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Chesapeake Energy Corp. has reached its debt reduction goal, built an internal oilfield services unit to counter cost inflation and grew first quarter production 20% as it increasingly emphasized higher-value oil and natural gas liquids (NGL), CEO Aubrey McClendon enthused during an earnings conference call last Tuesday. But Wall Street was not impressed.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. has reached its debt reduction goal, built an internal oilfield services unit to counter cost inflation and grew first quarter production 20% as it increasingly emphasized higher-value oil and natural gas liquids (NGL), CEO Aubrey McClendon enthused during an earnings conference call Tuesday. But Wall Street was not impressed.

Shale patch heavyweight Chesapeake Energy Corp. has reached its debt reduction goal, built an internal oilfield services unit to counter cost inflation and grew first quarter production 20% as it increasingly emphasized higher-value oil and natural gas liquids (NGL), CEO Aubrey McClendon enthused during an earnings conference call Tuesday. But Wall Street was not impressed.

While the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) works its way through the regulatory process to set position limits on over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives trading, “there are things we can do right now, that we can implement in January if necessary,” to rein in an out-of-control market, Commissioner Bart Chilton said in testimony before a congressional committee Wednesday.

Major swaps dealers told federal regulators Friday that while all traders of over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives should have access to central clearinghouses, actual membership in a clearinghouse should be limited to companies with the ability to absorb another member’s default.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) on Thursday took steps to counter utility residential customer shutoffs, which were experienced earlier in the year among customers of the state’s major private-sector utilities. The action was prompted by what many think is fallout from the continuing economic recession and double-digit unemployment levels.

The U.S. House of Representatives late Wednesday voted out the conference report calling for sweeping financial regulatory reforms, including regulation of the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives market for the first time. But the fate of the reform package in the Senate remains uncertain (see Daily GPI, July 1).

The IntercontinentalExchange (ICE ) Friday notified over-the-counter (OTC) financial gas market participants of the position limits and accountability levels it is putting in place beginning with the expiration of the September 2010 contract (Aug. 25, 2010) for seven natural gas basis swaps that were designated for the treatment by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The IntercontinentalExchange (ICE ) Friday notified over-the-counter (OTC) financial gas market participants of the position limits and accountability levels it is putting in place beginning with the expiration of the September 2010 contract (Aug. 25, 2010) for seven natural gas basis swaps that were designated for the treatment by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).