The Oil and Gas Journal articles from December 2002

The Oil and Gas Journal archives from December 2002

OECD oil, petroleum product stocks fall. (Market Movement).(Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)
December 2, 2002... Continued declines of oil and petroleum products inventories among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries through October "buttresses our contrarian view that crude's last trek to $32(/bbl) was a function of...

Energy prices react to warning. (Market Movement).
December 2, 2002... Energy futures prices jumped Nov. 21 after US President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin jointly warned Iraq to cooperate with United Nations' weapons inspectors. That capped a 3-day rally in oil futures markets; prices took...

Little fuel switching evident. (Industry Scoreboard).(between natural gas and fuel oil)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Although natural gas prices have risen above residual fuel oil prices along the East Coast, no more than 500 MMcfd of gas demand has been lost to fuel switching so far this year, said Robert Morris with Salomon Smith Barney Inc., New York, in a...

The Worldwide oil field process chemicals market. (Industry Trends).(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... THE WORLDWIDE oil field process chemicals market is expected to grow to $2.3 billion by 2007 compared with $1.7 billion in 2002, forecast Norwalk, Conn.-based Business Communications Co. Inc. (BCC) in a new report. That pace would mean an...

Oil and Natural Gas. (Industry Trends).(industry continues to develop e-commerce)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... OIL AND NATURAL GAS information technology (IT) specialists continue to develop electronic-business models despite the e-commerce meltdown in 2000. The industry must move beyond unrealistic business models and concentrate on what works,...

The Bangladesh Geological Society and Bangladesh Economic Association. (Government Developments).(report on natural gas industry)
December 2, 2002... BANGLADESH has insufficient gas reserves to serve domestic and foreign markets, and the government should not authorize exports, the Nagorik committee has said. It listed Bangladesh's reserves at 6.2 tcf proved and 5.8 tcf probable. The...

ConocoPhillips. (Quick Takes).(plans project in Venezuela)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... CONOCOPHILLIPS said it expects government approval in 2003 for its planned development of giant Corocoro field in the southwestern Gulf of Paria off Venezuela. The company said that the block also contains associated gas, and that...

A group of leading deepwater operators and service-supply companies. (Quick Takes).(plans project in Gulf of Mexico)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... A group of leading deepwater operators and service-supply companies has selected Aker Kvaerner to execute Phase VI of the Deepwater Staged Recovery (DeepStar) project in the Gulf of Mexico. DeepStar was initiated in 1992 to develop economically...

China's First LNG Project. (Quick Takes).
December 2, 2002... CHINA'S FIRST LNG PROJECT, which involves the construction of an LNG import terminal and high-pressure gas pipelines, got a boost Nov. 25 when the North West Shelf (NWS) venture participants signed purchase and supply agreements with the...

BG Group PLC. (Quick Takes).(plans LNG terminal in Italy)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... BG Group PLC received approval in November to construct and operate a 330 million euro LNG terminal in Brindisi Port, on the southeast coast of Italy. BG said it expects to sanction the project by yearend 2003. The Brindisi terminal, which will...

Amerada Hess Corp. (Quick Takes).(oil well report)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... AMERADA HESS CORP. reported Nov. 26 that its G-13 wildcat well drilled on Block G in the Rio Muni basin off Equatorial Guinea encountered 251 ft of net oil pay over a 963 ft interval. The well was drilled in the southern part of the block...

Petroecuador, Ecuador's national oil firm. (Quick Takes).(offers four areas for exploration)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Petroecuador, Ecuador's national oil firm, is offering four Pacific Coast blocks in the Gulf of Guayaquil region for exploration and development under its ninth international bidding round, government representatives and company officials said...

BHP Billiton Ltd. (Quick Takes).(oil discovery in Gulf of Mexico)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd. said the Shenzi discovery well in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico has encountered a 465 ft gross hydrocarbon column with 140 ft of net pay. The discovery well, which was drilled 125 miles off the Louisiana coast on...

