Loads

Looking to get in on the liquefied natural gas (LNG) wave to the U.S., a group of southeastern U.S. rural electric cooperatives and municipal gas utilities have aggregated a portion of their gas loads for a request for proposals (RFP) to acquire long-term supplies of LNG.

Once again, strong movement the day before in the energy futures complex failed to elicit a similar response from the cash market. Nearly all points were close to flat Tuesday, and the few up-and-down changes were limited to about a nickel or so in both directions.

At the outset, the only thing clear about California’s two-phase 2004 gas restructuring plan is that nothing is clear. There are endless questions among stakeholders. The major utilities are supposed to file their wish lists for the omnibus proceeding by the end of this month.

Independent producer Magnum Hunter Resources Inc. has jumped on the wagon for what it hopes will be a long ride for higher natural gas and oil prices, by increasing its capital expenditure budget for 2003 by $10 million, to $125 million from $115 million. Most of the increased capital will be spent in the first quarter.

Independent producer Magnum Hunter Resources Inc. has jumped on the wagon for what it hopes will be a long ride for higher natural gas and oil prices, by increasing its capital expenditure budget for 2003 by $10 million, to $125 million from $115 million. Most of the increased capital will be spent in the first quarter.

Buoyed by triple-digit heat, record-setting power loads, and $7.50 physical prices in the Northeast United States, natural gas futures were fast out of the chute Monday as traders set their sights on a small but unfilled gap left on the daily chart since July 8. Riding that buying wave, the prompt month made an attempt, but ultimately failed, to fill in the $3.08-125 gap completely. Sellers were quick to punish this technical weakness in the noon hour, and market-on-close selling added the final touches Monday afternoon. By its 2:30 p.m. expiry, the August contract had sunk back to $2.976, up 4 cents for the session, but more than 13 cents off its high for the day.

Benefiting from the hot summer and increased air conditioningloads in the Southwest, Reliant Energy announced it anticipates itsthird quarter earnings to be “substantially higher” than during thesame period last year. The company expects to exceed FirstCall/Thomson Financial’s projections of $1.07 per share by 25 to30%. Reliant’s adjusted earnings for the third quarter of 1999 were$283 million, or 99 cents a share.

The futures screen may have been active Thursday but it waspretty quiet in the incremental cash market, a Houston trader said.Most points were flat to a bit softer, with the biggest drops ofabout a nickel or more occurring in the markets that had alreadybeen weak in the previous couple of days: the Rockies andCalifornia. Northeast citygates in Transco’s Zone 6 managed to ekeout small gains.

Algonquin Gas Transmission plans a 70-mile HubLine extension toconnect to several new and exisiting power generation loads in theNortheast, particularly around Boston, and with new suppliesthrough the proposed Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline system.