Budget

Increasing natural gas prices should not scare Congress into allowing greedy gas producers to drill willy-nilly across environmentally sensitive areas or areas currently blocked by drilling moratoria, environmentalists, ranchers, public interest groups and scientists said on Wednesday during a teleconference on the “real story behind the natural gas crisis.” The conference was organized by the Community Office for Resource Efficiency (CORE), the Northern Plains Resource Council and The Wilderness Society.

Continuing a quest to grow through the drill bit, Houston-based explorer Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. upped its capital budget for 2003, and has set its sights on drilling 60% more wells by the end of the year.

Continuing a quest to grow through the drill bit, Houston-based explorer Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. upped its capital budget and has set its sights on drilling 60% more wells by the end of the year.

Reflecting the recent years of economic downturn and ever-widening state budget deficits, California’s annual growth in natural gas demand exclusive of load for power generation is projected to be under 1% annually over the next 10 years, according to the California Energy Commission staff’s draft energy demand report, 2003-2013, released Feb. 12.

Independent Murphy Oil Corp. has increased its capital spending program 10% over last year’s budget, with plans to improve its upstream operations in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and overseas.

Barely visible in this time of extreme budget constraints, the California Consumer Power and Conservation Financing Authority (power authority), will reemerge in Sacramento later this month to set the stage for establishing a 22% electricity reserve target for the state next month in one of its first rulemakings as an neophyte state agency spawned by the now long-gone electricity crisis of 2000-2001. One quarter to one half of the new target would come from demand-side management, according to a draft proposal.

WilliamsEnergyNewsLive.com, Williams’ internet-based live daily energy news report, will sign off the air Dec. 31, a victim of budget cuts.

Kerr-McGee Corp. increased its capital budget for exploration and production development projects by 15%, or $120 million, to $900 million, to concentrate more on identified projects in the Denver-Julesburg Basin and the Gulf Coast.

Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp., the largest independent in North America, is following the lead of other energy companies, announcing last week it would reduce its capital spending this year $1 billion — down from the previously announced $3 billion — because of the downturn in the industry. The company also reduced its fourth quarter earnings forecast, saying it now expects to earn 25 cents a share; Thomson Financial/First Call analysts had predicted an average return of 36 cents.