Planning

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is tentatively planning to hold an additional technical conference on “Energy Price Discovery and Indices” on Tuesday June 24 to explore “some of the less familiar options such as Self-Regulating Organizations (SROs) and audited data hubs.” An order to that effect was being circulated Thursday for approval by the commissioners.

Cheniere Energy, which is planning three liquefied natural gas import terminals along the Gulf Coast, said it awarded the front end engineering design contracts for the Sabine Pass, LA, and Corpus Christi, TX, terminals to Black & Veatch Pritchard Inc. (B&V). The design work is expected to be completed for both sites by the end of September. B&V also worked for Cheniere on its first LNG site in Freeport, TX. An application for the Freeport terminal was filed with FERC last month (see Daily GPI, April 1). Cheniere said it plans to file FERC applications for the remaining two projects by next January. The two sites that Cheniere has chosen appear to be “exceptional locations for both access and permitting,” said Dwayne R. Stone, president of Black & Veatch. Cheniere CEO Charif Souki added that the sites were selected because they have “deepwater access, closeness to open water, safety, sufficient land, local demand for gas and pipeline access. Furthermore, the local communities at all three sites have been very welcoming and supportive. By the end of 2007, we hope to have facilities in place, which will allow suppliers the ability to bring 5 to 6 Bcf/d of gas into the country through these strategically selected Gulf Coast locations. It will give these importers flexibility and minimize the probability of delays to their ships because of weather, traffic, or unexpected channel closures, through the availability of multiple port locations, a multitude of docks, plentiful storage and pipeline access.”

In an effort for more integrated energy planning among the state’s three key agencies, the California Energy Commission Wednesday approved a draft “energy action plan” that has been cobbled together jointly for presentation later this year to the governor and state legislature.

EIA officials disclosed in an interview with NGI on Friday that the agency is planning to make a change to its natural gas storage survey estimation parameters to improve its weekly storage estimates while avoiding frequent storage revisions.

EIA officials disclosed in an interview with NGI on Friday that the agency is planning to make a change to its natural gas storage survey estimation parameters to improve its weekly storage estimates while avoiding frequent storage revisions.

Coral Energy and Shell Trading U.S. are planning to co-locate their operations in Coral’s offices in downtown Houston. It is not a merger, a company spokesman said, and the units will not combine operations. Coral, which markets natural gas and power, and Shell Trading, which markets oil and products, will shed some of their combined 1,200-member workforce where there is redundancy. The cutback will be accomplished through voluntary actions, retirements, normal attrition, and relocations within the corporation.

Canada’s No. 2 producer, Talisman Energy, is planning record spending of C$660 million on oil and gas exploration in 2003, and a total of $2.1 billion on exploration and development. The spending plan includes a record $364 million on exploration in North America, with 94% directed at natural gas targets.

Canada’s No. 2 producer, Talisman Energy, is planning record spending of $660 million on oil and gas exploration in 2003, and a total of $2.1 billion on exploration and development. The spending plan includes a record $364 million on exploration in North America, with 94% directed at natural gas targets.

Topeka, KS-based Western Resources Inc. said it is planning to sell its $960 million stake in Tulsa-based Oneok. Western subsidiary Westar Industries has engaged JP Morgan to advise it in the sale of 4.7 million shares of Oneok common stock and preferred stock that is convertible into 39.9 million additional shares of Oneok common stock, representing about 44.5% of total Oneok shares. Oneok is a midstream gas transporter in the Midcontinent region and the largest natural gas distributor in Kansas and Oklahoma, operating as Kansas Gas Service and Oklahoma Natural Gas, which serve 1.4 million customers. Western Resources has total assets of $6.6 billion, including security company Protection One and electric utility Westar Energy, which serves 640,000 customers in Kansas.