Almost

Ranger Oil Ltd.’s board of directors has announced that afteralmost three months of unacceptable bids, it is ready to make arecommendation to its shareholders to sell all of its outstandingshares to another Calgary-based producer. Canadian NaturalResources Ltd. made an offer that Ranger’s board of directors couldnot refuse.

The industry almost assuredly will see $4/Mcf gas later thisyear, and on a cold day in Chicago next winter it may even see gasprices “momentarily spike” to as much as $30 or $40 due to anever-tightening supply situation, says a University of Houstonprofessor.

The industry almost assuredly will see $4/Mcf gas later thisyear, and on a cold day in Chicago next winter it may even see gasprices “momentarily spike” to as much as $30 or $40 due to anever-tightening supply situation, says a University of Houstonprofessor.

Strong gas prices and the promise of robust demand fromgas-fired generation are making industry executives almost giddy.Production may be waning in the shallow Gulf of Mexico, but it iswaxing in the greater depths. Ditto for LNG imports. Canadianproducers look south and see market, north and see future supply.It’s all good if you can overlook the fact Wall Street isn’t payingmuch attention.

Demonstrating the volatile nature of the stock market this week,Dynegy’s stock price dropped almost 7% yesterday despite ChuckWatson, CEO of Dynegy, announcing that the company expects firstquarter earnings to be 20% higher than industry estimates.

The swing market somewhat resembled a popular breakfast foodWednesday: almost as flat as could be, with a slight lean towardthe softer side.

Almost a year after it entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy,Houston-based TransTexas Gas Corp.’s reorganization plan tookeffect as the company arranged $52.5 million in exit financing.TransTexas amended its existing DIP Credit Agreement and RevolvingAccounts Receivable Credit Facility, cancelled existing securitiesand issued new securities. This is the final step in emergence fromChapter 11, which began April 19, 1999.

Amerada Hess agreed to buy gas and power marketer Statoil Energy ServicesInc. of Alexandria, VA, for what a Hess spokesman said was less than $25million. Statoil Energy Services serves industrial and commercial customers,mainly in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Energy restructuring and other market forces have become driversfor the federal government’s almost decade-old effort to greatlyreduce Uncle Sam’s overall $4 billion utility bill, the director ofthe Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) told an industryaudience gathered last week in a Los Angeles suburb. As a result,the feds this year should meet their goal set in 1993 to reduceoverall federal facility energy use by 20%, said FEMP Director BethShearer.