Majority

Prices registered medium to large gains at all points to open the week. A large majority of Monday’s upticks were confined to the teens, but they exceeded 20 cents at several Northeast citygates and nearly all western points except those in the Permian Basin area.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) has indicated that he will allow a vote on oil and natural gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) if the pro-ANWR forces in the Senate can pick up 60 votes to bring the proposal to the floor.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) indicated Friday that he will allow a vote on oil and natural gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) if the Senate gets behind a measure to build a long-line gas pipeline from Alaska to the Lower 48 states.

On the heels of the announcement that it had acquired a majority of TransCanada’s natural gas marketing business (see related story this issue), Atlanta-based Mirant Corp. reported that it has made its first production acquisition by purchasing interests in 18 natural gas and oil producing fields as well as 206,000 acres of mineral rights in South Louisiana from Castex Energy Inc. for approximately $162 million.

On the heels of the announcement that it had acquired a majority of TransCanada’s natural gas marketing business (see related story this issue), Atlanta-based Mirant Corp. reported that it has entered the production business by purchasing interest in 18 natural gas and oil producing fields as well as 206,000 acres of mineral rights in South Louisiana from Castex Energy Inc. for approximately $162 million.

The downtrend continued Monday morning at the majority of points, with many places down a more than a dime from Friday averages. However, there was a late turnaround in some regions, including West Texas, the Midcontinent, Gulf Coast and Northeast markets, which may set the tone for trading Tuesday and Wednesday until the AGA storage report is released. Despite plenty of time to prepare last week, the colder weather appears to have caught some players off guard.

Much of the cash market “followed the screen” essentially nowhere as flatness dominated at a majority of points Thursday. However, there were pockets of price movement here and there. The Northeast and PG&E-related California points weakened by as much as the teens, while San Juan/Rockies/Pacific Northwest quotes rose by a nickel or more. In addition, several scattered Gulf Coast and Midcontinent points defied the overall flat trend with upticks or downticks of up to a dime.

With majority ownership in Denver-based Totem Gas Storage Co. LLC in hand following its purchase of ThermoEcotek Corp., AES Inc. plans to convert the gas field, a depleted “J” sand reservoir near Denver, into a 9 Bcf working gas storage facility. Totem would offer customers year-round storage service with delivery capabilities of more than 200 MMcf/d beginning in November 2002.

The Republican majority of the House Resources Committee yesterday fought off two attempts by Democratic members to remove from energy legislation a controversial provision that would open the coastal region of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and natural gas drilling.