Coast

Aquila is beefing up is high deliverability gas storage holdingsin the Gulf Coast region in preparation for serving growinggas-fired power generation demand. The company bought rights to theproposed Houston Energy Center, a greenfield, natural gas saltcavern storage project being developed by SG Resources of Houston,Inc. The sale price was not disclosed.

Here’s the opening line by the Texas Chamber of Commerce in anybids to lure West Coast business: by this summer, the completionand continued construction of new generation plants in Texas willcreate an electricity supply about 23% higher than peak demand.

Here’s the opening line by the Texas Chamber of Commerce in anybids to lure West Coast business: by this summer, the completionand continued construction of new generation plants in Texas willcreate an electricity supply about 23% higher than peak firmdemand.

“The market is tanking. That pretty well sums it all up in anutshell,” was how a Gulf Coast marketer characterized the pricesituation Wednesday. Only California, where a series of rollingblackouts began in the northern part of the state (see related story), failed to participate infurther price declines that were mostly between about a quarter and 50cents.

Mostly moderate price declines concentrated in the Gulf Coastand Northeast were outweighed Wednesday by small to large increasesin other markets. The biggest gains were in California and theRockies/Southwest, while Transco Zone 6 (NYC) took the biggest hitof 65 cents.

All three major Gulf Coast/Northeast interstate pipes —Tennesseee, Texas Eastern (Tetco) and Transco — issued shipperwarnings Thursday about receipts into their systems laggingconsiderably behind market-area deliveries. Tennessee issued aBalancing Alert OFO, effective today until further notice, to 39shippers (applying to more than one contract in some cases). A penaltyof $15/Dth “plus the applicable regional daily spot price” toovertakes from delivery meters or underdeliveries at receipt pointsthat exceed 2% or 500 Dth, whichever is greater, of scheduledquantities. Tennessee also is reducing today its normal SupplyAggregation (SA) contract imbalance tolerance of 1,000 dekatherms to500 dekatherms across all supply area pools. The tolerance for marketarea pools remains at zero, the pipeline said. Tetco said allpreviously announced restrictions (see Daily GPI, Dec. 21) would remain in effect untilfurther notice and added two more that take effect today: all IT-1volumes, including backhauls, received or delivered in the Access Areawill not be scheduled; and no nominations for interruptible orsecondary service will be accepted at the Oakford, Leidy andLambertville points. Transco cut the 4% tolerance currently allowed atits pooling points to 1% or 1,000 Dth, whichever is greater, fornegative imbalances. Shippers with positively scheduled poolimbalances will continue to be held to the 4% tolerance level. Transcoadded that it may proactively decrease markets to bring them in linewith supplies at pooling points.

Mitchell Energy announced that follow-up drilling in two TexasGulf coast exploratory plays has increased natural gas productionby 30 MMcf/d and oil production by 550 b/d. For November, thecompany’s overall daily production averaged 344 MMcf of gas and5,400 bbl of oil, excluding the effect of a two-day shutdown of itsBridgeport plant to complete connections that will increase theplant’s throughput capacity by 50% in late December. “Discovery ofthe Lower Wilcox and Lake Creek area wells is another example ofour ability to combine 3-D seismic technology with our extensiveknowledge in core field areas to add new reserves,” said CEO GeorgeP. Mitchell. “While the Barnett shale play in North Texas isclearly the driver for much of the company’s volume growth,drilling in our other core areas can also be quite attractive andadd significant production as well.”

Buccaneer Pipeline, one of two long lines proposed to cross theGulf of Mexico and deliver gas to the west coast of the FloridaPeninsula, has finally received permission to go ashore in PascoCounty, north of Tampa-St. Petersburg, after facing substantiallandowner opposition.

When the clock strikes midnight tonight on the West Coast,California’s state legislature, which has been known to stop theCapitol clocks at 11:59 p.m. in similar occasions, will eitherprovide some ways out of the state’s electricity problems or watchits efforts turn back into the pumpkin that has represented thissummer’s high bills and short power supplies.