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      HOME  | GAS NEWS  | EVENTS  | JOBS  | BUSINESS CENTERS  | DIRECTORIES  | DATA CENTER    MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 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    [IMAGE]  [IMAGE]     How has Enron remained a dominant factor in energy markets while other firms have struggled? Global Change Associates' publication, "Enron 2001: An Inside View", is an objective study that takes an insider's look at the firm's operations and the keys to its success. The study covers: The recruitment and training of employees; How Enron empowers and compensates its employees; The keys to structuring Enron type "risk free" transactions; How to negotiate with Enron; Why Enron occasionally forgives counterparty obligations. For firms dealing with Enron, or thinking about adopting some of Enron's business practices, it is an invaluable tool. http://www.energycentral.com/links/show_mi.cfm?id=100386         TOP STORIES     Natural Gas Drilling Activity Slacks Off in Oklahoma  By Russell Ray, Tulsa World, Okla., Oct. 20 Idle drilling rigs are piling up in the yards of contractors everywhere, leaving the workers who manned them jobless and vexed.     Missouri Agency Advises Rejection of Gas Utility's Effort to Recoup Payments  By Repps Hudson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Oct. 20 The staff of the Missouri Public Service Commission recommended Friday that the regulatory panel reject an unusual proposal by the state's largest natural-gas utilities to include their delinquent bills in all customers' winter rates.     Northwest Lines Up $2B Loan Package For Portland Acquisition  Oct. 21 (Power Finance & Risk) Portland, Ore.-based Northwest Natural Gas is in the process of arranging three corporate facilities, one for $1.65 billion and two for $450 million, which it will use to help fund its $2.1 billion acquisition of Portland General Electric from Enron. Special Offer from this Publisher!       Energy Security      Companies, Governments May Pass New Security Costs on to Consumers  By Carolyn Shapiro, Daily Press, Newport News, Va., Oct. 18 Heightened security measures at airports, power plants and shopping malls in the wake of domestic terrorist attacks aim to make consumers safer.      California Crisis      State Sees Lower Cost for DWR Contracts; Renegotiations Not a Priority  Oct. 21 (California Energy Markets) After sending highly mixed signals about possible contract renegotiations, Governor Gray Davis' representatives on Friday downplayed the issue to instead emphasize that the cost impacts of Department of Water Resources contracts are lower because of reduced natural gas prices. Special Offer from this Publisher!           ADVERTISEMENT    Representatives from the Bush Administration, Congress, FERC, NRC, and state PUCs will come to Wall Street at the Energy Investor Policy and Regulation Conference, December 3-4, 2001, New York City, to outline the future direction of energy policy and regulation. Details for this important event available at http://www.infocastinc.com/energyinvestor.htm          National Energy Policy      Attacks make energy bill key - U.S. energy chief  WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) The Sept. 11 attacks on the United States have amplified the need for an energy security bill that decreases American dependence on foreign oil, U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said in an interview to be broadcast on Saturday.      Legislation/Regulation      FERC upholds Calif. natgas reporting order  WASHINGTON, Oct 18 (Reuters) The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said Thursday it would hold the line on an earlier ruling that enacts strict reporting requirements for companies that buy and sell natural gas in California.      FERC plans natgas pipeline capacity nomination changes  WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) Natural gas pipelines and customers have until Nov. 19 to offer suggestions on a plan by federal energy regulators that would allow shippers to recall released capacity and renominate the capacity.      Public Utilities Commission of the State of California v. El Paso Natural Gas Company, El Paso Merchant Energy-Gas, L.P. and El Paso Merchant Energy Company  Oct. 22 (Btu Watch) The Chief Judge issued an initial decision that found El Paso Corporation and its affiliates in clear violation of Standards of Conduct F and G. Special Offer from this Publisher!       Gas Pricing/Hubs      U.S. spot gas slips for weekend, NYMEX up sharply  NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) U.S. spot natural gas prices for the weekend mostly lost ground despite a sharp NYMEX rally, pressured by light loads and fairly mild weather forecasts into next week, industry sources said.      Canada spot natgas mixed, Alberta follows NYMEX up  NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) Canadian spot natural gas prices were mixed Friday with Alberta spot prices chasing NYMEX futures higher and export values moving lower behind weaker U.S. spot gas, industry sources said.      NYMEX Hub gas ends up sharply on cold winter forecast  NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) NYMEX Hub gas ended sharply higher Friday in moderate trade, driven by some pre-weekend short covering and long-term weather forecasts this week calling for a colder-than-normal winter, sources said.      