Great

Wednesday’s market was virtually a repeat of the one Tuesday, with little or no price movement at the great majority of points and the few increases or decreases being capped at about a nickel. Lingering cold in the Midwest and Northeast was being joined by a modest amount of cooling load developing from Texas through the desert Southwest into California.

As baseball great Yogi Berra might have observed about the spot gas market, it was like deja vu all over again. For the second Monday in a row, prices were up sharply at most points for much the same reason: weather turned out to be colder than forecasts had indicated.

While there is a great degree of variation in how utility holding companies manage the cash of their regulated local gas distribution company (LDC) subsidiaries, generally the ones that maintain separate cash management programs for their regulated LDCs have higher credit ratings, according to a new report from Moody’s Investors Service.

While there is a great degree of variation in how utility holding companies manage the cash of their regulated local gas distribution company (LDC) subsidiaries, generally the ones that maintain separate cash management programs for their regulated LDCs have higher credit ratings, according to a new report from Moody’s Investors Service.

Gas pipeline companies reported no significant impact on gas transportation operations from the blackouts in the Northeast, Great Lakes and eastern Canada. However, some did note that there were sharp and sudden demand reductions because many gas-fired power plants, chemical companies and industrial manufacturing plants were shut down. As a result, even more gas was expected to be headed into storage.

Like a great white shark looking for blood in the water, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BHI) has clamped its jaws around another ailing energy asset, Seitel Inc., after agreeing to finance its voluntary bankruptcy reorganization. The transaction would give the Omaha-based holding company title to a sizeable North American-focused seismic database and increase its growing energy holdings, which now include two major natural gas pipelines.

Like a great white shark looking for blood in the water, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BHI) has clamped its jaws around another ailing energy asset, Seitel Inc., after agreeing to finance its voluntary bankruptcy reorganization. The transaction would give the Omaha-based holding company title to a sizeable North American-focused seismic database and increase its growing energy holdings, which now include two major natural gas pipelines.

TransCanada reported that Great Lakes ended Wednesday its declaration of force majeure that was announced in late February (see Daily GPI, Feb. 27 and March 10) and affected deliveries to TransCanada. As a result, TransCanada terminated its own force majeure declaration to firm shippers.

E. Linn Draper Jr., 61, the chairman and CEO of American Electric Power (AEP), said Wednesday he will retire in 2004.