactly 1,000 in the week ended Apr. 2, the first time it has hit that level in almost three years. The Baker Hughes rotary gas rig count last made it into four digits...

Nuclear outages will have minimal gas impact.(Current)
April 12, 2004... Increased electricity demand is likely to have more of an impact on increased demand for natural gas than nuclear plants being down for maintenance, according to industry sources. "If the economy keeps growing, we are going to wind up...

Report says blackout was preventable.(Current)
April 12, 2004... The huge mid-August blackout that left some 50 million people in the US and Canada without electricity was largely preventable and highlights the need for utilities to have mandatory standards, investigators said in a final report last week....

TECO to sell synfuels operations.(Current)
April 12, 2004... TECO Energy has agreed to sell most of its remaining interest in its synthetic fuels business in order to free up cash needed to pay down debt. The Tampa, Florida-based company said the sale, subject to a final agreement and reviews by the...

Calpine buys former NRG Brazos Valley power plant.(Briefs)
April 12, 2004... Calpine has completed the $175 million purchase of the 570-MW Brazos Valley gas-fired power plant in Texas. The transaction represents a unique swap of merchant assets in the post-Enron playing field. Calpine bought the Brazos plant...

Goodrich hits Louisiana Paydirt.(Briefs)
April 12, 2004... Goodrich Petroleum announced last week a discovery on its Norton Prospect in the West Delta 83 Field in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. The company said it drilled and logged its State Lease 1922 No. 16 well, the initial discovery well for...

Sago Energy closes subsidiary sale.(Briefs)
April 12, 2004... Sago Energy has closed the sale of its Texas operating subsidiary, Sago Jameson, and its Louisiana operating subsidiaries. These subsidiaries include LEDCO, Louisiana State Gas and LEDCO Gas Gathering. The sale, which became effective Mar....

Canada clears official in probe.(Briefs)
April 12, 2004... An independent investigator dismissed allegations of conflict of interest that had threatened to block the proposed C$4 billion (US$3 billion) Mackenzie Valley natural gas pipeline from Canada's Arctic to energy-hungry southern markets. ...

West Coast drilling moratorium could be lifted by year's end.(Canadian Markets)
April 12, 2004... Efforts to open Canada's pristine West Coast to oil and gas exploration have entered a critical phase, as the federal government starts a period of consultations that could lead to a lifting of a three-decade-old moratorium later this year. ...

Conflicting forecasts blow hot, cool for gas injection season.
April 12, 2004... With storage appearing to land just north of 1,000 Bcf this year, bets are good that 3,000-plus Bcf will be in the ground come Nov. 1. But the cost of that gas will depend a good deal on late-spring weather, now being intently scrutinized. ...

Storage project in works.(Late News ...)
April 19, 2004... Storage project in works. Sempra Energy has acquired land near Henry Hub for developing new salt-cavern gas storage facility to be called Pine Prairie Energy Center. Evangeline Parish, Louisiana, site was purchased from SG Resources Louisiana....

LNG terminal planned.(Late News ...)
April 19, 2004... LNG terminal planned. In another report involving Sempra Energy, company officials are expected to announce plans this week for LNG receiving terminal at Port Arthur, Texas, near sites already in development by Exxon Mobil and Cheniere Energy....

Trinidad strike lingers.(Late News ...)
April 19, 2004... Trinidad strike lingers. Patrick Manning, prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, is warning that labor strike halting expansion work at nation's LNG liquefaction plant could hurt country's business reputation, including efforts to become...

Average cash prices & futures strip.(Late News ...)
April 19, 2004... Cash prices moved lower this week as much more spring-like weather arrived in the major markets. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED]

EnCana snaps up Tom Brown as Rockies M & A action heats up.
April 19, 2004... EnCana, already North America's biggest independent, plans to buy US Rockies gas producer Tom Brown for $2.3 billion in cash--a move that will strengthen its position in Colorado's Piceance Basin and also give it a new foothold in East Texas....

Weaver's Cove decision reveals LNG's new regulatory realities.
April 19, 2004... The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) veted last week to deny a preliminary determination ruling on technical grounds for a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Massachusetts, another example of how the post-Hackberry...

Warm eastern weather will test mettle of gas market speculators.
April 19, 2004... The next several weeks will provide a good test of speculators' enthusiasm for high-$5/MMBtu natural gas prices as a bearish warming trend should begin freeing up healthy volumes of natural gas for storage injection. Physical gas markets...

Forum on reserve bookings hears plea for greater disclosure.
April 19, 2004... A recent conference in Houston on the vexed issue of reserve bookings brought an impassioned plea by one speaker for the disclosure of far more detailed information on reserves and production by public oil and gas companies. The gathering,...

Canadian gas reserves stay steady.
April 19, 2004... Canada's National Energy Board (NEB) had good news regarding the country's total natural gas resource base, but only so-so news about Alberta. The agency said last week that the ultimate potential reserves estimate for Canada now stands at...

FERC clarifies affiliate rules; claims authority over AGL pipes.
April 19, 2004... Federal regulators last week clarified their rules regarding the way that information is shared between transmission providers and their marketing and sales affiliates. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) responded to the...

Bolivian minister mulls Peru gas outlet.
April 19, 2004... Bolivia's newly appointed Mining and Hydrocarbons Minister Xavier Nogales said last week his country would favor exporting its huge natural gas reserves to the US and Mexico through a port in Peru, rather than the most unpopular Chile option....

