Doubles

Houston-based Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. doubled its Gulf Coast proved reserve base Thursday, agreeing to a $230 million cash and stock merger with Cody Co., the parent of Cody Energy LLC. All of Denver-based Cody’s reserves are in Texas and Louisiana and will add 116 Bcfe to Cabot’s proved reserves, of which 58% will be natural gas, and 50 MMcfe/d of equivalent production, with 84% in natural gas.

Doubling its presence in the U.S. utility market, the UnitedKingdom’s National Grid Group Plc agreed yesterday to buy NiagaraMohawk Holdings Inc. for $8.9 billion in cash, stock and assumeddebt. The U.K. power producer plans to merge Niagara with twoMassachusetts utilities acquired earlier this year, boosting itsU.S. customer base to more than 3.2 million.

Duke Energy Field Services (DEFS) reported late last week that it is more than doubling its natural gas processing capacity in western Canada with the acquisition of Canadian Midstream Services Ltd. (CMSL). If completed, the acquisition will significantly strengthen the midstream company’s asset base in the region.

With its acquisition of Calgary-based Berkley Petroleum Corp.completed, Anadarko Petroleum Corp. said it will increase its totalcapital spending plan for Canadian operations by 49% to US$386million, and will step up exploration and production there for thenext several years. The 2001 increase, up from the $259 millionfirst budgeted, doesn’t count the Berkley transaction, completedlast week (see Daily GPI, March 20).

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. is doubling up its Rocky Mountain exploration and production presence this year, announcing it would budget more than $131 million toward an aggressive strategy to find and develop new natural gas and coalbed methane sources. The Houston-based company also plans to grow its Canadian natural gas business, announcing plans to invest $380 million in drilling and development.

Calpine will more than double its natural gas reserves and gaina critical transportation link between the United States andwestern Canada after agreeing yesterday to pay $1.2 billion topurchase Calgary-based Encal Energy Ltd., whose core natural gasdrilling operations are in northeastern British Columbia and westcentral Alberta. Power producer Calpine plans a stock-for-stockexchange and would assume Encal’s debt.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. is doubling up its Rocky Mountainexploration and production presence this year, announcing yesterday itwould budget more than $131 million toward an aggressive strategy tofind and develop new natural gas and coalbed methane sourcesthere. E&P will target some of the nearly eight million acrespicked up in the Union Pacific Resources merger last year (see DailyGPI, July 17, 2000).

Power generators Duke Energy Corp. and Southern Co., which bothprovide electricity to some markets in California, reported highfourth quarter profits and continued growth through the year lastweek. And, despite concern that the generators won’t be paid forenergy they supplied to nearly bankrupt California utilities, bothsaid they would pursue payments from their customers if they haveto.

AEC Oil & Gas Inc. picked up its second group of Rocky Mountain assets last week, announcing its acquisition of the privately held Piceance Basin properties of Billings, MT-based Ballard Petroleum LLC. Ballard’s Mamm Creek field in northwest Colorado is estimated to be worth C$340 million (US$225 million), with 175,000 net undeveloped acres worth about C$35 million and a gas pipeline system worth C$31 million.