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Unocal Corp. CEO Charles R. Williamson told analysts on Wednesday at Lehman Brothers’ 15th annual CEO Energy Conference in New York City that the company’s worldwide net oil and gas production could average nearly 800,000 boe/d in 2007, a 63% boost from the company’s average production last year.

Pipeline construction season has officially begun as two natural gas pipeline companies formally announced on Tuesday their new proposed projects for the Southeastern region’s gas needs. As Southern Natural Gas Co. unveiled its intentions to expand its Sonat system for the third time in the last year to supply incremental demand in Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina, Duke Energy Gas Transmission (DEGT) launched a month-long open season to determine market interest in a new natural gas supply and transportation option called the Alabama-Georgia Energy System.

Gas reserves grew substantially in 2000 partly because of declines in production, but also because of a turnaround in drilling, according to a new report by the American Gas Association. The AGA report shows that based on the behavior of 30 large reserve holders examined, total domestic gas reserve additions are expected to be 24 Tcf or greater for 2000. Because only 19.2 Tcf is estimated to have been produced, reserves for 2000 are expected to have grown from 164.7 Tcf to more than 170 Tcf — the highest level of reserves since 1987, AGA said. Additions to gas reserves exceeded domestic production by at least 26% in 2000.

Natural gas drilling in the shallow Central Gulf of Mexico drewthe most bids, which were mostly from U.S. independents, in thisweek’s Minerals Management Service lease sale. MMS reported that60% of the bids were for shallow water tracts in acreage less than200 meters deep, considered the best places for quick gasproduction, with total bidding of $227.654 million.

NGPL waived the monthly net withdrawal minimums through Marchfor storage customers under Rate Schedule DSS. It also waived for2001 a requirement that 50% of DSS inventory be cycled by April 30of each year.

Any Department of Energy (DOE) initiative seeking to imposemandatory reliability standards in the electric industry would alsohave to tackle the issue of competition to be effective, theFederal Trade Commission (FTC) says.

Any Department of Energy (DOE) initiative seeking to imposemandatory reliability standards in the electric industry would alsohave to tackle the issue of competition to be effective, theFederal Trade Commission (FTC) says.

The “desperation” by utilities to consolidate, mutate or get outof the business altogether is a good thing, said utilities analystDaniel Ford of ABN AMRO, because this fear is where most of thestock values are now being created. Ford, a keynote speaker at lastweek’s PowerMart 2000 in Houston, called investors a “ficklebunch,” but added they are sticking with utility stocks.

AGL Resources’ fiscal third quarter marks the third consecutive quarter the company has exceeded analysts’ predictions. The results also signify the first steadily increasing earnings trend after becoming the first gas utility to completely exit the gas merchant function.