Estimates

Canada’s Talisman Energy Inc. said it expects substantial cash flow and earnings from the $250 million in natural gas properties, production and facilities that subsidiary Fortuna Energy Inc. has acquired in northern New York State. The subsidiary has amassed 400,000 net acres of land in the Watkins Glen area with current production of 65 MMcf/d. Fortuna plans to spend $45 million in 2003, drilling up to 10 wells, shooting seismic and adding to existing infrastructure.

Crediting higher commodity prices and oil sales volumes, independent producer Anadarko Petroleum Corp. on Friday reported fourth quarter and 2002 annual earnings that topped analysts’ projections for the company. For 2003 the company initially plans cap-ex spending below last year’s level, focusing on development and keeping its exploration powder dry until it sees how prices hold up.

Canada’s Talisman Energy Inc. said it expects substantial cash flow and earnings from the $250 million in natural gas properties, production and facilities that subsidiary Fortuna Energy Inc. has acquired in northern New York State. The subsidiary has amassed 400,000 net acres of land in the Watkins Glen area with current production of 65 MMcf/d. Fortuna plans to spend $45 million in 2003, drilling up to 10 wells, shooting seismic and adding to existing infrastructure.

Burlington Resources Inc., with 90% of its oil and natural gas assets in North America, increased its fourth quarter production forecast on Monday, attributing the jump to higher-than-anticipated gas production in Canada. The Houston independent also retained some assets marked for sale longer than expected, which will improve the bottom line, it said.

El Paso Energy Partners LP reaffirmed its earnings, cash flow and distributions guidance for the year and confirmed that it will buy the San Juan Basin gathering, compression, and treating system from general partner El Paso Corp., which intends to use the proceeds to strengthen its balance sheet. The San Juan assets include a 5,500-mile gathering system that is connected to 9,600 gas wells in northwestern New Mexico.

With a wide variety of storage estimates and medium-range weather forecasts, natural gas traders turned to technical factors Wednesday morning as they bid prices off recent lows and tested overhead resistance. The January contract managed a 19-cent rebound to $4.365 in just 90 minutes, but resistance in the mid-$4.30s held and prices then retraced lower. January finished at $4.298, up 7.2 cents for the day, but 6.7 cents off its $4.365 high for the session.

Proved reserves of U.S. natural gas exceeded production by 31% in 2001, and crude oil proved reserve production was up 21%, according to an advance summary released Friday of annual statistics reported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Additions to proved reserves of U.S. natural gas exceeded production by 31% in 2001, and crude oil reserves additions were 121% of production, according to an advance summary released Friday of annual statistics reported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Isidore, downgraded today from a Tropical Storm to a Tropical Depression, has taken as much as 4.5 million bbl of oil and 25 Bcf of natural gas off the U.S. market during the three-day shutdown of oil and gas operations on the Gulf of Mexico outer continental shelf (OCS), the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service (MMS) estimated Thursday.