Denver

Denver’s Tom Brown Inc. paid $16.2 million for an estimated 22Bcf of gas equivalent in reserves, with current net dailyproduction of 8 MMcf of equivalent gas in the Rocky Mountainregion’s Pavillion field. The transaction by the independent energycompany increases its working interest in the Pavillion to 90%, upfrom a previous 50% interest.

Denver-based Forest Oil. Corp. and Shell Canada Ltd. have agreedto jointly explore and develop a 162-square mile area of theSouthern Foothills near Waterton, AB. Forest will have a 40%working interest in the joint venture, and expects to spend $10million to $15 million in the next year.

Equitable Resources combined its Gulf of Mexico exploration andproduction unit with Westport Oil and Gas Co., a privateDenver-based exploration company. Equitable will receive about $50million in cash and a large minority interest in Westport.Equitable also will name three representatives and nominate afourth to the Westport board, bringing Westport’s board membershipto nine.

New Century Energies Inc. (NCE) of Denver and Minneapolis-basedNorthern States Power (NSP), two mid-sized combination utilities,got the go-ahead from FERC last week for their marriage that willcover a wide swath of the natural gas and electricity markets inthe Midwest and Southwest. The $4.8 billion merger will create the8th largest utility in the nation, serving more than 4.5 millionnatural gas and power customers in 12 states from Canada to Mexico.

New Century Energies Inc. (NCE) of Denver and Minneapolis-basedNorthern States Power Co. (NSP), two mid-sized combinationutilities, got the go-ahead from FERC yesterday for their marriagethat will cover a wide swath of the natural gas and electricitymarkets in the Midwest and Southwest. The $4.8 billion merger willcreate the 8th largest utility in the nation, serving more than 4.5million natural gas and power customers in 12 states from Canada toMexico.

Denver-based TransMontaigne Inc. agreed to sell gas gatheringsubsidiary Bear Paw Energy Inc. to a group formed by Bear Pawmanagement along with two other partners for $107.5 million in cashand reimbursement of costs for a Powder River gathering system.

Denver-based TransMontaigne Inc. agreed to sell gas gatheringsubsidiary Bear Paw Energy Inc. to a group formed by Bear Pawmanagement along with two other partners for $107.5 million in cashand reimbursement of costs for a Powder River gathering system.

Denver-based Western Gas Resources Inc. made a purchase and saleagreement with EXCO Resources Inc. to sell its 69% interest in theBlack Lake Unit, including the Black Lake processing and treatingfacilities in Louisiana. The sales price of $7.8 million is subjectto adjustment. Western expects to realize a pre-tax loss of about$6.5 million this quarter. This deal is expected to close by Jan.7.

HS Resources, based in San Francisco, is further growing itsposition in the Wattenberg Field area of the Denver-Julesberg Basinby buying Houston-based Kinder Morgan’s gathering system therealong with its interests in the Amoco-BP Wattenberg Gas ProcessingPlant and KN Wattenberg LLC, which owns the Wattenberg transmissionsystem, in a phased transaction.