Hills

A long-standing effort to create a multi-state, multi-utility natural gas reserves program centered on Piceance Basin reserves continues for Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp. but the program will not move ahead this year and its ultimate fate is still uncertain, executives said Friday.

Regulatory timing has been pushed back on Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp.’s longstanding plans to launch a multi-utility natural gas reserves program as it searches for partners and the right reserves mix for the venture.

With a continuing vision of riding its Mancos Shale holdings to successful development, Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp.’s CEO has reiterated the multi-state utility holding company’s desire to establish a series of utility cost-of-service natural gas reserve programs.

Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp. has suspended its push in six states to create utility cost-of-service natural gas reserve programs and is rethinking its approach, CEO David Emery said during a 2Q2016 earnings conference call on Thursday.

With the close of its $1.89 billion acquisition of SourceGas Holding LLC and its utilities in multiple states earlier this year (see Daily GPI,July 13, 2015), Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp. is a “pure-play utility” and all of its non-utility units, including its oil/natural gas exploration/production business, will transform to be supportive of the utilities, according to CEO David Emery.

With the close of its $1.89 billion acquisition of SourceGas Holding LLC and its utilities in multiple states earlier this year (see Daily GPI,July 13, 2015), Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp. is a “pure-play utility” and all of its non-utility units, including its oil/natural gas exploration/production business, will transform to be supportive of the utilities, according to CEO David Emery.

The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) on Wednesday rejected a proposed utility ratepayer-backed natural gas reserves acquisition program pursued by Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp.’s gas utility in the state. This is the first of up to six state approvals being sought for similar programs in other states where Black Hills has utility operations (see Daily GPI,Oct. 5, 2015).

The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) on Wednesday rejected a proposed utility ratepayer-backed natural gas reserves acquisition program pursued by Rapid City, SD-based Black Hills Corp.’s gas utility in the state. This is the first of up to six state approvals being sought for similar programs in other states where Black Hills has utility operations (see Daily GPI,Oct. 5, 2015).

The Delaware Court of Chancery has granted a motion by The Williams Companies Inc. to expedite litigation it initiated against Energy Transfer Equity LP (ETE), which challenges a private offering of Series A Convertible Preferred Units that ETE disclosed on March 9. Williams sued ETE and CEO Kelcy Warren, in two separate lawsuits, over the matter earlier this month (see Daily GPI,April 6). The litigation against ETE seeks to unwind the private offering. The litigation against Warren, in the district court of Dallas County, TX, is for wrongful interference, through the private offering, with a merger agreement executed in September 2015 (see Daily GPI,Sept. 28, 2015). The Williams board still supports the merger, the company said.