Pressure

Duke CEO Richard Priory said in order to deal with the downward pressure and volatility in the energy industry the company has taken and will continue to take some “very strong and decisive steps” to position the company for the uncertain future.

Duke CEO Richard Priory said in order to deal with the downward pressure and volatility in the energy industry the company has taken and will continue to take some “very strong and decisive steps” to position the company for the uncertain future.

El Paso Corp. was in the unenviable position of being the most traded common stock on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday because investors were continuing a sell-off. The company’s stock dropped a little over 22% to $3.65. The market overall was down on war fears, and other energy companies took a hit, but not in the same league as El Paso.

Texas Eastern restricted all deliveries Friday to the Transco Ragley interconnect in its West Louisiana pool, saying the pressure differential between the two pipelines did not “accommodate deliveries to Transco’s system.” The condition was expected to continue through Monday (Nov. 18).

Warmer weather currently is putting downward pressure on gas prices, but some market observers believe a sudden cold snap could quickly and dramatically change the picture for this winter’s market. Consultants at Wakefield, MA-based Energy Security Analysis Inc. say while a $10 peak is unlikely, $6/MMBtu certainly is possible. However, Tim Evans, futures analyst with IFR Pegasus, believes the market already hit its winter peak, the $4.44/MMBtu reached last week by the December contract.

Warmer weather currently is putting downward pressure on gas prices, but some market observers believe a sudden cold snap could quickly and dramatically change the picture for this winter’s market. Consultants at Wakefield, MA-based Energy Security Analysis Inc. say while a $10 peak is unlikely, $6/MMBtu certainly is possible. However, Tim Evans, futures analyst with IFR Pegasus, believes the market already hit its winter peak, the $4.44/MMBtu reached last week by the December contract.

A FERC judge’s ruling in an El Paso Natural Gas complaint proceeding last month raises questions about the basis for the Commission’s action in ordering full-requirements (FR) shippers on the El Paso system to convert to contract-demand (CD) service next March, two large FR customers said. They asked FERC for a rehearing on the conversion order in light of the judge’s ruling.

Citing current uncertainty in the electric power market, Aquila Inc. and Cogentrix Energy Inc. on Friday jointly agreed to drop the planned acquisition of Cogentrix by Aquila. The companies said that currently “the transaction impractical and not in either company’s best interest.” The transaction between Aquila and the Charlotte, NC-based company was announced in April (see Power Market Today, May 1). Aquila said it did not consider the termination part of its “ongoing efforts” to sell $1 billion in non-strategic assets.

The financial pressure cooker is on high, and energy companies caught in the soup are scrambling to avoid getting burned. Early last week the kitchen got too hot for Dynegy Corp.’s Chairman and CEO Chuck Watson, who after 17 years, was immediately replaced by a top ChevronTexaco executive. By week’s end, El Paso Corp. and Williams Cos. had begun drastic financial measures to cool the credit rating agencies and investors. CMS Energy Corp. also joined in, moving to catapult what remains of its exploration and production division (see related stories).