Financial

A new investor presentation posted early Tuesday by Chesapeake Energy Corp. offered 32 pages of onshore production and financial numbers, as well as a full-page statement that opened the document with the headline, “It’s been a tough five weeks, but better days ahead.” By Tuesday afternoon the page, originally the second page of the 32-page presentation, had been deleted with no explanation.

The CEO of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) told financial analysts Wednesday that “closure” is coming for the fatal natural pipeline tragedy in San Bruno, CA, in September 2010, but before it is reached the combination utility will be subjected to more public scrutiny.

A warmer-than-normal winter colored Southern Company’s 1Q2012 financial results, but natural gas issues, and particularly coal-to-gas trends, dominate the current landscape for the Atlanta-based operator, which recently received the first construction/operating licenses for two nuclear units in more than 30 years.

Chesapeake Energy Corp., which has used a variety of savvy financial means to raise money for exploring and developing its vast unconventional portfolio in the United States, is preparing to launch its diverse onshore oilfield services unit through an initial public offering (IPO), a separate company that would continue to be closely tied to its main customer, the Oklahoma City-based producer.

Houston-based Contango Oil & Gas Co., which up to now has trained its sights on Gulf Coast locations, last week joined with some savvy financial partners to invest in a key Encana Corp. resource play, the Jonah field, one of the largest natural gas fields in the United States and the third largest oilfield in Wyoming.

Houston-based Contango Oil & Gas Co., which up to now has trained its sights on Gulf Coast locations, on Monday joined with some financial partners to ante up to $380 million in a key Encana Corp. resource play, the Jonah field, one of the largest natural gas fields in the United States and the third largest oilfield in Wyoming.

A Los Angeles-based husband-wife independent filmmaking team said Tuesday they have exceeded their fundraising goal and will continue with production of a pro-hydraulic fracturing (fracking) documentary film, FrackNation, to combat an upcoming sequel to the Oscar-nominated anti-fracking film Gasland by activist Josh Fox. The couple, however, will continue to fundraise for their project, they said.

Sempra Energy CEO Debra Reed on Thursday told financial analysts at a meeting her company hosted in San Diego that shale gas and renewables will be at the center of Sempra’s focus in the next few years.

The House Financial Services Committee has voted out a bill (HR 1838) that would repeal a provision in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act requiring major banks to conduct their trading of derivatives through affiliates.