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Some major U.S. independent producers absorbed major blows tothe bottom line in the first quarter of 1999, but CEOs from thecompanies insist higher profits are right around the corner.

The $1.9 billion sale in March of Panhandle Eastern Pipe LineCo. and Trunkline Gas Co. to Michigan-based CMS Energy resulted ina one-time gain of $1.82 per share for the first quarter and anafter-tax gain of $660 million, putting Duke earnings for thequarter over results in the same quarter last year. Duke reportedearnings of $2.65 per share, compared with 87 cents in 1Q98.Without the sale, and the absence of an extraordinary item fromlast year’s quarter, basic first-quarter earnings were 83 cents pershare versus 89 cents last year.

California regulators have taken a potentially precedent-settingstep by asking FERC to condition a certificate for Questar’sproposed Southern Trails Pipeline on the company first agreeing torecover from its in-state customers the costs of social programsthat would be potentially stranded by its bypass of SouthernCalifornia Gas (SoCalGas).

PG&E Gas Transmission-Northwest reported completing hydrotesting of its A-Line ahead of schedule. The project’s end restoredcapacity to best-efforts levels of 2,620 MMcf/d at Kingsgate and1,930 MMcf/d at Station 14 Friday.

California regulators have taken a potentially precedent-settingstep by asking FERC to condition a certificate for Questar’sproposed Southern Trails Pipeline on the company first agreeing torecover from in-state customers the costs of social programs thatwould be potentially stranded by its bypass of Southern CaliforniaGas (SoCalGas).

In a terse letter to FERC recently, Cuba Wadlington Jr.,Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line’s senior vice president and generalmanager, became the first pipeline representative to formallycriticize the Commission’s recent departure from its long-standingpolicy of issuing preliminary determinations on pipeline expansionapplications.

A FERC administrative law judge (ALJ) has agreedTranscontinental Gas Pipe Line was well within its rights when itdenied ANR Pipeline an additional interconnection to its mainlinesystem in Louisiana, saying that Transco’s action did notdiscriminate, violate antitrust principles or cause ANR to losebusiness.

El Paso said Friday its Waha (TX) GE turbine is off-line againdue to a failed coupling on the field gas compressor. If expeditedtemporary repairs over the weekend prove successful, the pipelinesaid, the unit is expected to return to service around Wednesday.Otherwise, a new coupling will be available around April 6; anothershutdown would be required for its installation. The IMLWAHA pointis limited to 65 MMcf/d during the outage.

A FERC administrative law judge (ALJ) has agreedTranscontinental Gas Pipe Line was well within its rights when itdenied ANR Pipeline an additional interconnection to its mainlinesystem in Louisiana, saying Transco’s action neither wasdiscriminatory, caused ANR to lose business nor violated antitrustprinciples.