Reserved

Warmer-than-normal weather caused Columbia Energy Group toreport first-quarter 1998 net income down from the same period lastyear. Results in the company’s marketing business were off sharplydue mainly to expenses.

Washington Gas is expanding its customer choice program inMaryland, targeting 100,000 residential customers or one-third ofthe total, and all of its 25,000 commercial customers in the state.The company said it received approval for the expansion from theMaryland Public Service Commission.

Amoco’s $1.9 Billion North American exploration and productiondivestment to focus on top producing areas is nearly complete.”These divestments allow us to focus our resources on the mostpromising producing areas in our exploration and productionportfolio, which has given us a higher quality asset position inNorth America,” said L. Richard Flury, executive vice president forexploration and production. “We believe this rationalized assetposition is a step toward reaching our corporate goal of 15% returnon capital employed by 2001.”

Most of the additions to natural gas and crude oil reservesduring the past decade have come from existing fields rather thanfrom new discoveries, and the trend is likely to continue well intothe future, according to a new study issued by the Gas ResearchInstitute (GRI) yesterday.

Enron Oil & Gas reported first quarter net income of $27.0million, 17 cents/share, compared to $23.1 million, 15 cents/share,for first quarter of 1997. Discretionary cash flow increased to$124.0 million in the first quarter of 1998 compared to $110.1million for the comparable quarter in 1997. Net operating revenuesincreased to $199.8 million in the first quarter of 1998 comparedto $180.7 million a year ago.

Peace broke out in the Canadian natural gas community. A newpact on competition in the industry virtually assures constructionof the Alliance Pipeline Project, approval of the merger betweenTransCanada PipeLines and Nova Corp., and a settlement on a newtolling regime on Nova’s Alberta gathering grid.

AGL Resources, parent of LDC Atlanta Gas Light, said Atlanta GasLight Services will be the name of its non-regulated marketingaffiliate when competition begins in Georgia. Not everyone is happywith the choice.

Natural-gas shippers have again been promised they will gainfrom the proposed merger of TransCanada PipeLines Ltd. and NovaCorp., but not before a spell of increased tolls.

Consolidated Natural Gas Co.’s CNG Energy Index calculatedresidential heating and cooling energy needs averaged 7.7% belownormal for the country over the winter heating season (Nov. 1-March31). There were wide variations across the country, however, withabove normal energy needs in the Southwest and Lower MississippiValley.