Reserves

Denver’s Tom Brown Inc. paid $16.2 million for an estimated 22Bcf of gas equivalent in reserves, with current net dailyproduction of 8 MMcf of equivalent gas in the Rocky Mountainregion’s Pavillion field. The transaction by the independent energycompany increases its working interest in the Pavillion to 90%, upfrom a previous 50% interest.

Statoil Energy’s sale of 1.1 Tcf of gas reserves and 6,500 wellsin the Appalachian Basin to Equitable Resources earlier this monthfor $630 million was the first of three possible transactions, aspokeswoman said last week. The latter two, which would include thecompany’s top-30 trading operations, and growing power developmentarm, are expected to involve an eastern-U.S. electric utility buyerand take place before March, according to one inside source.

Unico Inc. of Stamford, CT, bought Silver Valley Energy Inc.,including its proven oil and gas reserves located in the GlassMountains of Pecos County, TX, for an undisclosed amount. Theproperty is valued at more than $40 million based upon a recentindependent analysis.

With 87% of its reserves in gas, Chesapeake Energy Corp. CEOAubrey McClendon said his company is “a natural gas company onpurpose.” McClendon told attendees at the PLS Dealmakers prospectconference in Houston Wednesday that both the supply and demandsides look very bright for gas producers, especially relative tooil.

With weather forecasts producing bearish news at every turn andthe national storage reserves looming ever larger, Raymond James& Associates recently published a report projecting spotwellhead gas prices to drop below the $1.50/Mcf level before thebeginning of summer. The study gives the correlation between gasprices and storage levels, the onslaught of gas production, and theeffects of a third warm winter as reasons for its forecast. Thestudy also warns of a gas “price shock” in early 2000, when gasshortages run rampant and production is unable to keep up.

Pool marketer Pan-Alberta Gas and a consortium of sevenproducing companies have reached agreement on the terms under whichthe marketing company will be offered for sale to the more than 435Canadian producers in the pool. The announcement of the agreementconfirmed earlier reports that a Canadian coalition was expected towin out over bids from major U.S. marketers.

EEX Corp. agreed to sell nearly all of its properties in EastTexas and North Louisiana, containing 250 Bcfe of proved naturalgas reserves, to Cross Timbers Oil Co. for $265 million. Theeffective date of the sale is Jan. 1, 1998 with closing expected inthe second quarter.