Energy Central Daily Gas News

Message-ID: <10928327.1075861769385.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Tue, 27 Nov 2001 17:51:58 -0800 (PST) From: gasnews@mail.energycentral.com To: khyatt@enron.com Subject: Daily Gas News - 11/28/01 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ANSI_X3.4-1968 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-From: gasnews@mail.energycentral.com X-To: khyatt@enron.com X-cc: X-bcc: X-Folder: \KHYATT (Non-Privileged)\Hyatt, Kevin\Deleted Items X-Origin: Hyatt-K X-FileName: KHYATT (Non-Privileged).pst Energy Central Daily Gas News

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2001

THIS ISSUE BROUGHT TO YOU BY

Competitive Intelligence now available. Identify potential suitors, those who threaten your position across the value chain or those who demonstrate best practices with Company Profile Reports from Datamonitor. These reports are the definitive intelligence resource on 106 top companies in the energy industry. Reports include: specific business background, history, locations and subsidiaries, products, services and key employees. View the list of Datamonitor's Company Profiles. http://www.energycentral.com/sections/research/default.cfm?cpane=23003&rpublisher=11408&rtype=all

TOP STORIES

Energy Bill Saved For Next Year
Nov 27 - Associated Press Senate action on energy legislation, and a likely confrontation over whether to allow oil drilling in an Arctic wildlife refuge, is being put off until early next year.

Utility Lags in Passing Natural-Gas Price Cuts to Pennsylvania Consumers
By Pamela C. Turfa, The Times Leader, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Nov. 27 You're paying less for other fuel, but the natural gas that heats your home is costing you more.

New Gazprom May Open Up New Options
Moscow, Russia, Nov 27, 2001 (RosBusinessConsulting via COMTEX) -- Gazprom, Russia's largest company, was awarded its first credit rating on Monday by rating agency Standard & Poor's.

Energy Security

Federal Officials Take Bin Laden Threat against U.S. Pipelines Seriously
By Michael Davis, Houston Chronicle, Nov. 27 The FBI confirmed Monday that it has warned the energy industry that Osama bin Laden may have ordered strikes against U.S. natural gas facilities if he is caught or killed.

DOE to coordinate US energy infrastructure defense
Nov 27 - Oil & Gas Journal The Department of Energy at presstime was expected to unveil a unit that will coordinate homeland defense for the nation's oil and gas sector, industry sources said.

Competition & Deregulation
For reports and related information on this topic visit our Data Center

Ofgem to end price caps on energy
Nov 27 - The Daily Telegraph BRITAIN'S electricity and gas suppliers became the first privatised utilities to be opened up to unbridled competition yesterday, as energy regulator Ofgem said it would remove all remaining price controls in April.

ADVERTISEMENT

How has Enron remained a dominant factor in energy markets while other firms have struggled? To find out visit: http://www.energycentral.com/links/show_mi.cfm?id=100386

Mergers, Acquisitions & Divestitures

Enron, Dynegy in Renegotiation Talks
Nov 27 - Associated Press Shares of Enron Corp. reversed days of double-digit declines Tuesday and rose more than 9 percent after Dynegy Inc. confirmed it is in talks to renegotiate its $9 billion deal to buy its larger but financially embattled rival.

Calif. Attorney Gen'l to examine Dynegy-Enron deal
SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov 26 (Reuters) California's attorney general will examine Dynegy Inc.'s bid to buy its much larger energy rival, Enron Corp, officials said Monday, adding a potential new wrinkle to the troubled $9 billion merger proposal.

NiSource to sell water assets for $515 million
MERRILLVILLE, Ind., Nov. 26 (Reuters) NiSource Inc., a diversified natural gas distributor, said on Monday it has reached a definitive agreement to sell assets of its water business to the City of Indianapolis for $515 million.

Edison buys time to make Contact
Nov 26 - Dominion EDISON Mission Energy bought time this week to try to convince Contact Energy's 121,000 shareholders to sell out of a leading New Zealand energy company in which they have invested for less than three years.

Two Houston-Based Oil-Field Service Companies to Merge
By Michael Davis, Houston Chronicle, Nov. 27 Oil-field service companies Petroleum Geo-Services and Veritas DGC have agreed to merge in a deal that will create the second-largest company in the geophysical services industry with a market value of about $1 billion.

Marathon to run Alba project off Equatorial Guinea
Nov 27 - Oil & Gas Journal Marathon Oil Co. will acquire CMS Energy Corp.'s upstream and downstream interests in Equatorial Guinea for $993 million with an eye toward developing the assets' remaining gas potential.

Legislation/Regulation

Service Agreements: A Fresh Look at What's Negotiable and What's Non- conforming
Nov. 26 (Energy Insights) On rehearing in four related cases concerning the filing of individually negotiated service provisions, the FERC shifted the focus of its analysis to whether a particular "material deviation" from a form of service agreement presents "a significant potential for undue discrimination among shippers."
Special Offer from this Publisher!

