Contracts

ChevronTexaco Corp. said partners in the Angola liquefied natural gas (LNG) project have awarded front-end engineering design (FEED) contracts for a five million-tonne-per-year onshore LNG plant near Soyo in northern Angola. The FEED contract were awarded to Overseas Bechtel Inc. and a joint consortium of Kellogg Brown & Root Inc., JGC Corporation, and Technip U.S.A. Corp. A 15-month program is set to begin immediately. Following the completion of FEED and a final investment decision, it is expected that one of the two contractor groups will be selected to perform engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) activities for the project. “Angola LNG is one of several current ChevronTexaco-led projects to commercialize natural gas resources in Africa and other parts of the world and is integral to the company’s strategy to grow an integrated natural gas business,” said John Watson, president of ChevronTexaco Overseas Petroleum. The project is set to be a joint development between the state oil company of Angola, Sonangol (22.8%), and local affiliates of ChevronTexaco (36.4%), ExxonMobil (13.6%), Total (13.6%) and BP (13.6%).

ChevronTexaco Corp. said partners in the Angola liquefied natural gas (LNG) project have awarded front-end engineering design (FEED) contracts for a five million-tonne-per-year onshore LNG plant near Soyo in northern Angola. The FEED contract were awarded to Overseas Bechtel Inc. and a joint consortium of Kellogg Brown & Root Inc., JGC Corporation, and Technip U.S.A. Corp. A 15-month program is set to begin immediately. Following the completion of FEED and a final investment decision, it is expected that one of the two contractor groups will be selected to perform engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) activities for the project. “Angola LNG is one of several current ChevronTexaco-led projects to commercialize natural gas resources in Africa and other parts of the world and is integral to the company’s strategy to grow an integrated natural gas business,” said John Watson, president of ChevronTexaco Overseas Petroleum. The project is set to be a joint development between the state oil company of Angola, Sonangol (22.8%), and local affiliates of ChevronTexaco (36.4%), ExxonMobil (13.6%), Total (13.6%) and BP (13.6%).

The New York Mercantile Exchange Inc. (Nymex) said it decreased the margins on its natural gas futures, Henry Hub swap futures, and e-miNY futures contracts at the close of business on Thursday. The natural gas futures contract decreases include:

A group of natural gas producers and marketers, and East-of-California shippers have asked FERC to reject a tariff proposal in which El Paso Natural Gas seeks to establish procedures for reserving capacity for future pipe expansions, calling the proposal “premature” in light of all of the unresolved capacity-related cases that the pipeline is involved at the Commission.

A group of natural gas producers and marketers, and East-of-California shippers have asked FERC to reject a tariff proposal in which El Paso Natural Gas seeks to establish procedures for reserving capacity for future pipe expansions, calling the proposal “premature” in light of all of the unresolved capacity-related cases that the pipeline is involved at the Commission.

FERC last week issued an order approving a bid by Duke Energy Trading and Marketing to transfer certain wholesale power transactions and related books and records to Morgan Stanley Capital Group (MSCG).

Duke Energy Trading and Marketing has filed an application with FERC seeking the authority to transfer certain wholesale power transactions and related books and records to Morgan Stanley Capital Group (MSCG) and is asking the Commission to act on the proposal by this week.

Shell Energy Services said it has transferred 70,000 Ohio retail natural gas sales accounts from U.S. Power and Gas (USP&G), a retail energy marketer that has decided to put its Ohio operations on hold. Shell said the customer assignments, all of which were in the Dominion East Ohio (DEO) service territory, were completed on Dec. 31, 2003. No terms of the transfer were announced.

The Minerals Management Service (MMS) signed two royalty-in-kind (RIK) oil contracts with ChevronTexaco and Shell Trading covering more than 1,100 b/d of royalty volumes from four offshore receipt points to formally launch its joint RIK program with the state of Louisiana covering the 8(g) region offshore Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico.