Prices

Western Gas Resources Inc. announced Thursday it has entered into a settlement agreement to pay $5.95 million in a civil suit in which Western was charged with manipulating the prices of natural gas futures on the NYMEX in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act, by reporting allegedly “inaccurate, misleading and false trading information” to natural gas index publishers.

A lower utility margin due to warmer weather and customer conservation because of high wholesale natural gas prices led to a 4% decline in Charlotte, NC-based Piedmont Natural Gas’ second quarter 2005 net income. Net income slipped to $39.6 million, or $0.52/share, from $41.3 million. or $0.54/share, posted for the same period in 2004.

A lower utility margin due to warmer weather and customer conservation because of high wholesale natural gas prices led to a 4% decline in Charlotte, NC-based Piedmont Natural Gas’ second quarter 2005 net income. Net income slipped to $39.6 million, or $0.52/share, from $41.3 million. or $0.54/share, posted for the same period in 2004.

Predictably, prices were down Wednesday due to a screen drop of 18.2 cents the day before and the ongoing moderation of weather from unusually chilly conditions for early May.

Houston-based independent Anadarko Petroleum Corp. on Friday reported a 25% increase in 1Q profit on strength in oil and gas prices and better-than-expected production. It beat Wall Street estimates by 6 cents, with earnings of $490 million ($2.05/share), up from $392 million ($1.55) in 1Q2004.

Despite strong drilling activity, record natural gas and oil prices and the largest cash flow in industry history, employment by the largest U.S.-based producers declined 4.1% in 2004, the 20th annual decline in the past 23 years, according to consultant John S. Herold Inc.

Boosted by sustained high natural gas prices, Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) on Wednesday reported a 15% increase in 1Q earnings, with income from continuing operations of $145.7 million ($1.17/share), compared with 1Q2004 income of $127 million ($1.02).

Despite strong drilling activity, record natural gas and oil prices and the largest cash flow in industry history, employment by the largest U.S.-based producers declined 4.1% in 2004, the 20th annual decline in the past 23 years, according to consultant John S. Herold Inc.

In what a producer called “trading much like yesterday’s,” cash prices continued to move higher Tuesday based on the screen’s day-earlier gain of nearly a nickel and enough lingering cold weather in the North and parts of the West to keep heating load from disappearing like the calendar winter season did three days ago.