Gas Pricing/Hubs

Weather gives boost to Canadian natgas prices
CALGARY, Alberta, Nov 27 (Reuters) Spot natural gas prices were higher across Canada on Tuesday, with cool weather giving a push to prices in Alberta and British Columbia, sources said.

Colder weather pushes up U.S. spot natural gas
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 27 (Reuters) Colder weather in the West and the Midwest sent U.S. spot natural gas prices higher on Tuesday, market sources said.

Most NYMEX gas ends up, mild forecasts pressure Dec
NEW YORK, Nov 27 (Reuters) NYMEX Hub gas mostly ended higher Tuesday in active trade, but spot December again lost ground, pressured by fairly mild weather forecasts and a still-wide cash discount to futures, industry sources said.

Futures

Mild Weather, Ample Gas Storage Weighs Heavily Upon Dec Futures
Nov. 27 (Btu's Daily Gas Wire) December natural gas futures settled 9 cents lower at $2.606 as moderate weather in key eastern consuming regions reduced heating demand and weighed upon natural gas pricing, said traders.
Special Offer from this Publisher!

Rates
For more information on rate tariffs visit Gas Rate Tariffs

Govt. Considers Raising Gas Rates
Argentina, Nov 27, 2001 (BNamericas.com via COMTEX) -- Argentina's government is considering implementing an additional "insignificant" increase in residential natural gas rates next year to help subsidize prices in southern Argentina, Argentina's Infrastructure Minister Carlos Bastos said, quoted by La Nacion.

Rigs

Drilling Activity Continues To Fall In Western Canada
WINNIPEG, MB, Nov 27, 2001 (Resource News International via COMTEX) -- The number of Canadian oil and gas rigs active as of Tuesday, November 27, totaled 296, down from the previous week's 314, according to the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors (CAODC).

Storage

Belgian gas regulator 'concerned' by storage shortage
Nov 27 - AFX The gas regulator said it is "concerned" about the national market and warned that storage facilities are the weakest link in the Belgian supply chain.

General

Colorado Utility Company Xcel Energy Hopes Lower Prices Yield Fewer Complaints
By Steve Raabe, The Denver Post, Nov. 25 Xcel Energy is hoping lower heating bills this winter will chill fiery tempers that caused a surge in customer criticism last year.

Deals/Contracts

Russia, Kazakhstan to Sign Gas Deal
Nov 27, 2001 - Itar-Tass News Agency The prime ministers of Kazakhstan and Russia will on Wednesday sign an agreement on cooperation in gas sphere, which is expected to contribute to long-term mutually advantageous cooperation in prospecting, developing and exploiting gas deposits as well as a transit of Russian and Kazakh gas to markets of third countries up to the year 2010.

Legal

Enron Lawyers Trapped in Merger Limbo
By Mary Flood, Houston Chronicle, Nov. 27 Whether troubled Enron Corp. merges, falls or stays the course, it is likely to deeply affect one of Houston's largest law offices: the one within the embattled company.

People

New Boss Will Need to Engineer A Turnaround at Swiss Conglomerate ABB
By Benjamin Wootliff, Sunday Business, London, Nov. 25 Juergen Dormann, the new chairman of ABB, faces an uphill task to turn around the fortunes of the troubled engineering giant and woo back investors who have seen their shares halve in value since the beginning of the year.

Financial

Canaan Energy to buy back 11 pct of shares
OKLAHOMA CITY, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Natural gas producer Canaan Energy Corp. said on Tuesday it plans to repurchase 560,169 shares, or 11 percent, of its common stock from three former Indian Oil shareholders for $12.00 a share.

Financial - Results

Mild Weather Puts Dent in Evansville, Ind.-Based Utility's Earnings, Outlook
By Gargi Chakrabarty, The Indianapolis Star, Nov. 27 Vectren Corp. warned Monday that its expected 2001 earnings will fall below Wall Street estimates because of "extremely mild weather experienced to date as the 2001-2002 heating season begins."

Canadian 88 hit by writedown from low gas prices
CALGARY, Alberta, Nov 27 (Reuters) Canadian 88 Energy Corp., a mid-sized Canadian petroleum producer, said on Tuesday low natural gas prices had resulted in a big asset writedown and a large third-quarter loss.

International

Sasol to Tap Mozambique's Gas for SA Industry
By John Fraser, Nov 27, 2001 (Business Day/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- Synthetic fuels giant Sasol is planning to use natural gas from Mozambique to provide electricity and steam for SA industry.

Pres: Govt has Clear Plan to Export Gas
Bolivia, Nov 27, 2001 (BNamericas.com via COMTEX) -- Bolivia has a clearly defined strategy to export natural gas, President Jorge Quiroga Ramirez told an exporter's conference in Cochabamba.

