Acclaim Energy Trust closed its previously announced acquisition of Alberta natural gas properties for $68.4 million. The current production from the new assets is 3,000 boe/d, 75% weighted to natural gas, and includes 13.5 MMcf/d of natural gas and 750 b/d of light oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Eighty percent of the production is located in Acclaim’s core operating areas, with a particularly strong fit in west central Alberta and the Peace River Arch. The acquisition was financed through a bought deal financing completed on July 22, 2003 with a syndicate of underwriters which resulted in the issuance of 6.6 million units for gross proceeds of $72.1 million. Acclaim Energy Trust is a Canadian income trust that produces 26,000 boe/d, 55% of which is natural gas.

Duke Energy Field Services (DEFS) said that it is selling a 125 MMcf/d natural gas processing plant and over 600 miles of gathering pipeline and associated compression in West Texas to Midcon Samarah Field Services LLC for more than $60 million. The deal is expected to close by Sept. 30. DEFS is owned 70% by Duke Energy and 30% by ConocoPhillips.

Going forward, the United States will need to locate and produce natural gas from new reserve basins, while ensuring that the pipeline infrastructure exists to handle the supply, Robert Skaggs, president of Merrillville, IN-based NiSource’s gas-only distribution companies, told a House Task Force for Affordable Natural Gas. Held on Thursday, the hearing today was hosted by U.S. Congressman Chris Chocola at the South Bend Town Hall. Skaggs backed the efforts of Congress in ensuring adequate supplies of natural gas for the long term. “In the long-term, the natural gas industry needs to significantly increase production and interstate pipeline capacity,” he said. “This means tapping into new natural gas reserves and streamlining the regulatory approval process to expedite the construction of new pipeline projects — and make them more economical to build.” He also underscored the need for additional LIHEAP funding as recommended in both the House and Senate, “from $2 billion to $3.4 billion, to help meet the greater need this winter.”

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