Rocky Mountains ski resort operators were starting to breathe alittle easier Tuesday. After many had missed traditional openingdates of Thanksgiving Day weekend or earlier, they welcomed asnowstorm that either was arriving or on its way. For much the samereason, Rockies/Pacific Northwest and Southwest points constitutedthe only region seeing meaningful price gains on either side of anickel Tuesday. The rest of the cash market was a sea of flatnessthat, unlike Monday, leaned slightly to the downside instead of theupside.
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Articles from Little
FERC Rejects Chicken Little Y2K Plans
FERC said last week it has found Chicken Littles in the Y2Kplanning departments of several gas pipeline companies. TheCommission berated pipeline Y2K planners for crying “the sky isfalling” without any solid evidence that it is. To those pipelinesseeking a complete shut-down of multiple nomination periods justprior to and after Jan. 1, FERC explained that so far they have notprovided convincing arguments why such drastic methods would berequired.
FERC Rejects Chicken Little Y2K Plans
FERC said yesterday it has found Chicken Littles in the Y2Kplanning departments of several gas pipeline companies. TheCommission berated pipeline Y2K planners for crying “the sky isfalling” without any real good evidence that it is. To thosepipelines seeking a complete shut-down of multiple nominationperiods just prior to and after Jan. 1, FERC explained that so farthey have not provided convincing arguments why such drasticmethods would be required.
Traders See Little But Storm Hype in New Price Hikes
“Storm hype” was billed as the overriding reason for Friday’scontinuation of this week’s price increases that accomplished whathardly anbody thought possible: bring some points back to eitherside of September indexes. The new gains defied the usual weekenddemand slump, growing complacency about finishing storage injectionseason comfortably, a mostly negative screen and cool, autumn-likeweather in many major market areas. In wide-ranging trading,influenced largely by a similarly volatile futures contract, mostcash points ranged from barely up to as much as 15 cents higher.The majority of the gains tended to be on either side of a dime.
FERC Advisor to Head Up NGSA’s Regulatory Affairs
The Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA) wasted little time inpicking successors to fill positions that were left vacant by thesudden departures of two staff members.
FERC’s Jagtiani to Head Up NGSA’s Regulatory Affairs
The Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA) wasted little time inpicking successors to fill positions that were left vacant by thesudden departures of two staff members.
New Commissioners Quietly Take Seats on CPUC
With no notice and little fanfare-not even a press release-theCalifornia Public Utilities Commission got back to full strengthwith two “temporary” appointees, both holding existing appointivepositions in Gov. Gray Davis’ first-year administration. Indicativeof the seemingly low profile Gov. Davis is giving energy issues,the new commissioners were rushed onboard the five-membercommission June 3 so they could participate in some controversialtelecommunications cases.
Columbia Goes from Predator to Prey
Merrillville, IN-based NiSource confirmed yesterday what someobservers have suspected for some time: that Columbia EnergyGroup’s failed bid for Consolidated Natural Gas was partly a veiledattempt to protect itself from being targeted by a buyer. NiSourceannounced that it has had an offer for Columbia on the table sinceApril 1 but has been rebuffed repeatedly and is making its hostilebid public in an effort to pressure Columbia’s board.
Commercials Have a Lot to Learn From Speculators
Even the most seasoned commercial gas futures trader is no matchfor the speculator these days. These little known futures playerswith no physical presence in the market have shown a real knack fortriggering major market moves and making big profits. They have agreat track record of buying futures at the market lows and sellingat the highs, while the commercial traders historically havestumbled into their buys near the top of price increases andmistakenly sold near the bottoms – “exactly the opposite way totrade if you want to make any money,” noted Susannah Hardesty ofEnergy Research and Trading Inc.
Commercials Have a Lot to Learn from Speculators
Even the most seasoned commercial gas futures trader is no matchfor the speculator these days. These little known futures playerswith no physical presence in the market have shown a real knack fortriggering major market moves and making big profits. They have agreat track record of buying futures at the market lows and sellingat the highs, while the commercial traders historically havestumbled into their buys near the top of price increases andmistakenly sold near the bottoms – “exactly the opposite way totrade if you want to make any money,” noted Susannah Hardesty ofEnergy Research and Trading Inc.