Apparently

The steep gas production declines that occurred in the first quarter apparently did not continue in the second quarter, according to a preliminary survey of producer forecasts by Lehman Brothers. The survey of 45 producers indicates that production in the Lower 48 states will be roughly flat with first quarter levels, said Lehman analyst Thomas Driscoll, who believes producers have been quicker to respond to price signals since the sharp price spikes in 2000.

Enron Corp.’s former outside accountant Arthur Andersen and the accounting firm’s law firm are apparently close to completing an internal review into when and how its employees destroyed documents relating to the bankrupt company’s business practices. Details of the report by Davis Polk & Wardwell could be released this week, but Andersen also indicated that its investigation is ongoing.

Nearly 20 of bankrupt Enron Corp.’s creditors have apparently filed motions to delay the scheduled auction of the company’s trading assets this week, but one-time merger partner and creditor Dynegy Corp. will not be one of them, a spokesman said Wednesday. However, even if the auction proceeds as planned, Enron is facing more obstacles on the legal front: 51 subpoenas are expected to be issued Friday by the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and in Houston, a judge is considering whether to freeze Enron executives’ assets.

Was that a little extra nip in the air? Traders apparently felt it Tuesday as, with a little prompting from a moderately higher screen, they sent cash numbers rising by as much as the low-teens, although a large majority of the upticks were less than a dime and a few small declines were thrown into the mix.

Apparently in a move to prepare for expected downturns through the remainder of the year, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp.’s CEO said Thursday that the independent would shift some of its spending from onshore natural gas projects in the Lower 48 to “more profitable opportunities in the Gulf of Mexico and Canada.” Second quarter earnings, however, jumped on higher natural gas prices and increased production, mostly from acquisitions. Across town, rival independent Apache Corp. also had a stellar quarter, with earnings up 73%, also related to strategic acquisitions.

Williams apparently still has the western pipeline expansion fever. The company announced the fourth expansion project in the Pacific Northwest for Northwest Pipeline and all four are expected to be in service in the next two years. This latest project, Evergreen, is a mainline expansion that will add 276 MMcf/d to serve new power generation in Washington. The $200 million looping and compression project will include the addition of 26 miles of pipeline in Skagit, King and Pierce counties and 90,000 hp of compression at eight existing stations.

Tulsa-based Williams Cos. Inc. apparently is considering a bid to buy Barrett Resources Corp., the Denver-based independent producer fighting off a takeover bid by Royal Dutch/Shell Group. Williams filed information regarding its interest Tuesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission after outside individuals were inadvertently connected to a telephonic conference call of Williams board of directors.

It doesn’t happen very often, so we’re noting an apparentlyspontaneous comment from Dynegy Counsel Ed Ross at a FERCRoundtable last week that one of his chief competitors, Enron, “hasdone an excellent job of being competitive.” He suggested otherscould look to Enron as a “model competitor. They’ve done a verygood job of setting up a strong financial desk and a strongphysical desk and we don’t see any problem with it. I think theyhave set up their books in a way that they truly have separationbetween the regulated and unregulated aspects of their business.”

It doesn’t happen very often, so we’re noting an apparentlyspontaneous comment from Dynegy Counsel Ed Ross at a FERCRoundtable last week that one of his chief competitors, Enron, “hasdone an excellent job of being competitive.” He suggested otherscould look to Enron as a “model competitor. They’ve done a verygood job of setting up a strong financial desk and a strongphysical desk and we don’t see any problem with it. I think theyhave set up their books in a way that they truly have separationbetween the regulated and unregulated aspects of their business.”