TEPPCO Partners LP. (Quick Takes).(to expand liquefied petroleum gas system)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... TEPPCO PARTNERS LP plans to expand the capacity of its northeastern US LPG delivery system next year by more than 1 million bbl during peak winter months, the company reported. TEPPCO will construct three new pump stations on its LPG common...

Duke Energy Corp. (Quick Takes).(plans gas pipeline)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved Charlotte, NC-based Duke Energy Corp.'s Patriot natural gas pipeline. The approval gives Duke's East Tennessee Natural Gas (ETNG) subsidiary authorization to construct, own, operate, and...

CNOOC and Shell Petrochemicals Co. Ltd. (Quick Takes).(award contract for petrochemicals complex in China)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... CNOOC and Shell Petrochemicals Co. Ltd. (CSPC) awarded a contract to Technip-Coflexip in a joint venture with Chiyoda Corp. and Mitsubishi Corp. of Japan for the engineering, procurement, and construction of a world-scale petrochemical complex...

Letters.
December 2, 2002... Oil security The Editor's Perspective and Market Hotline (OGJ, Oct. 14, 2002, p. 80) brings to mind the importance of maintaining standby infrastructure so that fluctuating demands and emergency scenarios can be properly accommodated....

Calendar.(petroleum industry seminars, conferences)(Calendar)
December 2, 2002... * Denotes new listing or a change in previously published information. Additional information ** seminars and conferences is available through OGJ Online, Oil & Gas Journal's Internet-based electronic information source or...

Oil patch Christmas. (Journally Speaking).(memories)(Column)
December 2, 2002... At this time of year, for many of us, thoughts naturally turn to home and memories of Christmases past. Some may recall a trip with Dad to pick out the family's Christmas tree or the aroma of Mom's pumpkin pie. But I was born and raised in the...

Williams' normal business hours include the eleventh hour.(Williams Companies)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... In the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, TotalFinaElf, BP, Marathon Oil, Nippon and Pioneer Natural Resources own a number of gas wells in the Mississippi Canyon area. Together, they agreed to build the Canyon Express pipeline, a gathering system, to...

Targeting energy action: Energy policy-2. (Editorial).(Editorial)
December 2, 2002... The US Congress has shown it can act constructively on energy when not asked to address every challenge at once. In 1995 it stimulated the country s most important exploration and development play in many years by providing graduated royalty...

Uncertain future looms for North America's intertwined natural gas and power markets. (General Interest).(Industry Overview)(Column)
December 2, 2002... The implosion of Houston-based Enron Corp. in the autumn of 2001 can in some ways be compared with the horrific events of Sept. 11,2001: Both caused pervasive and irreparable damage--the latter to America's sense of security and the former to...

CPUC head: California's energy woes stemmed from regulators 'stepping aside'. (General Interest).(California Public Utilities Commission)
December 2, 2002... Regulators who failed to enforce the rules created a bizarre market in which speculators controlled vital commodities, says the president of the California Public Utilities Commission {CPUC). Loretta Lynch told a Ziff Energy Group...

INGAA's Terry Boss: Pipeline safety a primary concern. (Point of View).(Interstate Natural Gas Association of America)(Industry Overview)
December 2, 2002... Terry D. Boss, senior vice-president of environment and safety for the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA), knows that representing interstate gas pipeline operating companies, a group that transports more than 90% of the...

EPA streamlines clean air rule for refineries, power plants. (General Internet).
December 2, 2002... Industry officials praised new action by the US Environmental Protection Agency designed to update air pollution control guidelines for power plants and refineries. Trade groups said that the updated clean air rules should now encourage...

China politics. (Watching Government).
December 2, 2002... Multinational oil companies should keep a careful eye on recent leadership changes in China, according to government and private analysts. After a year of intense backroom politics, Hu Jintao recently emerged as a key player in the new...

EnCana to sell Express, Cold Lake pipelines to two buyers. (Company News).
December 2, 2002... Two buyers have signed separate agreements to purchase EnCana Corp.'s interests in the Express and Cold Lake pipeline systems for $1.6 billion (Can.). EnCana's board late last month approved the two transactions, part of EnCana's bid to...

