Allowed

Southern California Gas allowed a high-linepack OFO to lapse Monday. The OFO had been in effect since March 17 (see Daily GPI, March 19).

As expected, exceptional support from a prior-day 80.3-cent futures spike allowed the February cash aftermarket to get off to a strong start by rallying at most points Wednesday. The show of firmness got an extra boost from icy precipitation moving into much of the Southeast Thursday, adding to already existing cold-weather demand.

Florida Gas Transmission allowed an Overage Alert Day that began last Friday to lapse Tuesday.

Florida Gas Transmission allowed an Overage Alert Day for market-area customers to expire Tuesday, but cautioned them that with freezing weather being forecasted in northern Florida again by Thursday evening, it may need to reimplement an Overage Alert Day for an upcoming gas day.

Energen Corp. subsidiary Energen Resources sold its allowed $12.5 million Enron bankruptcy claim, which will generate net income in 2006 of $6.7 million, or 9 cents per diluted share. The parent company reaffirmed its 2006 earnings guidance range of $3.10-$3.30 per diluted share, noting that the Enron settlement is expected to place Energen’s 2006 earnings toward the middle of this range. Excluded from the earnings guidance is a significant fourth quarter gain from the previously announced sale of one-half of Energen Resources’ acreage position in Alabama shales. The Birmingham, AL-based company has 1.7 Tcfe of proved reserves in the San Juan, Permian and Black Warrior basins and in the North Louisiana/East Texas area.

Columbia Gulf reported Thursday it had completed repairs on the 26-inch diameter Eugene Island System and allowed three platforms to resume flows effective with the Intraday 2 nominations cycle. Columbia Gulf also reduced its estimate of the amount of production shut in due to a leak on Line 100 of the West Leg of the Bluewater System to 12,000 Dth/d (see Daily GPI, Nov. 1). It said degassing operations would commence later Thursday and continue until the line pressure is reduced to a level that permits divers to enter the water safely. Depending on weather conditions, divers may be permitted in the water as early as Monday, and depending on the extent of the leak, operations could return to normal as soon as Wednesday, Columbia Gulf said.

Pacific Gas & Electric did not extend a systemwide Stage 3 high-inventory OFO beyond Tuesday.

Lack of above-normal temperatures and tropical disturbance development tied with weakness in the petroleum arena allowed natural gas futures on Monday to continue to explore the downside. After reaching a low of $6.710, September natural gas wound up staging a minor rally in closing out the day at $6.913, still down 35.6 cents from Friday.

Up to 3,100 new gas wells will be allowed under a new infill drilling plan approved by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for the Jonah Field in south-central Sublette County, WY. Operators EnCana Corp., McMurray Oil and BP America estimate that the energy project could provide 8 Tcf of additional natural gas production.