Gas Supply/Demand      California confirms interest in Bolivian natural gas  Oct 21, 2001 - Efe California confirmed it was interested in acquiring Bolivian natural gas to solve its severe energy crisis, the Bolivian Economic Development Ministry said.      Futures      Nov Futures Hits 8-Week High on Short-Covering, Weather Outlooks  Oct. 19 (Btu's Daily Gas Wire) November natural gas futures settled up 19.5 cents at $2.681 after breaking resistance at Wednesday's $2.69 high to hit a fresh near 8-week high for a nearby month at $2.72, as non-commercial buying shot the contract 24.9 cents higher said market players. Special Offer from this Publisher!       LNG      Officials to hold LNG emergency exercise  Oct 19 - Boston Herald Public safety and Distrigas officials plan to run through a "table- top" exercise today to determine how well emergency crews could handle a fire aboard a liquefied natural gas tanker heading into the company's Everett terminal.      Pipelines      Gas Pipeline Remains Volatile Issue for Sherwood, Ore.-Area Residents  By Emily Tsao, The Oregonian, Portland, Ore., Oct. 18 NW Natural's proposal to build a 62-mile natural gas pipeline through three counties has cleared another hurdle, and some residents are working to alter the pipeline's path.      USA continues to support Turkmen gas pipeline  Oct 18 - BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union The United States continues to support the idea of building a Transcaspian gas pipeline for delivering Turkmen gas to Turkey across the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan and Georgia, Steven Mann, the special adviser for Caspian energy basin development at the US Department of State, who has arrived in Asgabat, to attend the TIOGE-2001 international conference, told a news conference on Thursday [18 October].      Legislators voice pros, cons of Great Lakes pipelines  Oct 20 - State Legislatures In the face of rising prices and consumer discontent, there's growing interest in drilling and piping natural gas from under the Great Lakes to offset shortages across the country.      FARC attack on gas pipeline kills 5  Oct 21, 2001 - Efe The bombing early Sunday of a gas pipeline near the Colombian city of Riohacha killed five people and injured 11 others, military spokesmen said.      Gazprom Hopes to Win Pipeline Tender in China with Shell  Oct 21, 2001 - Itar-Tass News Agency Russia's Gazprom gas giant hopes to win the tender for building the West-East trans-Chinese gas pipeline, which leads to Big Shanghai area, and to take an active part in the development of the gas system in China, Gazprom head Alexei Miller has told Itar-Tass.      Rates    For more information on rate tariffs visit Gas Rate Tariffs   [IMAGE]    NYSEG Files Natural Gas Rate Changes to Take Effect Late Next Year  BINGHAMTON, N.Y., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ NYSEG today filed with the Public Service Commission (PSC) proposed natural gas rate changes to take effect when the company's current rate plan expires in September 2002.      Major Natural-Gas Provider to Charlotte, N.C., Area Seeks Rate Decrease  By Ted Reed, The Charlotte Observer, N.C., Oct. 19 You know that heat you just started using again? You can enjoy it more, because it's going to cost about $200 less this season.      South Carolina Electric & Gas Has Plan to Cut Natural Gas Rates  By John P. McDermott, The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., Oct. 18 Heating bills will be cooling off for natural gas customers this winter.      Missouri Gas Energy Seeks State Permission to Cut Rate 31 Percent  By Steve Everly, The Kansas City Star, Mo., Oct. 19 Missouri Gas Energy plans to reduce the price it charges for natural gas by 31 percent, bringing the rate to its lowest point since July 2000.      Reduction in rates sought; Missouri Gas Energy wants to cut key fee 31 percent  Oct 19 - The Kansas City Star Missouri Gas Energy plans to reduce the price it charges for natural gas by 31 percent, bringing the rate to its lowest point since July 2000.      Lower bills for gas likely  Oct 20 - Tulsa World Ample natural gas supplies and declining prices will likely mean that Oklahoma Natural Gas Co. customers can expect significantly lower utility bills this winter, ONG said Thursday.      Rigs      Baker Hughes-U.S. rig count down 41, Canada down eight  NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) The number of rigs searching for oil and gas in the United States fell by 41 to at 1,100 during the week ending Oct. 19, according to oil services firm Baker Hughes.      General      Utilities File Plan To Recoup Unpaid Bills  Oct 19 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch Four investor-owned utilities in Missouri, including Laclede Gas Co., are asking the state Public Service Commission to let them include delinquent accounts from last winter's gas bills in winter rates that take effect next month.      Deals/Contracts      Houston Energy Conglomerate to Buy Norwegian Natural Gas  By Antonio Fins, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Oct. 19 A Houston energy conglomerate planning to build a second natural gas pipeline to Florida said Thursday it has signed contracts to purchase natural gas from Norway.      