PIRA: study reveals world's top 10 energy companies' strategies.(PIRA Energy Group)
December 2, 2002... The strategies of some of the largest publicly traded oil and gas companies have been revealed in a recent comprehensive study released by energy consulting firm PIRA Energy Group, New York City. The study, "Market Dominance and Success:...

NW Natural's Reiten elected AGA chairman. (Personnel Moves and Promotions).(Northwest Natural Gas Co. chairman Richard G. Reiten now chairman of American Gas Association)
December 2, 2002... Richard G. Reiten, chairman and CEO of Portland, Ore.-based Northwest Natural Gas Co. (NW Natural) has been elected chairman of the American Gas Association for 2003. Reiten joined NW Natural as president in 1996 and will retire as CEO at...

Mancos shale oil potential large on Jicarilla lands in New Mexico. (Exploration & Development).
December 2, 2002... In these days when the oil and gas industry is looking for untapped resources overseas, a significant domestic resource is owned and managed by the Native American Tribes and Native Corporations of Alaska. The US Bureau of Indian Affairs...

Potential seen in area southwest of Australia. (Exploration & Development).(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Petroleum prospectivity could be more favorable than previously believed on the Naturaliste plateau seaward of the Perth basin off south Western Australia, a study by Geoscience Australia, Canberra, concluded. The 90,000-sq-km area lies 350...

Lundin Petroleum AB. (Exploration & Development: Albania).(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Lundin Petroleum AB, Stockholm, said Preussag Energie GmbH, Lingen, Germany, took a farmout of a 33 1/3% interest in blocks D and F in Albania, subject to National Petroleum Agency approval. Lundin, through its subsidiary Goparex...

Melrose Resources PLC. (Exploration & Development: Bulgaria).(operating Galata gas field)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Melrose Resources PLC, London, began awarding contracts for the $52 million development of Galata gas field in the Black Sea, where it hopes to start production by January 2004. The company said it arranged $23 million in mezzanine...

El Paso Production Co. (Exploration & Development: Gulf of Mexico).(exploratory well)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Wireline logs indicated intervals of hydrocarbon pay at an exploratory well on the JB Mountain prospect in 10 ft of water on South Marsh Island Block 223. Operator El Paso Production Co. drilled to 20,000 ft and plugged back to 19,500 ft...

Disappearing plug eliminates riser for subsea completions. (Drilling & Production).
December 2, 2002... Full-bore isolation valves (FBIVs) and multicycle tools (MCTs) eliminate the need for installing a drilling rig with a completion riser during subsea tree installation, thus reducing the time and cost for completing these wells. Shell...

Procedures correct temperatures for deep offshore wells. (Drilling & Production).
December 2, 2002... Accurate prediction of bottomhole circulating temperatures (BHCT) and bottomhole static temperatures (BHST) is important during drilling and completion of oil and gas wells. These downhole temperatures affect cement thickening time,...

DOE-sponsared energy program yields big savings for Flying J refinery. (Processing).(best practices energy program)
December 2, 2002... A Salt Lake City refinery recently implemented recommendations that resulted from an innovative energy best practices program. By implementing the recommendations, the Flying J refinery reduced electrical consumption by 5-6% and lowered...

New family of in-line process pumps. (Equipment/Software/Literature).(complementary in-line designs)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... The new HWX family of in-line process pumps consists of 11 types referenced in API 610, 8th Edition (and upcoming 9th Edition), as OH3 (bearing frame), OH4 (rigid coupled), and OH5 (directly coupled) designs. Pumps have only two bearing...

New gear lubricant. (Equipment/Software/Literature).(increases pumpability )(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... New PumpJack 150 gear lubricant in field tests shows that at temperatures of -51[degrees] C./-60[degrees] F. the lubricant helps ensure gearbox operability, reduce start-up torques, and lower amperage by 5%. The product promises to...

Valve operator suited to petrochemical operations. (Equipment/Software/Literature).(multifunctional hand-held unit )(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Light weight, portability, and versatility help suit the new RS-H rising stem valve operator to petrochemical operations. The multifunctional hand-held unit will operate all rising and nonrising stem valves from 6 in. to 60 in. quickly and...

