Before

The Colorado Oil and Gas Commission says the state will issuemore than 1,400 permits for oil and gas drilling before the end ofthis year. In Wyoming, coal bed methane production has never beenmore active. The Rockies haven’t seen this much exploration sinceLewis and Clark were here. Today, the interest is underground, ascompanies map strategies to tap energy reserves.

Before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission starts thinkingabout the next generation of natural gas transportation rules, itshould pay attention to how its latest Order 637 rules areenforced, Indicated Producers said in comments submitted to theCommission this week.

Following an East-West swing market division the day before,everybody was on the same page Tuesday. Except for merely smallgains at western points where Canadian gas is traded (i.e., Sumas,Stanfield, intra-Alberta), double-digit increases reigned. Octobernumbers also were reported rising.

California lawmakers and regulators — testifying in a publicsession two months before the general election — heaped the blamefor the state’s skyrocketing power prices on the Federal EnergyRegulatory Commission.

Nearly all prices continued to climb Tuesday but at a slowerpace than on the day before. Few points advanced more than a dime,San Juan Basin and the Southern California border were flat, andSumas prices into Northwest saw the rare decline of about a nickel.

At its final meeting before the August break, FERC last weekcleared its agenda of several major rehearing orders — includingOrder 637-B, which was a rehearing of Order 637-A, which was arehearing of Order 637. This time around the Commission refused tobudge on the majority of the policy calls it made in 637-A thataddressed regulation of the short-term natural gas transportationmarket.

It’s clearer now than ever before that significant additionalcapacity is needed to the Northeast, said Millennium PipelineChairman David Pentzien.

Millennium Pipeline President David Pentzien said yesterday it ismore evident now than ever before that significant additional capacityis needed to the Northeast. His remarks ran contrary to theconclusions of a recent Energy Information Administration report (seeDaily GPI, May 25), which found onlyabout 840 MMcf/d of additional capacity is needed in the near term incontrast to the more than 2 Bcf/d of capacity that is planned. ButPentzien noted recent market indicators show an undeniable need forlots more supply access.

Prices kept falling Wednesday but at a slower rate than the daybefore. Even Northeast citygates were putting the brakes on theirdescent, averaging barely more than a dime down.