Highly

Canada’s storm-prone center of fossil-fuel production readily accepts the theory that the climate is changing, but highly educated Albertans stop far short of accepting the full global warming gospel even when their anonymity is guaranteed. Only about one in three Alberta earth scientists and engineers believe the culprit behind climate change has been identified, a new poll of the professions reported.

Characterizing his energy trading unit as having “tremendous liquidity and highly ample capital,” the head of Sempra Energy Commodities told a financial analysts meeting late in March that he sees the environment for trading remaining mostly unchanged through 2009 with annual profits in the $350-450 million range. David Messer spoke at an analysts’ meeting hosted by Sempra in San Diego March 29.

Characterizing his energy trading unit as having “tremendous liquidity and highly ample capital,” the head of Sempra Energy Commodities said he sees the environment for trading remaining mostly unchanged through 2009 with annual profits in the $350-450 million range. David Messer spoke at a financial analysts meeting hosted by Sempra in San Diego Thursday.

Intimating that Southern California’s highly compromised air quality could be made worse by large liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in the future, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) filed a lawsuit in state Superior Court Tuesday against the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), which established new gas quality standards for the state’s major gas utilities last fall.

Intimating that Southern California’s highly compromised air quality could be made worse by large liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in the future, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) filed a lawsuit in state Superior Court Tuesday against the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), which established new gas quality standards for the state’s major gas utilities last fall.

Dominion, whose diversified portfolio includes about 6.6 Tcfe of proved natural gas reserves, plans to sell nearly all of its highly profitable North American exploration and production (E&P) assets to focus on its less risky utility businesses. Only the company’s Appalachian Basin properties, with 17% of Dominion’s total proved reserves and 8% of average daily production, will be retained.

Dominion, whose diversified portfolio includes about 6.6 Tcfe of proved natural gas reserves, announced Wednesday it will sell nearly all of its highly profitable North American exploration and production (E&P) assets to focus on its less risky utility businesses. Only the company’s Appalachian Basin properties, with 17% of Dominion’s total proved reserves and 8% of average daily production, will be retained.

Southern Natural Gas implemented an OFO Type 6 for long imbalances Friday and said it was highly likely that the OFO would continue through Sunday. Tiered penalties were set for shippers who created positive imbalances exceeding scheduled volumes 2% or 200 dekatherms, whichever was less.

With air conditioning load staying on the relatively light side outside the desert Southwest, a 33.9-cent screen drop on Wednesday providing highly negative guidance, continued concerns over storage injection space dwindling quickly, and excess supply issues in the West, it was hardly surprising when the cash market experienced double-digit drops across the board Thursday.