Investment

Anticipating the development of a natural gas pipeline in the Mackenzie Delta Valley to move supplies to the Lower 48, Ensign Resource Service Group Inc. and Gwich’in Development Corp. (GDC) have teamed up in a joint venture to provide drilling and oilfield services in the Northwest Territories. Ensign, based in Calgary, is Canada’s second largest drilling firm, and has given GDC, an aboriginal company, a 51% stake in the deal establishing Gwich’in Ensign Oilfield Services Inc. (GEOS).

Backed up with a C$1 billion investment to recover at least 1Tcf, PanCanadian Petroleum Ltd. said it would immediately begincommercial development on its Deep Panuke offshore natural gasfield. Located about 250 kilometers southeast of Halifax, plateausales production from the field is expected to be 400 MMcf/dfollowing startup in early 2005.

Backed up with a C$1 billion investment to recover at least 1Tcf, PanCanadian Petroleum Ltd. said it would immediately begincommercial development on its Deep Panuke offshore natural gasfield. Located about 250 kilometers southeast of Halifax, plateausales production from the field is expected to be 400 MMcf/dfollowing startup in early 2005.

Independents Noble Affiliates and Kerr McGee Corp. have sharplyincreased their capital investment budgets this year. Kerr-McGee isbudgeting a record $1.24 billion for capital expenditures in 2001,a 60% increase from the company’s 2000 capital expenditures, andNoble’s spending is being increased 40%, with 60% of the $700million being used for developmental projects.

Enron Energy Services and Macerich Co., a publicly traded realestate investment trust, announced a 10-year energy managementagreement for more than 40 wholly-owned and joint ventureproperties. Enron will manage the supply of electricity and naturalgas and provide related energy management services for theproperties, including energy infrastructure upgrades.

Avista Advantage, a subsidiary of Avista Corp., has completed aninvestment agreement for an undisclosed amount with Wayne, PA-basedEnerTech Capital Partners to help refine, expand and market theSpokane, WA-based company’s suite of facility cost managementservice offerings. The agreement completes Avista Advantage’s firstround of private equity financing. Gary G. Ely, Avista Corp.’sacting CEO, said the agreement “will focus new attention on thisimportant market segment, and create new value growth opportunitiesfor both companies.” EnerTech, one of the Safeguard Scientificsfunds, is based in Wayne, PA. It specializes in companies poisedfor growth through deregulation, targeting the convergence of theenergy, utility and telecommunications industries.

Merrill Lynch has been hired to serve as Avista Labs’ investmentbank and strategic adviser to evaluate the best ways to maximizethe shareholder value of its fuel cell technology. Avista Corp. ofSpokane, WA made the announcement yesterday, and said that MerrillLynch will “consider all possible options, including financialrestructuring and an initial public offering.” Avista Labs recentlyreceived a comprehensive patent securing the exclusive modulardesign of its PEM fuel cell system, a “plug and play” feature thatallows fuel cell cartridges to be easily removed and replacedwithout interrupting power. The Labs arm of Avista Corp. is a jointdevelopment agreement with UOP to integrate its fuel cell with thenatural gas and propane fuel processor systems of UOP. Later thisyear, field testing will begin for the integrated units of UOP.Currently, Avista Labs is testing its fuel cell subracks in severallocations across the country, including Arizona Public Service inPhoenix, the Fuel Cell Test and Evaluation Center in Johnstown,PA., Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, FL, and as back-uppower within the Avista Utilities service territory in the PacificNorthwest.

Globalization hit the paper energy market yesterday with the bidby the U.S. investment subsidiary of a Dutch banking firm forMerrill Lynch’s energy futures, options and commodities business,and the takeover of Natsource LLC, a leading U.S. broker of naturalgas and electricity, by a London wholesale money broker.

San Jose, CA-based independent power producer Calpine Corp. madea major investment in upstream gas supply for its current andfuture gas-fired power plants in California. The company bought 90Bcf of proven gas reserves in the Sacramento Basin from VintagePetroleum for $71.5 million. The transaction will make Calpine thelargest gas producer in the basin, raising its production to 43MMcf/d. The Vintage reserves currently produce 14.3 MMcf/d.