Green

FERC yesterday gave the go-ahead for Equitrans L.P. to acquireall but 26 miles of a 121-mile gas pipeline from Three RiversPipeline Co., a subsidiary of Equitable Resources Inc. Equitranswill purchase the facilities for their net book value of $4.2million.

Prompted by weaker physical prices and forecasts calling forwarming temperatures this week, traders in the natural gas pit atNymex had little choice but to push futures lower Friday as theycasually transferred long positions from the prompt contract to theback months. Slipping 6.6 cents on the day to finish at $2.785, theApril contract now sits just above trendline support on the dailychart, sources said.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last week awardedNorthern Border Pipeline a certificate to build its Project 2000extension into northern Indiana, which would provide the state’scustomers access to Canadian gas supplies for the first time.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission yesterday awardedNorthern Border Pipeline a certificate to build its Project 2000extension into northern Indiana, which would provide customersthere access to less expensive Canadian gas supplies for the firsttime.

Producer/marketer shippers on El Paso Natural Gas and Californiaregulators aren’t going to like FERC’s ruling on Enron NorthernAmerica Corp.’s 1.2 Bcf/d contract deal with the pipeline — itaccepted the mega-deal and rejected most of their protests.

A Panda Energy International affiliate is seeking a green lightto build one of the biggest “single-project” gas pipelines in termsof capacity to supply what will be the largest combined-cyclegas-fired power generation plant in the United States.

The 800-mile Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline took the stagelast week, but its supporting cast, the Sable Offshore EnergyProject, couldn’t make the show. After running the regulatory andpolitical gauntlet north of the border, the pipeline has been lefthanging by producers, who are more than a week away from initialdeliveries.

FERC yesterday gave Wyoming Interstate Co. Ltd. (WIC) thego-ahead to construct and operate the Medicine Bow Lateral thatwould connect its system to significant coal-bed methane gasreserves in Wyoming.

Florida Power & Light Co. (FPL) said Thursday it receivedapproval of its final construction permits to restructure the FortMyers power plant and will begin work at the site immediately.Generation from the $500 million project (called a “repowering”project) will be phased in beginning in early 2001 withcombined-cycle conversion complete by mid-year 2002.