Renewed

An El Paso Corp. subsidiary has renewed a contract with the Navajo Nation, which gives the Houston-based pipeline operator the right to ship natural gas across more than 900 miles of tribal lands in Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico and California. No financial details were disclosed. Three years ago El Paso Natural Gas Co. and the Navajo Nation signed an interim agreement that ended a stalemate over the fair dollar value of the gas pipeline’s access to tribal lands (see Daily GPI, Jan. 18, 2006). The interim agreement allowed El Paso to continue to transport around 2.7 Bcf/d across the disputed area, and it also gave the parties time to renegotiate a longer-term agreement for right of way (ROW) access. In September 2006 El Paso’s offer of nearly $200 million to renew a 20-year contract was rejected. At that time, the Navajo Nation demanded $440 million for the ROW, which was around twice El Paso’s original offer (see Daily GPI, Oct. 3, 2005).

Choosing to respond to renewed strength in the U.S. dollar instead of a bullish natural gas storage injection report of only 12 Bcf, December natural gas futures sank back below the $7 mark in Thursday morning trade. Thursday ended up bringing the contract’s streak of higher closes to an end at four as December futures finished at $6.979, down 27 cents from Wednesday’s close.

With a renewed interest over the last few years in oil and natural gas prospects in Alaska, Irving, TX-based Fluor Corp. is heading back to Alaska to open an office in Anchorage to support projects in the region.

The ballyhooed Bakken Shale has taken on renewed interest for its oil reserves as prices continue to climb, but it also holds a considerable amount of natural gas, which has drawn the attention by a growing number of prospectors.

Natural gas futures joined the rest of the energy complex’s slump on Tuesday over renewed U.S. economy recession fears and moderating temperatures. February natural gas shed 32.3 cents on Tuesday to close at $7.670.

Two Rockies Express Pipeline (REX) shippers have renewed their request for FERC to take swift action on a complaint accusing Northern Natural Gas of restricting access to receipt point capacity at an interconnection between the REX and Northern Natural systems.

Two Rockies Express Pipeline (REX) shippers have renewed their request for FERC to take swift action on a complaint accusing Northern Natural Gas of restricting access to receipt point capacity at an interconnection between the REX and Northern Natural systems.

Citing the success of liquefied natural gas (LNG) within California markets, Earth Biofuels Inc. subsidiary Applied LNG Technologies (ALT) said it has renewed a three-year LNG supply agreement with the Redlands, CA. The City of Redlands utilizes LNG as transportation fuel for its municipal fleet vehicles, and has built an LNG and compressed natural gas (CNG) refueling station for public use within its city limits. “This renewal exemplifies our recent successes in growing our profitable LNG business, especially in the California markets,” stated Earth Biofuels CEO Dennis McLaughlin. “We are now in the process of expanding our product availability to make LNG available in major cities outside of California.” Earth Biofuels noted that LNG meets California’s strict emission standards and is now more readily available for use by commercial vehicles, heavy-duty trucks, utility companies, fleets, light-duty trucks and consumer CNG vehicles. Vehicles fueled by the transportation grade LNG produce approximately one-sixth of the nitrous oxides (NOx) and up to 15% less greenhouse gases than comparable petroleum diesel fueled vehicles. Through California’s South Coast Air District and Air Quality Management grants, the City of Redlands will operate 20 of its 32 municipal vehicles on LNG/CNG fuels by its fiscal year end.

Faced with a deadening silence from Capitol Hill on the fate of offshore legislation, a group of industrial energy consumers has renewed its call for the Senate and House to quickly reconcile the differences in their two Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) leasing bills so that a legislative package can be approved before Congress adjourns later this month.