Petrobras and Petros ensure purchase of CEG
Brazil, Nov 26, 2001 (Gazeta Mercantil/SABI via COMTEX) -- The purchase of the share of Enron in the gas distribution companies CEG and CEG Rio by Petrobras and its pension fund, Petros, is reaching its final stage.

E&D opportunities may loom in Mexico's natural gas industry
Nov 27 - Oil & Gas Journal Mexico faces decreased natural gas production at a time when industrial demand in northern Mexico is skyrocketing.

If you are an Energy Central News Subscriber and you have checked any news articles above, selecting the 'Get Articles' button below will deliver all of the checked articles in one page. This is a convenient way to get exactly the news you need - quickly!

NEED INFORMATION ON THE POWER INDUSTRY? ENERGY CENTRAL?S GOT IT!
ENERGY CENTRAL DAILY ELECTRIC POWER NEWS
An e-mail news service that delivers every major story every day directly to your e-mail address. Inquire for corporate and group discount rates. sales@energycentral.com
JOB CENTER
The Job Center provides instant access to the best employment opportunities and prospective employees in the energy industry through comprehensive job listings and active resume database.
JOB WATCH
A free weekly e-mail service that broadcasts new job listings in the Job Center directly to your inbox!
CONFERENCE WATCH
The Conference Watch is a weekly e-mail service and online database that lists upcoming industry conferences, seminars, and trade shows. The service is free to all energy professionals.
DATA CENTER
Energy Central partners with the best research, publishing, and consulting firms to create useful online database applications. Visit the Data Center to gain immediate access to online databases and instant reports.
DIRECTIONS AND INFORMATION
ABOUT ENERGY CENTRAL'S GAS NEWS SERVICE
This news summary service is provided FREE to qualified professionals in the power industry. This news summary may be redistributed provided it is kept in its entirety.
* Visit Member Services to START, STOP, or CHANGE FORMAT for all of your e-mail subscriptions.
* To BEGIN receiving this summary directly, send a message with a subject of 'signup' to gasservice@energycentral.com.
* To STOP receiving this service, send a message to gasservice@energycentral.com or call Member Services at 303-782-5510.
SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
The full text of articles referenced in this summary is available to Energy Central Gas News Subscribers and Members. An individual annual subscription costs US$15.95 per month. To sign up for an individual subscription, or for information about corporate discounts, call CyberTech at 800-459-2233, 303-782-5510, or send an e-mail message to sales@energycentral.com.
PRESS RELEASES
Submit press releases and other news to pr@energycentral.com
SPONSORSHIP AND ADVERTISING
For sponsorship or advertising info call sales at 303-782-5510
TO DELIVER YOUR ARTICLES, PAPERS, PROCEEDINGS OR MONOGRAPHS THROUGH ENERGY CENTRAL:
Energy Central provides a variety of mechanisms for delivery of information to power professionals including this news product, Energy Central Web Site (http://www.energycentral.com), Energy Central Conference Watch(tm), and others. We can deliver your information on a promotional, subscription or a pay-per-view basis. For more information, contact Steve Drazga at 303-782-5510 (sdrazga@energycentral.com)

  SUBSCRIBE

Full text access to daily news articles is limited to Energy Central Gas News Subscribers.

  CORPORATE SPONSORS

Click on each logo to visit sponsor.

  NEWS SECTIONS

    Top Stories
    Energy Security
    Competition & Deregulation
    Mergers, Acquisitions & Divestitures
    Legislation/Regulation
    Gas Pricing/Hubs
    Futures
    Rates
    Rigs
    Storage
    General
    Deals/Contracts
    Legal
    People
    Financial
    Financial - Results
    International

  ADVERTISEMENT

  NEWS SEARCH

Find Energy Central Gas News stories up to 30 days old.

  ENERGY CENTRAL

Home
News Centers
    Energy Central Direct New!
    Power News
    Gas News
    Weekly News Wrap-Up New!
Events Center
Job Center
Data Center
Business Centers
On-line Publications New!
Research Report Center New!
Directories
    Associations
    State PUCs
    Trade Publications
Industry
    Glossary
    Links
Member Services
About Energy Central
    Our Products
    Content Syndication New!

Copyright © CyberTech, Inc. 2001. All rights reserved.
Energy Central(r) is a registered trademark of CyberTech, Incorporated.
CyberTech does not warrant that the information or services of Energy Central will meet any specific requirements; nor will it be error free or uninterrupted; nor shall CyberTech be liable for any indirect, incidental or consequential damages (including lost data, information or profits) sustained or incurred in connection with the use of, operation of, or inability to use Energy Central. Contact: 303-782-5510 or service@energycentral.com.