Finance

To finance its Rocky Mountain exploration and pay down debt, Newfield Exploration Co. Thursday agreed to sell all of its natural gas-heavy properties in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) to McMoRan Exploration Co. for $1.1 billion. Newfield, which plans to keep its deepwater leases, said the sale was one of several divestitures planned over the next few months.

To finance its Rocky Mountain exploration and pay down debt, Newfield Exploration Co. has agreed to sell all of its natural gas-heavy properties in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) to McMoRan Exploration Co. for $1.1 billion. Newfield, which plans to keep its deepwater leases, said the sale was one of several divestitures planned over the next few months.

The Senate Finance Committee Tuesday overwhelmingly passed an energy tax package that provides $28.5 billion in tax incentives for clean and alternative fuels, of which domestic oil and natural gas producers would pay more than $20 billion of the tab.

The Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA) was passed by the state’s House and Senate finance committees with relatively minor changes late Thursday, and Gov. Sarah Palin said she was optimistic the bill would pass the Legislature with most of the original language intact. Floor votes on both bills were expected on Friday.

The Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA) was passed by the state’s House and Senate finance committees with relatively minor changes late Thursday, and Gov. Sarah Palin said she was optimistic the bill would pass the Legislature with most of the original language intact. Floor votes on both bills were expected on Friday.

U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore in Houston has thrown out five convictions against Kevin Howard, the former vice president of finance for Enron Broadband Services (EBS), for his alleged role in a scheme to mislead investors about the Enron Corp. subsidiary’s finances.

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said Tuesday he would oppose a proposal to impose a windfall profits tax on oil companies, but he called on major energy companies to voluntarily give a percentage of their past quarter’s earnings to fuel fund programs that supplement the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

GE Commercial Finance Energy Financial Services (EFS) and privately held Locin Oil Corp. have acquired 96 Bcf of net proved gas reserves for $147 million from Equitable Production Co. The assets include 1,200 wells in Pennsylvania and Ohio, and more than 220 proven and probable undeveloped drilling locations have been identified.

GE Commercial Finance Energy Financial Services and privately held Locin Oil Corp. said Thursday they have acquired 96 Bcf of net proved gas reserves for $147 million from Equitable Production Co. The assets include 1,200 wells in Pennsylvania and Ohio, and more than 220 proven and probable undeveloped drilling locations have been identified.