Brandt Energy, a former partner in the Wild Goose Storageproject in California, is planning the development of Colorado’sfirst independent gas storage facility. The Totem Gas StorageProject is to be located about 12 miles east of the Denver Airportin a depleted gas field in the J Sand reservoir of the DenverJulesburg Basin. Brandt, Star Natural Gas, Renegade Oil & Gasand Fairchild, Ancell & Wells make up the development team forthe project, which will target growing power generation load andmarketers serving customers along the Front Range.

There’s a dearth of storage in the state and what is there iseither under contract or being used by the local utility, saidBrandt Energy President Michael G. Wright.

Totem will be one of only six storage fields in the state andwill have one of the highest deliverability rates of any of theexisting facilities.

“We have pretty good permeability and porosity, and we’re ableto come up with a deliverability of over 200 MMcf/d,” said Wright.”It will have to reach about half of the 9 Bcf of working gascapacity before deliverability starts falling off. One of thethings we’ll be able to do is to inject and withdraw gas on any dayat any point in the year, which is different than the otherreservoirs, which have active water drives. There’s a requirementthat they have to get their gas out every year otherwise they maylose it behind the water.” He said Totem will have sufficientinjection capability to provide a minimum of two cycles per year.

There will be a greater need for the flexibility Totem willprovide as gas and electric competition heats up in the state,Wright noted. “Any marketer, gas supplier or trader that plans onsupplying small commercial or residential loads is going to have tohave swing and balancing capabilities.

“In addition to that, the power market is continuing to grow inColorado,” he noted. In response to a shortfall in power supplylast summer and resulting brownouts, Public Service of Coloradoissued a request for proposals for new generation capacity and anumber of peaking gas-fired plants are being developed and aregoing to be in service in about a year.

Totem is expected to be in service in the second quarter of 2001with connections to Colorado Interstate Gas and PSCo. Wright saidTotem has filed an application with the Colorado Oil and GasConservation Commission for approval to convert the field into astorage facility and will apply with the Colorado Public UtilitiesCommission for market-based rates. Totem currently is holding aninformal open season. For details call Wright at (214) 954-1886, oremail him at mgwrit1@aol.com.

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