New size added to hydraulic torque wrench. (Equipment/Software/Literature).(offers pushbutton drive release)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... An expanded line of hydraulic square drive torque wrenches now offers an intermediate size designed to speed and simplify bolting and unbolting. With a maximum torque of 5,570 ft-lb, and a weight of 11.9 lb, the new SQD-75-I provides a...

Free catalog lists petroleum books. (Equipment/Software/Literature).(training course manuals included)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... A new 2003 catalog, yours free upon request, lists a selection of books on petroleum science and technology. It lists more than 950 titles sorted under the main petroleum disciplines and related fields such as geology, hydrocarbon...

Gulf Interstate Engineering. (Services/Suppliers).(vice-president of engineering named)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Houston, has appointed Steve W. Shores vice-president of engineering. Shores is a graduate of the University of Tulsa with a BS in mechanical engineering, and has nearly 30 years of diversified engineering, project management, and business...

Stolt Offshore SA. (Services/Suppliers).(permanent CEO sought as interim CEO named)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... London, has named Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen as interim CEO upon the recent retirement of Bernard Vossier. Stolt-Nielsen is also CEO of Stolt Offshore's parent company, Stolt-Nielsen. The company has commenced a search for a permanent CEO. ...

Crane Valves North America. (Services/Suppliers).(new director of sales-industrial products)(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Signal Hill, Calif., has announced the appointment of Ted Corvaia as director of sales-industrial products. His responsibilities cover the Flowseal, Center Line, Crane, Duo-Chek, and Aloyco product lines. Crane Valves North America...

Weatherford International Ltd. (Services/Suppliers).(Stuart Ferguson named president )(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... Houston, has named Stuart Ferguson as president of Weatherford Completion Systems division, and David Colley as vice-president of Weatherford's Global Manufacturing Operations. Ferguson earned a BS in chemical engineering from the...

OGJ Production Report.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... OGJ PRODUCTION REPORT (Crude oil and lease condensate) 11-22-02 (1) 11-23-01 (2) 1,000 b/d Alabama 23 25 Alaska 1,000 972 California 784...

US Crude Prices.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... US CRUDE PRICES $/bbl * 11-22-02 Alaska-North Slope 27[degrees] 24.13 Southern Louisiana Light 26.50 California-Kern River 13[degrees] 20.75 Lost Hills 30[degrees] ...

World Crude Prices.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... WORLD CRUDE PRICES $/bbl (1) 11-15-02 United Kingdom-Brent 38[degrees] 23.38 U.S.S.R.-Export blend 32[degrees] 22.93 Saudi Light 34[degrees] 20.83 Dubai Fateh 32[degrees] ...

Baker Hughes Rig Count.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT 11-22-01 11-23-01 Alabama 3 5 Alaska 8 14 Arkansas 0 0 California 22 38 ...

Smith Rig Count.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... SMITH RIG COUNT 11-22-02 11-23-01 Proposed depth, Rig Percent Rig Percent ft count footage * count footage * 0-2,500 34 2.9...

OGJ Gasoline Prices.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... OGJ GASOLINE PRICES (Approx prices for self-service unleaded gasoline) Price Pump Pump ex tax price * price 11-20-02 11-20-02 11-21-01 ...

Refined Product Prices.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... REFINED PRODUCT PRICES 11-15-02 cents/gal Spot market product prices Motor gasoline (Conventional-regular) New York Harbor 72.10 Gulf Coast ...

US Natural Gas Storage.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... US NATURAL GAS STORAGE (1) 11-15-02 11-8-02 Change Bcf Producing region 843 852 -9 Consuming region east 1,840 1,835 5 Consuming...

Pace Refining Margins.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... PACE REFINING MARGINS Sept. Oct. Nov. Nov. 2002 2002 2002 2001 Change $/bbl US Gulf Coast West Texas...

US Natural Gas Balance Demand/Supply Scoreboard.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... US NATURAL GAS BALANCE DEMAND/SUPPLY SCOREBOARD July Total July June July change YTD 2002 2002 2001 2002-2001 2002 ...

