Bulk

FERC has given the go-ahead for CenterPoint Energy Gas Transmission (CEGT) to place into service the bulk of Phase 1 of its pipeline that extends from the Carthage Hub in East Texas to the Perryville Hub in northeast Louisiana. The start-up of most of the project comes within six months of CEGT receiving FERC approval last October (see NGI, Oct. 9, 2006). The pipe will provide a market outlet for burgeoning natural gas production in North-Central and East Texas and North Louisiana.

FERC has given the go-ahead for CenterPoint Energy Gas Transmission (CEGT) to place into service the bulk of Phase 1 of its pipeline that extends from the Carthage Hub in East Texas to the Perryville Hub in northeast Louisiana. The start-up of most of the project comes within six months of CEGT receiving FERC approval last October (see Daily GPI, Oct. 4, 2006). The pipe will provide a market outlet for burgeoning natural gas production in North-Central and East Texas and North Louisiana.

FERC on Monday rejected Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America’s (NGPL) request to capitalize the bulk of the costs that it will incur in a pipeline rehabilitation project aimed at mitigating stress corrosion cracking (SCC) on its system.

EnCana Corp. completed the first phase of a $1.5 billion gas storage asset divestiture on Friday, selling the bulk of its AECO Hub storage operations in Alberta, the Salt Plains storage facility in Oklahoma and the proposed Starks Gas Storage complex in Louisiana to the Carlyle/Riverstone Global Power and Energy Fund for $1.3 billion. The assets will be owned by Carlyle/Riverstone subsidiary Niska Gas Storage.

Following through on plans announced last fall, Pioneer Natural Resources said Thursday that it will sell the bulk of its deepwater Gulf of Mexico assets to Marubeni Offshore Production (USA) Inc. for $1.3 billion, but it will retain its stake in the Clipper deepwater discovery that it made last October.

Outgoing Sempra Energy CEO Steve Baum said he expects to have the bulk of the energy crisis-spawned litigation facing the company resolved in settlements by the time he retires in January next year.

Bulk electricity supplies should be adequate to meet peak-demand this summer in California, but the situation is fraught with “what ifs” that caused the California Energy Commission (CEC) Friday to recommend “close monitoring and prudent use of electricity resources” in its updated supply/demand outlook.

Higher oil and gas prices fueled strong quarterly earnings reports last week, with the bulk of the major and top independent oil and gas companies, including BP plc, Exxon Mobil Corp., ChevronTexaco and ConocoPhillips reporting. Also reporting last week were some of the top North American independents, including EnCana, Talisman Energy Inc., Kerr-McGee Corp. and Pioneer Natural Resources.

Kerr-McGee Corp. has set aside more than half of its $860 million capital budget this year for exploration and development projects on- and offshore the United States, with $385 million earmarked for Gulf of Mexico deepwater projects and another $200 million for onshore.