Apparently

Apparently environmentalists aren’t the only ones filing lawsuits in the Rocky Mountain West. Four gas producers are suing Montana in an effort to overturn water-quality standards that impose what the producers say are “excessive” requirements on the quality of water exiting coalbed methane (CBM) development areas in the Powder River Basin.

Apparently environmentalists aren’t the only ones filing lawsuits in the Rocky Mountain West. Four gas producers are suing Montana in an effort to overturn water-quality standards that impose what the producers say are “excessive” requirements on the quality of water exiting coalbed methane (CBM) development areas in the Powder River Basin.

After implicating Enron Corp.’s ex-CEO Jeffrey Skilling in many of the company’s illegal deals, former CFO Andrew Fastow fingered Enron founder Kenneth Lay on Wednesday, testifying that Lay not only knew about the financial shenanigans before the company dissolved into bankruptcy, but also actively took part in deceiving shareholders and the news media.

Natural gas dominance in the new housing market began to show signs of weakening in 2004 apparently because of high natural gas prices, according to the latest “Residential Gas Market Survey” by the American Gas Association (AGA).

Drillers apparently were trying to fix some problems with a new natural gas well in western Palo Pinto County, TX early Friday when the ground exploded, sending up a fireball seen 100 miles away. Only one person was slightly injured, according to a spokeswoman for the Texas Railroad Commission.

Apparently the screen’s meteoric rise of more than a dollar over the previous two days, culminating in Tuesday’s all-time intraday and daily settlement records for a prompt month contract, wasn’t all that impressive to cash traders Wednesday. Nor was heating load staying fairly heavy across northern market areas despite prospects for a bit of moderation from earlier in the week.

Hurricane Katrina may have been devastating onshore, but Hurricane Rita apparently caused more damage offshore to oil and natural gas rigs, according to two offshore data services. Katrina stormed through a mature exploratory region in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, while Rita stormed through the western Gulf, which is home to a lot of new exploration and production activity.

China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) apparently is still mulling whether to make an offer for Unocal Corp., which could challenge the $16.4 billion offer made by ChevronTexaco Corp. in April (see Daily GPI, April 5).

For the cash gas market, apparently the moderate screen weakness on Wednesday trumped a small increase in hot weather Thursday. Prices for Friday flow ranged from flat or slightly higher at some points in the West to down nearly 20 cents.