Oneok

In granting a natural gas rate increase settlement for Oklahoma Natural Gas Co. (ONG), a division of ONEOK Inc., the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) early last week said the resolution provided a good balance between the need to ensure safe and reliable gas service and consumer concerns.

In granting a natural gas rate increase settlement for Oklahoma Natural Gas Co. (ONG), a division of ONEOK Inc., the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) on Monday said the resolution provided a good balance between the need to ensure safe and reliable gas service and consumer concerns.

More than 76 Bcf of natural gas, or 240,000 MMBtu/d, was sold to four companies — Constellation Energy Commodities Group Inc., Oneok Energy Services Co., Sempra Energy Trading and Shell Energy North America — in a federal Royalty in Kind (RIK) onshore gas sale conducted in early October by the Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service (MMS). Eleven companies submitted 75 bids for RIK gas located on federal lands in the Jonah-Pinedale area in western Wyoming. The gas was sold under five- or 12-month contracts, with delivery scheduled to begin on Nov.1. If current natural gas prices in the area were to remain at $5/MMBtu, the sale would equate to more than $384 million in total gross revenues, MMS stated. Wyoming will receive nearly 50% of the revenues generated by the sale of gas from federal lands in the state.

Guardian Pipeline LLC, which is owned by ONEOK Partners LP, has filed an application to expand and extend its existing system to meet the growing demand for natural gas in eastern Wisconsin and to provide pipeline-on-pipeline competition for many customers for the first time.

Guardian Pipeline LLC, which is owned by ONEOK Partners LP, has filed an application to expand and extend its existing system to meet the growing demand for natural gas in eastern Wisconsin and to provide pipeline-on-pipeline competition for many customers for the first time.

Tulsa, OK-based Oneok Inc. announced that its Texas Gas Service division has received approval to implement new higher rates in two of its service areas. The company reported that the implementation will affect 56,500 customers and will increase annual revenues by $2.5 million. The new rates went into effect on April 28.

A software glitch led Oneok to reduce its 2005 net income by $8.1 million (8 cents/share) and its energy services operating income by $13.2 million and raise its 1Q2006 earnings by similar amounts.

ONEOK utility subsidiary Oklahoma Natural Gas Co. (ONG) filed a $99.4 million annual revenue increase Friday with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. ONG said the increase, which would be about $10/month for the average residential customer, would cover additional investments in its distribution system, higher operational costs and taxes.

Oneok Inc.’s Kansas Gas Service Co. division will get a $45 million rate increase, according to a new settlement agreement with the staff of the Kansas Corporation Commission, Citizens’ Utility Ratepayer Board and all intervenors in the rate case. The rate hike is about 41% lower than KGS, the largest natural gas distribution company in Kansas, originally requested ($76 million) to cover higher operating costs including health care coverage, wages, materials and supplies.