Pennaco Energy and TransMontaigne Inc. subsidiary Bear PawEnergy signed a gathering agreement in which Bear Paw will buildand operate a new gathering line in the Powder River Basin ofnortheastern Wyoming and provide services to about 10% of Pennaco’scoal-bed methane program in the basin. The agreement covers thePennaco “South Gillette,” WY contract area, including over 8,600gross leasehold acres and 200 potential well locations. Pennaco hasdrilled and is in the process of testing and completing its first100 wells in the area. The Bear Paw gathering systems will connectPennaco’s gas wells to several major pipelines, including theWestern Gas Resources MIGC Pipeline, currently transporting up to130 MMcf/d of coal-bed gas, the recently announced Fort Union GasPipeline projected to be in service by September of this year, andthe proposed Thunder Creek Pipeline. The remaining 90% of Pennaco’s312,000 net acres in the Powder River will be devoted to FortUnion.
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Articles from Line
Transco Official Blasts FERC’s PD Decision
In a terse letter to FERC last week, 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. Wadlington said Transco officials are disappointedabout the decision, which affects their MarketLink project, theproposed Independence Pipeline – in which Transco is a partner -the upstream ANR-sponsored SupplyLink project and the competingMillennium Pipeline project.
Small Gains Prompt Locals, Producers to Draw Line in Sand
After apparently teasing volatility-loving traders Monday,natural gas futures have returned to the somewhat unspectaculartrading which marred the month of February by chopping lazilysideways for the past two days. Only subtle differences-Tuesday’slate decline vs. Wednesday’s late uptick-were seen asdistinguishing features in an otherwise featureless market. TheApril contract saw the largest gains, notching a 2.7-cent gain tofinish at $1.723 in light to moderate trading Wednesday.
Briefs
Williams completed its Cherokee expansion project, increasingcapacity on the Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line (Transco) system by87 MMDth/d to provide additional firm transportation capacity toserve markets in Georgia. The $68 million project consisted ofadding looping and compression.
FERC Approves Bondad Expansion, Rejects Allocation Plan
FERC’s approval of El Paso’s $3.6 million Bondad Line expansion,which would increase capacity by 117 MMcf/d in October, likely willprovide some relief to Bondad shippers, who have struggled throughmany days of constraints and allocations on the San Juan Basinsystem.
GRI Tests Market for Investments in 14 Research Offerings
The Gas Research Institute rolled out the first line of targetedresearch offerings, in which companies can gain proprietary accessto technical solutions by forming a partnership with GRI andproduct manufacturers. It is GRI’s first step into the commercialworld where research is determined by market need.
Tejas to Build Gas Line in Toluca, Mexico
Tejas Energy, LLC announced plans to build a 75-mile pipeline totransport 90 MMcf/d of gas to the city of Toluca, Mexico, locatedabout 45 miles west of Mexico City. The pipeline will move gas froman interconnect with Pemex Gas y Petroquimica Basica’s pipeline atPalmillas, Mexico to a new local distribution company formed byRepsol, which placed a winning bid for the distribution zoneearlier this year.
Amoco’s Hugoton Plant On Line
Amoco’s Hugoton Jayhawk gas processing plant in Ulysses, KS,recently began operations with capability to process 450 MMcf/d andrecover up to 33,000 barrels of gas liquids per day. HugotonJayhawk currently is processing about 400 MMcf/d, of which 280MMcf/d is supplied by Amoco-operated wells.
PA PUC May Get New Line-up
The fate of open access for natural gas and electricityregulation in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania may be largelydecided this week if, as rumored, Gov. Tom Ridge names areplacement for trail-blazing Public Utilities Commissioner JohnHanger.
California ISO Accused of Tampering With Prices
FERC needs to make the responsibilities and line of authority ofindependent system operators “crystal clear” to make sure they donot interfere with pricing and the commodity portion of the market,according to an Electric Clearinghouse executive who said thatright now the California ISO is overstepping the bounds.