Marketing

PG&E Corp. announced yesterday that its gas marketingsubsidiary, PG&E Energy Trading – Gas Corp. (PG&E Energy)has signed Roanoke Gas Co. and its affiliate, Bluefield Gas Co., toyear-long gas management contracts. Financial terms of thecontracts were not disclosed. The deals are expected to begin Nov.1.

CMS Marketing, Services and Trading, (CMS-MST) has madesignificant additions to its energy services operations recently,signing a five-year energy management agreement with Chicago-basedBank One Corp. last week and expanding its national presencethrough the purchase of Viron Corp. from York International in lateSeptember.

Rio Bravo Energy, a joint venture between Tidelands Oil &Gas Corp., a Texas-based producer and Hudson SVD, a natural gasgathering and marketing company, announced the formation of SonoraPipeline yesterday. Sonora will own and operate a 53-mile gatheringsystem located in Dimmit and Zavala counties, TX. This line will beinterconnected with Rio Bravo’s Pena Creek Gathering System, whichservices the Chittim Gas Processing Plant recently acquired by RioBravo from Conoco. The plant is a propane refrigeration plant witha nominal capacity of 5 MMcf/d and a liquid fractionation train.The Pena Creek Gathering System which serves the Plant consists of15 miles of gathering and compression facilities.

Sempra Energy Information Solutions, a newly-formed SempraEnergy subsidiary, announced yesterday it has entered into a jointventure with two information technology companies to form SolianceNetworks, a provider of Internet-based information systemstargeting small and mid-sized energy utilities. Sempra owns themajority interest in Soliance and Dale Kelly-Cochrane, the formervice president of Sempra Energy’s strategic planning forunregulated businesses, is the joint venture’s president.

Dynegy announced that Stephen W. Bergstrom has been namedpresident and chief operating officer of Dynegy Inc. Bergstrom wasformerly president and chief operating officer of Dynegy Marketingand Trade and senior vice president of Dynegy Inc. He has served asa member of Dynegy’s board of directors since 1995.

FERC last week dealt a partial blow to Dynegy Marketing andTrade’s control over a portion of its contracted-for capacity on ElPaso Natural Gas to California, resulting in a measured victory forthe state’s regulators and San Juan producers. Dynegy enjoyed atriumph of sorts as well, however. The Commission upheld the bulkof its prior decision approving the whopping El Paso-Dynegyarrangement, finding that while it posed some competitive concerns,it was not “unduly discriminatory” in nature.

FERC has dealt a partial blow to Dynegy Marketing and Trade’scontrol over a portion of its contracted-for capacity on El PasoNatural Gas to California, resulting in a measured victory for thestate’s regulators and San Juan producers. Dynegy enjoyed a triumphof sorts as well, however. The Commission upheld the bulk of itsprior decision approving the whopping El Paso-Dynegy arrangement,finding that while it posed some competitive concerns, it was not”unduly discriminatory” in nature.

Southern Company Energy Marketing (SCEM), a joint venture ofSouthern Co. and Vastar Resources, said its second quarterelectricity sales jumped 21% to 48.2 million MWh from last year’ssecond quarter. Natural gas sales, however declined by 8% to 4.3Bcf/d.

Scana Energy Marketing and Exxon Corp. are urging FERC to bedeliberative as it weighs Atlanta Gas Light’s (AGL) bid for anextension of the waivers and limited jurisdiction blanketcertificate that were approved on a limited basis a year ago toencourage retail gas unbundling in Georgia.