Block

Despite the fact that it has been awarded similar contracts, GasNatural Mexico charged last week that Mexico’s anti-trustcommission will not allow it to participate in an auction for amulti-million dollar natural gas distribution contract. Thecontract, scheduled to be awarded on June 21 by the ComisionReguladora de Energia (CRE), calls for a $100 million investment inthe heavily populated Guadalajara metropolitan area. Nearly 4million live there, and the Guadalajara contract will be one of thelargest issued by the government for natural gas distribution.

Mitchell Energy & Development Corp.’s view of the future looked so good from the auction block, the company decided to step down and aggressively grow its gas production. Mitchell had put out the ‘for sale’ sign in early October (see NGI Oct. 11).

Things are looking so good for Mitchell Energy & DevelopmentCorp. the company has stepped down from the auction block where it hasstood since early October (see Daily GPI, Oct. 7).

Forcenergy Inc. reported a blowout yesterday on an exploratorywell at West Cameron Block 317, located 65 miles south of LakeCharles, LA, in the Gulf of Mexico. The blowout occurred duringcompletion operations, but it has not ignited. All personnel havebeen safely evacuated from the Marine Drilling Rig No. 4.Forcenergy has notified all of the proper governmental authoritiesand is cooperating fully with each respective agency.

DukeSolutions is actively looking to sell the gas and electrictrading portion of its business, a spokesman confirmed last week,hastening to explain that this sale has nothing to do with DukeEnergy’s main North American trading operations under Duke EnergyMerchants.

DukeSolutions is actively looking to sell the gas and electrictrading portion of its business, a spokesman confirmed last week,hastening to explain that this sale has nothing to do with DukeEnergy’s main North American trading operations under Duke EnergyMerchants.

With plans drawn up to focus mainly on power transmission anddistribution, New England Electric System (NEES) decided last weekthe time was ripe to start testing the market for its successfulretail energy marketing subsidiary, AllEnergy Marketing.

Planning to concentrate on power transmission and distribution,New England Electric System (NEES) said yesterday the time is ripeto test the market for AllEnergy Marketing. The company will lookat all strategic options, including a possible sale. AllEnergy isone of the largest retail energy marketing firms in the Northeast,currently selling gas, fuel oil, propane, and electricity to about125,000 customers.

Statoil Energy’s sale of 1.1 Tcf of gas reserves and 6,500 wellsin the Appalachian Basin to Equitable Resources earlier this monthfor $630 million was the first of three possible transactions, aspokeswoman said last week. The latter two, which would include thecompany’s top-30 trading operations, and growing power developmentarm, are expected to involve an eastern-U.S. electric utility buyerand take place before March, according to one inside source.