Motto

“Buyer Beware” is still a good motto for gas buyers looking for win-win natural gas portfolio management results, according to a panel of industry marketing/trading representatives speaking Thursday at GasMart 2007 in Chicago.

“Buyer Beware” is still a good motto for gas buyers looking for win-win natural gas portfolio management results, according to a panel of industry marketing/trading representatives speaking Thursday at GasMart 2007 in Chicago.

The old cliche “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it” could double as the motto of ExxonMobil Corp., which plans to keep its proven long-term approach of steady growth with disciplined investment in large energy projects going forward. Who could blame the energy Goliath, which posted more than $36 billion in profit for 2005 — the largest profit for a U.S. company in history (see Daily GPI, Jan. 31).

‘Playing it safe’ seemed to be the motto of natural gas futures traders again on Tuesday. After climbing as high as $11.860 in Tuesday morning trade, December natural gas began its search lower in the afternoon, putting in an $11.500 low before settling at $11.563, down 4.4 cents for the day.

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” could have been the natural gas futures market’s motto over the past few days during which it attempted several times to break below the psychological $7.00 level. It finally paid off Thursday as December natural gas futures settled 41 cents lower at $6.873.

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” could have been the natural gas futures market’s motto over the past few days during which it attempted several times to break below the psychological $7.00 level. It finally paid off Thursday as December natural gas futures settled 41 cents lower at $6.873.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again could be Tri-Valley Corp.’s motto when referring to its Sunrise Natural Gas Project near Delano, CA. The Bakersfield, CA-based company reported Thursday that it has logged in excess of 2,000 feet of gas-saturated diatomite/porcelanite in its Sunrise-Mayel No. 2HR horizontal redrill. Tri-Valley said the well has all the log and geologic features expected and is scheduled for hydraulic fracturing in late June to liberate the natural gas at what Tri-Valley management expects to be commercial rates. The latest move comes as the third attempt by Tri-Valley to unlock what independent engineers have projected as a potentially immense amount of natural gas in place in the tight McClure Shale formation beginning at about 5,800 feet. The company noted that Independent reports on the nearly 300 vertical net feet of pay in the McClure Shale section show 40% porosity with 70% gas saturation, which calculates to about 80 Bcf of gas in place per 160 acres. On its own, Tri-Valley has mapped some 6,600 acres of closure on its leasehold and speculates as much as 3.3 Tcf of gas may be contained in the prospect area. In March, the company failed to produce at commercial rates at its Sunrise-Mayel No. 2H natural gas well because the zone had clay content that could swell and block gas delivery (see Daily GPI, March 7). The company notes there is still risk of commerciality and will give no estimate of how much might be recoverable until it has completed and tested the rate of gas deliverability from the well.

Following the motto that “if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” (and again) California’s coalition of state government agencies and private sector utilities late Friday asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reconsider its March 26 ruling on future wholesale power refunds to consider all of the additional evidence the state coalition provided early in March.

“The times, they are a-changing” could be Southern Company’smotto after a recent blitz of reorganization. The company reportedthat its board of directors approved the long-awaited spin-off ofMirant Corp. – formerly known as Southern Energy – and ChairmanA.W. “Bill” Dahlberg is retiring upon completion of thetransaction.