Russia, Turkmenistan in talks on big gas deal  Oct 20 - BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union Russia and Turkmenistan are negotiating a deal on the delivery of 30bn cubic meters of Turkmen natural gas over a period of 10 years, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and presidential envoy at Caspian Sea status talks Viktor Kalyuzhnyy announced in Asgabat.      Xinao lands largest natural gas supply contract  Oct 20 - South China Morning Post Growth Enterprise Market-listed Xinao Gas (Holdings) has landed its largest gas supply deal to date.      People      Semco Energy says CFO Coppola has left company  FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., Oct 19 (Reuters) SEMCO Energy Inc., a distributor of natural gas, on Friday said its chief financial officer, Sebastian Coppola, left the company.      Senate Panel Considers DOE Fossil Energy Nominee  Oct 19, 2001 - E?Publishing The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Thursday will hear from Michael Smith, President Bush's nominee for assistant secretary for fossil energy at the Energy Department.      Financial      Enron stock sustains further heavy losses  HOUSTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Enron Corp. stock sustained further heavy losses on Friday as investor confidence in the former Wall Street favorite was rocked by reports about the company's relationship with a limited partnership that was run until recently by Enron's chief financial officer.      NewPower frees up cash with Enron revisions  NEW YORK, Oct 19 (Reuters) National power marketer NewPower Holdings Inc. has freed up $40 million of cash by revising the financing provided by three Enron Corp. subsidiaries, NewPower spokeswoman Gael Doar said on Friday.      Mutual funds sell Enron on management concerns  By Judith Crosson (Reuters) DENVER, Oct 19 (Reuters) Several mutual funds that once held large positions in Enron Corp. have either liquidated or reduced their holdings, their confidence undermined in the management and transparency of the once high-flying energy giant, fund managers said on Friday.      Plunging Gas Prices Force National Fuel to Write Down Value of Canadian Sites  Oct 21, 2001 - Buffalo News National Fuel Gas Co., stung by plunging natural gas and oil prices, will reduce the value of its Canadian oil and gas producing properties in a charge that will cut its fourth-quarter profits by $90 million to $110 million.      Enron cuts shareholder equity by 1.2 bln usd due to partnership deal  Oct 18 - AFX Enron Corp said it has reduced its shareholder equity by 1.2 bln usd as the company decided to repurchase 55 mln of its shares that it had issued as part of a series of complex transactions with an investment vehicle connected to its chief financial officer, Andrew Fastow, the Wall Street Journal reported in its online edition.      Financial - Results      Canadian energy profits drop with oil, gas prices  CALGARY, Alberta, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Three major Canadian oil companies, Imperial Oil Ltd., Alberta Energy Co. Ltd. and Nexen Inc., pumped out lower third-quarter profits Thursday as slumping oil and gas prices weighed on their bottom lines and reduced their expectations.      Nicor posts quarterly profit vs. loss  NAPERVILLE, Ill., Oct 18 (Reuters) Nicor Inc., parent of gas distribution utility Northern Illinois Gas, on Thursday posted a third-quarter profit, compared with a year-ago loss, and said full year earnings may be higher-than expected on strong performance in its non-utility units and gas distribution center.      International      Gazprom Won't Sign New Contracts on Gas Supply to Europe  Oct 19, 2001 - Itar-Tass News Agency Russia's Gazprom gas giant does not think it possible to sign new contracts on the gas supply to European markets under current circumstances, first deputy head of the Gazprom management Pyotr Rodionov said at the 6th conference of gas companies' chiefs in Paris on Friday.      U.S. CEO Says Natural Gas Helps Apec Economy  Oct 19, 2001 - Xinhua News Agency Natural gas, the third fossil fuel along with the crude oil and coal, is in abundant supply and has tremendous potential to help the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies meet the energy supply shortage, a prominent U.S. businessman said here Saturday.      Turkish envoy: Blue Stream Project on track, Russian stand on PKK same  Oct 19 - BBC Monitoring European Nabi Sensoy, Turkey's ambassador in Moscow, said on Thursday [18 October] that it was seen that there would not be any problems in the construction of the natural gas pipeline beneath the sea within the scope of Blue Stream natural gas project.      Gas company presses Georgia and Armenia over debts  Oct 20 - BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union The Itera international group of companies has started to gradually reduce supplies of natural gas to Armenia and Georgia due to chronic non-payment for gas and debt owed by consumers, a source in the company's press service told Interfax.        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. 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