Ending

Northeastern local gas distributors NiSource, National Fuel and Equitable Resources reported improved financial results for the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2003, with NiSource Inc. delivering the largest quarterly improvement, a 70% gain in net income to $139.8 million, but also reporting a substantial decline for the year because of a charge for discontinued operations.

NiSource Inc. Vice Chairman Stephen P. Adik announced Monday morning that he will retire Dec. 31, 2003. ending his direct involvement with the company and its predecessor after 16 years of service. “Although we respect Steve’s decision to retire,” said Gary L. Neale, CEO of NiSource, “we will miss his integrity, dedication, leadership, strategic insight and knowledge of the business. In the past 16 years, as a senior member of the management team at NiSource, Steve has played a key role in the growth and diversification of NiSource into a major regional gas and electric company. Adik has agreed to remain a member of the company’s board of directors. Adik, 60, joined NiSource predecessor Northern Indiana Public Service Co. in 1987 as vice president and general manager of the corporate support group. Prior to becoming vice chairman, he was senior executive vice president and CFO.

Williams CEO Steve Malcolm remains concerned about the “noise” from the ongoing energy merchant industry investigations by FERC, the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the “uncertainty as to where those might lead.” Malcolm made the comments during a conference call last week to discuss the company’s third quarter earnings.

Williams CEO Steve Malcolm said Thursday he remains concerned about the “noise” from the ongoing energy merchant industry investigations by FERC, the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the “uncertainty as to where those might lead.” Malcolm made the comments during a conference call to discuss the company’s third quarter earnings.

Ending a seven-session price advance, natural gas futures dropped lower at the opening bell Monday as traders alleviated overbought conditions and cashed in on a portion of recent gains. After that initial wave of weakness, however, the market steadied itself, giving buyers the opportunity to chip away at the deficit for the remainder of the day.

Ending weeks of haggling over critical energy legislation, the Republican-led Senate threw in the towel last Thursday night, substituting last year’s Democrat-crafted energy bill for this year’s legislation and passing it by a vote of 84-14. The first time around — in April 2002 — the same bill cleared the Senate by a bipartisan vote of 88-11 (see NGI, April 29). Last week’s vote, which sets the stage for Congress to vote out the first piece of major energy legislation in 11 years, came as Congress prepared to leave for its August recess.

Ending six weeks of arduous and sometimes rancorous debate, the Democrat-led Senate last Thursday passed sweeping energy legislation, the Energy Policy Act of 2002, that dangles “carrots” in front of pipeline companies to build an Alaskan natural gas transportation system, gives small producers multi-billion dollar tax breaks to spur domestic oil and gas production, increases renewable fuel use and production, and offers reforms to further enhance competition in the electricity markets.

Southern California Gas kept an Overnominations Day alert in effect from Friday through Sunday before ending it Monday.

Only a day after ending a systemwide high-inventory OFO, Pacific Gas & Electric issued a new one for Saturday. The latest order was classified as Stage 3 and carried penalties of $5/Dth for exceeding a positive imbalance tolerance of 4%.