US Cooling Degree Days.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... US COOLING DEGREE DAYS (1) 2002 % change Sept. Sept. from 2002 ...

Worldwide NGL Production.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... WORLDWIDE NGL PRODUCTION 8 month Chg. vs. average previous Production year ...

Oxygenates.(Brief Article)
December 2, 2002... OXYGENATES Sept. Aug. YTD YTD 2002 2002 Change 2002 2001 Change 1,000 bbl Fuel ethanol Production 4,342 ...

Bush makes right move in refuting anti-Islam talk. (The Editor's Perpective).(U.S. President George W. Bush comments on Islam)
December 2, 2002... US President George W Bush made a proper and necessary move Nov. 13 when he made clear that his country is not at war with Islam. His statement followed and apparently responded to denunciations of Islam by several conservative Christian...

OPEC faces bigger challenge without Iraq war. (Market Hotline).(Iraqi President Saddam Hussein decides on war)
December 2, 2002... The "What if?" game on Iraq and the US dominates oil market scenarios at the moment. As discussed in this space last week, there is ample evidence that conflict in Iraq is all but inevitable amid already tight market fundamentals. But...

Analysis says gas FPSO feasible, CNG possibly economic export option. (Transportation).(dry-gas reservoir study)
December 2, 2002... Economic analysis of use of a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel to produce a dry-gas reservoir indicates that such use is technically feasible. Moreover, this analysis indicates that, of three transportation...

Newsletter. (Market Movement).(natural gas fundamentals improving)
December 9, 2002... Natural gas fundamentals improving The outlook for the 2003 North American natural gas market hinges on storage because flat-to-declining supply coupled with power generation demand should tighten the gas market, Houston-based Simmons &...

US Industry Scoreboard.
December 9, 2002... US INDUSTRY SCOREBOARD -- 12/9 4 wk. 4 wk. avg. Change, YTD Last week 11/29 average year ago (1) % average (1) Demand, 1,000 b/d Motor gasoline 9,042 8,677 ...

US drilling activity. (Industry Trends).(remains sluggish)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... US DRILLING ACTIVITY remains sluggish, and oil field service analysts say future activity hinges upon exploration and production companies' capital expenditure plans. "The near-term catalyst, in our opinion, will be 2003 budget...

Oil and gas firms. (Industry Trends).(lower 2002 capital expenditures and earnings likely)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... OIL AND GAS FIRMS are likely to post lower 2002 capital expenditures and earnings. In an October report, UBS Warburg LLC says oil field services companies likely will post a decline of 9% in upstream cash flow this year. The analyst...

Turkey. (Government Development).(has restricted supertanker passage )(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... TURKEY has restricted supertanker passage through its Bosporus and Dardanelles straits between the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea--and in the Sea of Marmara between the two straits. A policy bans supertanker traffic through the straits and...

India's state owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (Government Development).(wants BG Group removed from oil fields)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... INDIA'S STATE OWNED Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) has recommended that the government remove BG Group PLC as operator of the controversial Panna, Mukta, and Tapti oil and gas fields. ONGC, BG, and Reliance Industries Ltd.--equity...

The US Department Of Energy. (Government Development).(plans to spend $1.8 million over a 3-year period on two new oil field technology projects)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... THE US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY said it plans to spend $1.8 million over a 3-year period on two new oil field technology projects. In the first project, DOE will cofund research with two Albuquerque, NM-based companies--independent producer...

Chevron Texaco Corp. (Quick Takes).(deepwater port off Louisiana)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... CHEVRONTEXACO CORP. has applied to the US Coast Guard for a license to construct and operate a deepwater port off Louisiana at which it would site an LNG receiving terminal. The development, called Port Pelican, would consist of an LNG ship...

ExxonMobil Corp. (Quick Takes).(investigating British sites for a potential LNG import terminal)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... ExxonMobil Corp., which signed a heads of agreement with Qatar General Petroleum Corp. to supply natural gas to the UK for 25 years beginning in 2006-07, is investigating British sites for a potential LNG import terminal. Harry Longwell,...

