Getting

Getting in line with the rest of the country that has alreadypassed the increased costs of natural gas through to its customers,Consumers Energy of Michigan has begun warning its customers thatthe three-year price freeze imposed on its voluntary Gas CustomerChoice program instituted in April 1998, will come to an end inMarch 2001.

Once considered a problem in their oil exploration efforts, thehigh cost of natural gas is getting another look-see from EmpireEnergy. The Overland Park, KS-based producer said it would beginselling its natural gas reserves — which it used to squeeze off— from the Upper Cumberland Plateau region of north-centralTennessee once a natural gas pipeline is completed there. CoastalHydrocarbons LLC has begun laying a 4-inch line into the area andis expected to begin accepting gas in two to three months, Empiresaid. Pryor Oil Co., which holds a 40% interest in an explorationproject with 60% partner Empire, is now evaluating and high-gradingprogram leases to determine what wells to put into the natural gassales line. “Gas has been a hindrance in our exploration andproduction in that region due to the complexities it presentsduring drilling,” said Bryan S. Ferguson, Empire COO. “Previously,we didn’t have a market in which to sell the gas so while wedrilled oil wells, we either squeezed the gas off or held it information. With gas prices up and the market demand present, wefeel fortunate to now be able to put these assets to work for us.”Because of the fractured nature of the geology in the region,Empire said it was difficult to estimate the total gas reservespresent. However, every well drilled so far has had an “abundant”amount of natural gas.

Once considered a problem in their oil exploration efforts, thehigh cost of natural gas is getting another look-see from EmpireEnergy. The Overland Park, KS-based producer said it would beginselling its natural gas reserves — which it used to squeeze off— from the Upper Cumberland Plateau region of north-centralTennessee once a natural gas pipeline is completed there.

A new round of expansion is getting under way in the buddingnatural gas industry in eastern Canada, starting with constructionof the last missing link in the country’s transcontinental pipelinegrid. Longer range, there are possibilities of a new majorpipeline to transport Atlantic Canada production to major markets.

A new round of expansion is getting under way in the buddingnatural gas industry in eastern Canada, starting with constructionof the last missing link in the country’s transcontinental pipelinegrid. Longer range, there are possibilities of a new majorpipeline to transport Atlantic Canada production to major markets.

Florida Gas Transmission issued an Overage Alert Day noticeWednesday with a daily imbalance tolerance of 15%.

Investigations in several states are getting under way intoalleged illegal profit-taking by UtiliCorp United in Missouri,Michigan, Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa. An anonymous letter fromsomeone who claimed to be a current employee for UtiliCorp was sentto state regulators alleging the company’s Gas Supply ServiceDepartment (GSS) took part in improper actions in reselling naturalgas to customers in these states.

Investigations in several states are getting under way intoalleged illegal profit-taking by UtiliCorp United in Missouri,Michigan, Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa. An anonymous letter fromsomeone who claimed to be a current employee for UtiliCorp was sentto state regulators alleging the company’s Gas Supply ServiceDepartment (GSS) took part in improper actions in reselling naturalgas to customers in these states.

Although it was getting chillier Friday in major northern marketareas, traders agreed the weather wasn’t severe enough to justifyfurther strong jumps in cash prices. Rather, they said, it wascontinued muscle-flexing by the screen along with a fresh spurt ofbuying for storage that produced price gains ranging from about adime to a quarter at all but a few points.