Associated

For the second Friday in a row, most points avoided the pricejinx associated with lower weekend demand. Flat to slightly higherwas the general rule, although a few points rose by as much as 8cents. Most of the weaker spots were concentrated in Northeastcitygates and the Rockies, with Iroquois Zone 2 deliveries fallingby almost 15 cents. Prices were down overall, but experiencing alate bounce due to screen strength, a Northeast trader said.

FERC last week gave Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line the go-aheadto build a $1.2 million lateral and associated facilities in NorthCarolina over the objections of state regulators, who argued thefacilities would constitute a bypass of a local distributioncompany.

No major headway was made in resolving the jurisdictionalchallenges associated with the proposed TriState Pipeline projectduring a FERC technical conference on Tuesday, according to a majorsponsor of the project.

Northern States Power Co. issued a request for proposals (RFP)for up to 1,200 MW of power generation capacity and associatedenergy for a period of 10 years, beginning sometime between May 1,2003, and May 1, 2005. NSP will use the additional resources tomeet increased retail customer demand. NSP is seeking peaking,intermediate and base-load resources. The RFP is open to allsources of power, including renewable resources. NSP will selectwinning proposals based on cost, environmental impact and deliveryguarantees. Before awarding the contract(s), NSP will submit theevaluation of the proposals to the Minnesota Public UtilitiesCommission (MPUC) for review. For a copy of the RFP or moreinformation, contact David L. Zuck at (612) 330-6452. He also maybe reached via fax, (612) 330-5868, or e-mail,david.l.zuck@nspco.com.

AltaGas Services recently bought three Canadian processingfacilities and associated gathering lines worth $17.4 million,continuing the Calgary-based midstream company’s trek toward the$200 million growth-spending goal set at the beginning of 1999.With this purchase, AltaGas has spent and committed a total of $115million in its acquisitions and expansion program this year.

AltaGas Services bought three Canadian processing facilities andassociated gathering lines worth $17.4 million on Friday,continuing the Calgary-based midstream company’s trek toward the$200 million growth-spending goal set at the beginning of 1999.With this purchase, AltaGas has spent and committed a total of $115million in its acquisitions and expansion program so far this year.

Existing shippers on Transcontinental Gas Pipeline haveexpressed widespread opposition to the pipeline’s request to rollin the costs associated with its SouthCoast expansion project inGeorgia and Alabama.

The usual demand fall-off associated with a holiday weekendfailed to prevent Friday’s cash market from rejecting the slightlysofter trend that had appeared to be developing Thursday. Insteadthe long-lasting trend of little to no price movement reasserteditself at nearly all points. A Western source said recent tradinghas been “like that movie Groundhog Day, because every morning Iwake up and the market is at the same place. The only difference isAndie McDowell [Bill Murray’s female co-star in the movie] has yetto show up.”

FERC staff has scheduled a conference for Dec. 8th to addressall policy and technical issues associated with the Commission’sproposal to implement auctioning of pipeline capacity in theshort-term market.