Duke Energy is outsourcing its human resources (HR) operations and information technology to Hewitt Associates, a global human resources services firm, under a new seven-and-a-half-year contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. About 100 Duke Energy employees, out of a total of 21,500 in the U.S. and Canada, will lose their jobs because of the move, but Duke said some may still be retained by Hewitt. Most of the affected employees are located at Duke’s Charlotte headquarters. Hewitt will provide comprehensive back-office administrative human resources services, including payroll, active employee and retiree health and insurance enrollment and status, retirement plan administration, staffing and training enrollment and status, work force event and salary administration, and performance management administration, to the company’s U.S. and Canadian employees and retirees. The company said that all of its U.S. and Canadian employees and benefit plan participants will see changes in the manner in which they access some HR information and/or how they perform certain HR-related functions.
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Kerr-McGee Reaches Detente in Proxy Fight with Icahn Group
Kerr-McGee Corp.’s proxy battle with financier Carl Icahn and his associates appeared to come to an end last week, but the settlement announced Thursday came at a steep price. The producer said it will buy back $4 billion worth of stock at an all-time high, and announced a plan to sell off “select” U.S. onshore, Gulf of Mexico and North Sea assets, which represent 20-25% of current production and 10-15% of proved reserves.
Analyst Predicts 3 Tcf in Storage by Nov. 1
Don’t be fooled by the 269 Bcf (26%) gas storage surplus compared to the five-year average of working gas levels, analysts at Raymond James & Associates warned in an equity research note last week. The gas market is tighter than those numbers would suggest, and “weather-disguised tightness should begin to show up soon.”
Kerr-McGee Reaches Detente in Proxy Fight with Icahn Group
Kerr-McGee Corp. appears to have convinced financier Carl Icahn and his associates to end a proxy fight, but the settlement announced Thursday came at a steep price. The producer said it will buy back $4 billion worth of stock at an all-time high, and announced a plan to sell off “select” U.S. onshore, Gulf of Mexico and North Sea assets, which represent 20-25% of current production and 10-15% of proved reserves.
Analyst Predicts 3 Tcf in Storage by Nov. 1
Don’t be fooled by the 227 Bcf (22%) gas storage surplus compared to the five-year average of working gas levels, analysts at Raymond James & Associates warned in an equity research note on Monday. The gas market is tighter than those numbers would suggest and the “weather-disguised tightness should begin to show up soon.”
Every Natural Gas Bull Loves Raymond James
Analysts at Raymond James & Associates aren’t quite ready to pack up their bull horns and nose rings, but they had to concede Monday that the domestic gas supply picture is improving. To them that simply means the domestic gas production decline isn’t as steep as they previously projected.
Sempra Puts Alaska LNG in Long-Range ‘Options’
A San Diego-based spokesperson for Sempra Energy Thursday qualified remarks the company’s top liquefied natural gas (LNG) executive made at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates’ CERAWeek conference in Houston a day earlier regarding the company’s possible pursuit of LNG supplies from Alaska. Sempra has no specific plans regarding Alaskan LNG, other than listing it as one of its possible future sources of gas in the post-2010 time frame, the spokesperson said.
Sempra Puts Alaska LNG in Long-Range ‘Options’
A San Diego-based spokesperson for Sempra Energy Thursday qualified remarks the company’s top liquefied natural gas (LNG) executive made at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates’ CERAWeek conference in Houston a day earlier regarding the company’s possible pursuit of LNG supplies from Alaska. Sempra has no specific plans regarding Alaskan LNG, other than listing it as one of its possible future sources of gas in the post-2010 time frame, the spokesperson said.
Industry Brief
Consulting firm Solomon Associates LLC said a consortium of eight North American natural gas transmission companies have commissioned a cost benchmarking analysis of their combined 20 pipeline systems. Solomon will base this study on the concepts and methodologies developed for its fuel refining studies and later adapted for liquid pipeline studies. Other North American and global natural gas transmission companies will be invited to participate in the natural gas pipeline benchmarking study. In 2001, Solomon launched its liquid pipeline studies in Europe, which expanded worldwide. Its specialized, multiclient operating cost benchmarking studies for energy and power generation facilities enables companies to better measure, manage, and maximize their performance. The results of the natural gas pipeline study will remain confidential. No pipeline participant will see other individual pipeline company results, only cost and performance ranges and averages. The benchmarking study will be completed at the end of the third quarter. Detailed information is available by calling (972) 739-1719 or emailing pipeline@solomononline.com.
Raymond James Projects 12% Rise in E&D Spending in ’04
Analysts at Raymond James and Associates said they are expecting exploration and development (E&D) capital spending budgets to continue to increase in 2004 despite rising a massive 41% in 2003 from last year. The analysts believe gas and oil market fundamentals will remain strong, there will be fewer assets available for purchases, and that E&P companies will focus on stock buyback and debt reduction plans only about as much as they had in 2003.
