Away

ANR Pipeline slipped more than a few lumps of coal in GuardianPipeline’s stocking over the holidays’ in the form of a 250-pageprotest and motion for dismissal filed with FERC. The Coastalsubsidiary has a right to be angry at its new competitor. TheGuardian project will result in the decontracting of about 650MDth/d of ANR’s firm transportation capacity by Guardian shipperand affiliate Wisconsin Gas and the loss of $54 million in annualrevenue, according to ANR’s calculations.

It is often said markets can fall twice as fast as they rise,and that has never been more evident than it was in the natural gasfutures market over the past two weeks. After all, what took bullsfive and a half days to produce, took the bears just two and a halfto knock down. With a 7.8-cent decline to settle at $2.444, theJanuary contract was 26 cents below Monday’s highs and 0.2 centsbelow its Dec. 10 settle.

Don’t put your duct tape and plywood away just yet. The lull inthe Atlantic hurricane season finally broke last week with TropicalStorm Bret and Tropical Depression Four throwing a one-two punch tothe gas market and triggering a more than 30-cent jump in NymexHenry Hub futures prices, which broke $3 early on Friday.Meanwhile, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA) and renowned Colorado State University forecaster Dr.William M. Gray both recently reiterated their predictions that thehurricane season will be a whopper despite the early lull.

The 16 gas suppliers vying for Georgia customers had theirmoment of truth last Friday, as Atlanta Gas Light (AGL) determinedtheir market share and presented the results to the Georgia PublicService Commission (GPSC). As expected, Georgia Natural GasServices, an AGL affiliate, and Scana Energy Marketing gained themost customers, receiving over 60% of the market between them.

Don’t put your duck tape and plywood away just yet. Althoughthere’s been a lull so far in the hurricane season, the NationalOceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and renowned ColoradoState University forecaster Dr. William M. Gray both still arepredicting a whopper season this year in the North Atlantic andCaribbean Sea during the peak period from mid-August throughmid-October.

Exxon blew away previous production test records for gas wellsin the entire Gulf of Mexico with a well in Mobile Bay about 2.5miles offshore south of Dauphin Island. The well tested at 126MMcf/d. The previous record in Alabama state waters was 91 MMcf/dand the record for the Outer Continental Shelf is 113 MMcf/d.

Exxon has blown away previous production test records for gaswells in the Gulf of Mexico and the state of Alabama. The companyannounced yesterday that it tested a well in Mobile Bay about 2.5miles offshore south of Dauphin Island at 126 MMcf/d. The previousrecord in Alabama state waters was 91 MMcf/d. The well also testedat a higher open flow rate than any well in the federal OuterContinental Shelf area of the Gulf. The OCS record was 113 MMcf/d.

After failing, so far, in its attempt to woo Southwest Gas away from Oneok, Southern Union Co. headed east to announce a friendly $500 million acquisition of distributor Pennsylvania Enterprises Inc. (PEI). With the purchase Southern Union will make its first entry into power marketing.

If government predictions are correct, Gulf of Mexico producerscould be shutting in more rigs and shuttling more workers to safetythis hurricane season than last.