Iraq and Jordan. (Quick Takes).(oil pipeline planned)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... IRAQ AND JORDAN plan to start construction in 2003 on the first leg of an oil pipeline to transport Iraqi crude oil to Jordan, and they signed an accord in mid-November calling for Baghdad to provide all of Jordan's crude oil supplies in 2003,...

First natural gas from Argentina through BG Group. (Quick Takes).(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... First natural gas from Argentina through BG Group's $160 million Gasoducto Cruz del Sur (GCDS), or Southern Cross, pipeline began flowing to Uruguay Nov. 8. Uruguay's state electricity utility, UTE, primary customer for the gas, will fuel its...

Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (Quick Takes).(to purchase the West Vanguard semisubmersible drilling rig )(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... DIAMOND OFFSHORE DRILLING INC., Houston, reported that its subsidiary Diamond Offshore Drilling Ltd. entered into an agreement to purchase the West Vanguard semisubmersible drilling rig from Stavanger-based Smedvig ASA, for $68.5 million. The...

Three Groups. (Quick takes).(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... THREE GROUPS are still exploring the deep water off Trinidad and Tobago: * Shell Trinidad Ltd., operator for partners Agip Trinidad & Tobago Ltd. and Petroleum Co. of Trinidad & Tobago Ltd. (Petrotrin) plans to drill two more wells in...

Statoil ASA. (Quick Takes).(proved more oil and gas in its Tyrihans South discovery )(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... Statoil ASA recently proved more oil and gas in its Tyrihans South discovery in the Norwegian Sea and has found oil in its Dolly prospect in the Tampen area of the North Sea. It also expects to find oil on Blameis prospect--also in the...

Pogo Producing Co. (Quick Takes).(natural gas discoveries)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... Houston-based Pogo Producing Co. reported natural gas discoveries with two wells in the central Gulf of Mexico. The first well, West Delta Block 54 No. 1, was drilled to 12,804 ft subsea and found a 33 ft hydrocarbon column in its primary...

Shell Exploration & Production and BP. (Quick Takes).(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... SHELL EXPLORATION & PRODUCTION CO. and BP are marking progress on their $1.26 billion Na Kika project to develop widely spaced oil and gas fields in the ultradeepwater Mississippi Canyon area of the Gulf of Mexico (OGJ, Oct. 9, 2000, p. 35)....

Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas Corp. (Quick Takes).(Wellstream supply contract)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2002... Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas Corp. has awarded a contract for the supply of a flexible flowline, jumper, and risers for Gunnison field's spar development project in the Gulf of Mexico to Wellstream, a unit of Halliburton Energy Services Group. Gunnison...

Calendar.(petroleum industry conferences)(Calendar)
December 9, 2002... * Denotes new listing or a change in previously published information. OIL & GAS JOURNAL online Additional information on upcoming seminars and conferences is available through OGJ Online, Oil & Gas Journal's Internet-based electronic...

We get e-mail. (Journally Speaking).(evaluation of electronic mail as a form of interpersonal communication)(Editorial)
December 9, 2002... Disregard the title under the byline here. I'm no longer an editor; I'm an email processor. The coupling of the internet and instantaneous interpersonal communication was originally touted as a universal blessing. But for many of...

The UK royalty promise. (Editorial).(Gordon Brown promises to end royalty on North Sea oil and gas fields)(Editorial)
December 9, 2002... British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown has kept a promise to abolish royalty on the UK North Sea's 30 oldest oil and gas fields. The move boosts investor confidence weakened by the surprise enactment in April of an extra tax on North...

Independents now dominating E&D action in Alaska's Cook Inlet. (Special report: Alaska).(exploration and development)
December 9, 2002... A wave of independent oil and gas companies has swept into Alaska's Cook Inlet region in recent years. Once rare even in this lower-cost of Alaska's two producing provinces--the North Slope and adjacent waters being the other--independents...

Forest Oil's Alaska unit poised for an active 2003. (Point of View).
December 9, 2002... Next year will be an active one for Forest Oil Corp.'s Alaska business unit, as roughly 20-25% of the Denver-based independent's exploration and production budget for 2003 is targeted for operations in that state's Cook Inlet area. And for Gary...