Houston-based Enterprise Products Partners LP and GulfTerra Energy Partners LP have scheduled a special meeting of their common unitholders on July 29 to vote on the approval of a merger between the two partnerships. The two announced their merger late last year, which, when approved, will form the second largest publicly traded energy partnership in the United States (see Daily GPI, Dec. 16, 2003). The new partnership will be worth about $13 billion, with the jointly owned affiliates of Enterprise and El Paso Corp. each owning a 50% stake. Enterprise’s registration statement on Form S-4, including the joint proxy statement/prospectus for the special meeting, was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the proxy statement was to be mailed to the unitholders of both companies.

Houston-based Meridian Resource Corp. said an electric log analysis reflects “apparent gas pay” in two separate sands, the Cris “I” and the Big hum sand intervals at its Biloxi Marshlands No. 24-1 well at the Oars Deep prospect area. The well was recently tested from the Cris “I” sand interval, the deeper of the two sand intervals, through 12 feet of perforations between a gross pay interval of 9,600 feet and 9,642 feet at a stabilized gross daily flow rate of 8.3 MMcf/d through a 22/64-inch choke. Flowing tubing pressure was measured at 2,674 psi and shut-in tubing pressure was measured at 3,032 psi. The well was placed on production on June 18, at 5.7 MMcf/d through a 13/64-inch choke with a flowing tubing pressure of 2,900 psi. The company owns a 92% working interest in the well.

Fitch Ratings has revised Occidental Petroleum‘s Outlook to Positive. Currently, Fitch rates the producer’s senior unsecured debt and bank revolver “BBB+” and its commercial paper “F2.” The change in Outlook affects approximately $4 billion in publicly traded debt securities. The revision, said Fitch, reflects Occidental’s growing production and reserves coupled with continued debt reduction that has occurred over the past year. The company increased production 6.2% in 2003 to 547,000 boe/d from 515,000 boe/d in 2002, and “it is likely to increase it again by slightly over 5% in 2004 to approximately 575,000 boe/d.” Analysts said expectations are for continued growth in production and reserves that is currently being funded by relatively modest capital spending levels. Operationally, the company has replaced reserves at economic costs over the past few years, said Fitch, with organic reserve replacement averaging 124% over the past three-year period at a finding and development cost of $4.78/boe. The company’s reserve replacement over the same time period averaged 156% at a finding, development, and acquisition cost of $4.54/boe. Also, over the past several months, the company has reduced debt by another $400-500 million.

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