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Most of the companies in the oil and gas industry – 94% -report they will have addressed fully by September anycomputer-related challenges posed by the arrival of the newmillennium, according to a survey tracking the industry’s Y2Kprogress that was released last week.

On the heels of a decision showing that Canadian landowners canforce changes, the National Energy Board has called hearings on 38objections to the route of Alliance Pipeline Project.

Florida-based FPL Energy Inc. said it will build, own andoperate a 1,000 MW, gas-fired power plant in Paris, TX, that willbe one of the largest independent generation projects in the state.Electricity generated at the site, about 100 miles northeast ofDallas, will be sold primarily in the Texas wholesale market. Threefirms, Texas Utilities Electric Co., Texas-New Mexico Power, andConstellation Power Source, have contracts to buy 700 MW of theplant’s output for various periods. Construction of thecombined-cycle plant is to begin immediately. Commercial operationis scheduled for mid-2000. The maximum daily quantity of gas thatwould consumed by the plant is 170,000 Dth/d.

Those bemoaning the lack of a competitive market for electricityin California should look on the bright side. Things are movingalong, and the process is not finished, said Daniel D. Richard Jr.,senior vice president government and regulatory relations forPacific Gas and Electric.

TPC Corp. is changing hands yet again as PacifiCorp unloads yet another non-core asset. NIPSCO Industries subsidiary NI Energy Services is buying Houston-based TPC for $132.5 million. The deal also involves a payment for working capital to be determined at closing. NI Energy Services also gets PacifiCorp’s 66% interest (held by TPC) in Market Hub Partners LP (MHP).

With the Houston trade fair ended, the cash market startedreturning to normal Friday. And continuing the pattern seen formost of February, “normal” meant essentially flat pricing. Butsigns of weakening were more evident as small downticks notablyincreased in frequency. Some of the softness was attributable tothe normal weekend drops in gas demand.

Columbia, SC-based SCANA Corp. nearly doubled its regulated gascustomer base in the fast-growing Carolinas last week with thepurchase of Public Service Company of North Carolina (PSNC) for$900 million, including the assumption of about $250 million inPSNC debt. The combination will serve 517,000 electric, 760,000 gascustomers in the Carolinas and Georgia and 350,000telecommunications customers throughout the Southeast. Total annualrevenues for the combined company will be about $2 billion andmarket capitalization will be about $6 billion.

The futures market sauntered into the weekend Friday in a verysimilar fashion to the way it traded throughout the week-in aboring, hum-drum manner. The March contract was limited to a paltry2.5-cent trading range, slipping 0.1 cents lower to settle at$1.745. Estimated volume was evidence of the quiet trading as only42,085 contracts changed hands.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the U.S.Department of Justice are now after three people for allegedlymisappropriating energy futures trades from Coastal, defrauding thecompany of millions of dollars. Robert C. Rossi joins formerCoastal States Trading Corp. employee Steven G. Soule; and Kyler F.Lunman II, owner of Hold-Trade Inc. (Ltd.) as a respondent in thecase.