Candidates to head up three main divisions of the Federal EnergyRegulatory Commission being created in the on-going FERC Firstrestructuring should have their applications in to the Commissionby Sept. 24, according to a government job notice being circulatednationwide. A salary between $106,412 and $125,900 comes with thedirectors’ positions for the Office of Markets, Tariffs and Rates,the Office of Strategy and Organization Management, and the Officeof Administrative Litigation.
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Price Drops Large in West, More Modest in East
Geographic price tendencies shifted going into the weekend.Western markets, which had been resisting the week’s overallsoftness earlier due to heavy cooling load andsupply/transportation problems, were being routed Friday,particularly at the California border. Meanwhile Eastern pricesfell by a nickel or less in most cases, with Appalachian pipes andNortheast/Midwest citygates flat or close to it.
FERC Opens Three New Offices
FERC Chairman James Hoecker has announced the start-up of threenew offices, created as a result of the agency’s on-goingrestructuring.
Pipes, Producers Square Off in OCS Inquiry
The on-going inquiry into how to regulate pipelines operating onthe Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) took center stage at FERC lastweek, with interstate pipelines and natural gas producersresponding with proposals that are miles apart.
On How Natural Gas and Oil Producers Are Better Served
Negotiations reportedly are going on to bring together onceagain the Washington lobbying activities of large oil and naturalgas producers in the form of the American Petroleum Institute (API)and the Natural Gas Supply Assoc. (NGSA).
Regulatory Delay Forces Alliance Out on Financial Limb
Backers of Alliance Pipeline Project are going out on a bigfinancial limb by spending heavily to advance the proposed newCanadian export route to Chicago while still awaiting approval fromthe National Energy Board. Alliance president Dennis Cornelsonreported the international consortium of pipelines and producershas spent about C$200 million (US$145 million) to date. But to keepthe project moving quickly enough to fulfill its schedule, thegroup “will have to double that by the time regulatory approvalsare obtained.”
Futures Plunge Expected to Reverse Cash Climb
Cash prices continued going up at most points Wednesday, oftenrepeating Tuesday’s gains of between 3 and 9 cents. Butshell-shocked traders were more interested in discussing what onecalled the “precipitous” drop in May futures and its implicationsfor both April and May cash numbers. “I’d bet a lot of people gotcaught with their pants down” by the screen’s plunge, a marketersaid. Several sources said the Nymex drop caused daily cash dealsdone late to fall.
What Goes Up (Gas Prices) Now Coming Down
Cash prices continued to drop going into the weekend asexpected. Moderating weather and the usual lower weekend loads werethe obvious reasons for softening, sources said. Despite theoverall downward trend, falls were only 1-3 cents on several pipesin the Gulf Coast and Midcontinent. Again, the points that hadrisen most rapidly earlier in the week-such as Northeast citygates,Northern Natural-demarc and Waha-were the ones seeing the steepestdeclines.