GOP leaders to meet in effort to revive half-dead energy bill.
April 19, 2004... Influential Senate and House Republican leaders will meet on Wednesday to hammer out differences that have thwarted Congress from approving an energy bill despite repeated calls from President Bush. "I will meet next week with House Energy...

Mideast demand could tighten market for deep-shelf Gulf rigs.
April 19, 2004... Drilling on the Gulf of Mexico shelf is likely to get more expensive for exploration and production companies in the coming months as rigs continue leaving the US Gulf in search of more profitable drilling opportunities in other parts of the...

El Paso Bahamas-Florida LNG project stirs to life with deal.
April 19, 2004... In Florida's gas market supply pageant, each of the three contestants to fill the anticipated 1.6 Bcf/d market has its own unique quality that makes the ultimate outcome impossible to wager, but the odds seem to be improving for one that only...

Freeport-McMoran eyes GulfLNG receiving terminal with a twist.
April 19, 2004... Most of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminals proposed in recent years are ventures proposed by major oil companies that have stranded gas resources overseas in search of access to the North American market where customers abound....

Experts predict future role of renewables.(Current)
April 19, 2004... Renewable energy will not soon replace fossil energy completely, but the time has come for the renewable sector to lose its label as a luxury or alternative fuel, says one industry source. Matthew R. Simmons of Simmons and Company...

PG & E sees bankruptcy finale.(Current)
April 19, 2004... After three years, California closed the book on the Pacific Gas & Electric (PG & E) bankruptcy, the state's largest utility and likely the nation's largest utility bankruptcy. PG & E filed for bankruptcy in April 2001 at the height of the...

Duke NSR case to be dropped.(Current)
April 19, 2004... The US government plans on dropping its case against Duke Energy for violations of the New Source Review (NSR) rules of the Clean Air Act, Duke said last week. The company said the government will ask the presiding judge in the case for a...

California still faces manipulation.(Current)
April 19, 2004... California Attorney General Bill Lockyer released a report last week claiming that the state is still vulnerable to the same market manipulation that contributed to the electricity crisis of 2000-2001. "The incentives to game the market and...

Sierra Pacific wants renewable waiver.(Current)
April 19, 2004... Utility subsidiaries of Sierra Pacific Power in Nevada want a two-year exemption from Nevada's state renewable requirements in order to avoid fines for not meeting renewable standards. Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company...

Virginia approves landfill plant.(Current)
April 19, 2004... The Virginia State Corporation Commission has approved a request by INGENCO Wholesale Power to build an electric generation facility. The 16-MW power plant will be located at Shoosmith Brothers Landfill in Chesterfield County near Richmond. ...

Chevron moves Tahiti ahead, awards engineering contracts.(Regional Market Roundup)
April 19, 2004... Chevron U.S.A, a subsidiary of ChevronTexaco, has awarded two major engineering contracts to Technip Offshore and Mustang Engineering for the development of the major's Tahiti deepwater development project in the Central Gulf of Mexico. ...

Coalbed methane offers riches, challenges for Alberta producers.(Canadian Markets)
April 19, 2004... As opportunities and production in Alberta's conventional gas plays in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin continue their inevitable decline, producers are turning to the region's massive untapped resources locked in coal seams. Coalbed...

Exxon Mobil begins construction of SE Asian gas production hub.(World Roundup)
April 19, 2004... Exxon Mobil has started the construction of a natural gas compression platform in Malaysia as part of its plan to build an offshore gas production hub in the Southeast Asian country. The Guntong E platform, which will consist of an...

EIA: Asian energy demand to grow.
April 19, 2004... Bolstered by red-hot demand growth in the developing world, especially in Asia, world energy demand should soar 54% by 2025, but resources are sufficient to keep pace, the Department of Energy (DOE) said last week. In a wide-ranging study,...

DuPont signals further losses ahead for chemical industry.
April 19, 2004... A protracted contraction in gas consumption by the chemical sector shows no sign of abating with DuPont, the nation's second-largest chemical maker, planning major layoffs in the US due to uncompetitive energy prices. DuPont said last week...

EIA upgrading survey.(Late News ...)
April 26, 2004... EIA upgrading survey. Department of Energy's analytical arm said Friday it will improve its monthly survey of domestic natural gas production. Energy Information Agency (EIA) now issues report 120 days after end of reporting month. Saying that...

PG & E refunding $100 million.(Late News ...)
April 26, 2004... PG & E refunding $100 million. California's largest utility Pacific Gas and Electric said its customers will receive refunds of around $100 million under electricity rate reduction plan that was part of its recent emergence from bankruptcy....

CPUC stands pat.(Late News ...)
April 26, 2004... CPUC stands pat. California energy regulators ordered unit of Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. to file for approval to build proposed liquefied natural gas plant in Long Beach, California. State Public Utilities Commission also voted to ask Federal...

Average cash prices & futures strip.(Late News ...)
April 26, 2004... Cash prices were strong relative to the Nymex, but ended the week down with a weaker contract. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED]

NGW analysts scoreboard: analysts' forecasts jump due to continued supply, demand blues.
April 26, 2004... The coterie of natural gas gurus' taking part in NGW's Analyst Scoreboard agree on why natural gas prices should remain high in the second quarter of 2004--lower domestic production and higher electricity demand for natural gas--but opinions...