Sectors

Dynegy CEO Bruce A. Williamson said at the company’s annual meeting Thursday that while it has spent the last couple of years putting assets on the auction block, it may spend the next couple on the lookout for merger and acquisition opportunities, particularly in the power generation business.

With companies in all sectors tightening their waist line in the currently tough economic times, the outlook for the North American diversified natural gas transmission companies is stable, according to Mihoko Manabe, Moody’s vice president and senior credit officer. She noted that these companies are generally pulling back to focus on their regulated, low-risk businesses, working to reduce debt and enhance liquidity, and simplifying their business models.

With companies in all sectors tightening their waist line in the currently tough economic times, the outlook for the North American diversified natural gas transmission companies is stable, according to Mihoko Manabe, Moody’s vice president and senior credit officer. She noted that these companies are generally pulling back to focus on their regulated, low-risk businesses, working to reduce debt and enhance liquidity, and simplifying their business models.

While the financial and political sectors are consumed with what last week’s revelations about wholesale power market manipulation will mean to the energy industry, California’s independent electric transmission grid operator, Cal-ISO, is focused on the broader market power abuses as the potential malfunctions that have the broadest, longest lasting and most costly impact. Relatively, the market power costs are in the billions of dollars, while the market manipulation of the kind described in the infamous Enron internal memos (see Daily GPI, May 9) collectively costs maybe hundreds of millions, according to Cal-ISO sources.

To promote private sector involvement, especially in the energy and supply sectors, Canadian Natural Resources Minister Ralph Goodale begins the second trade mission to Mexico City through Wednesday, joined in the four-day trip by executives from about 25 energy companies across Canada.

Despite exorbitant price spikes in natural gas and deregulation setbacks in various markets around the country, a new study released by the American Gas Association (AGA) revealed that an increasing number of small businesses and other commercial customers are purchasing their natural gas supplies from someone other than the local utility, continuing the evolution of competition in the natural gas industry.

Despite exorbitant price spikes in natural gas and deregulation setbacks in various markets around the country, a new study released by the American Gas Association (AGA) revealed that an increasing number of small businesses and other commercial customers are purchasing their natural gas supplies from someone other than the local utility, continuing the evolution of competition in the natural gas industry.

Almost overwhelming obstacles are blocking competition and change in Mexico’s natural gas and electricity sectors and are going to take time and private investment to overcome, according to one of the country’s energy commissioners.

In the new economy, while energy-intensive industrial businesslags, the growing information technology (IT) and telecom sectors”should account for an increasingly large piece of the total energypie,” according to an industry analysis report released by J.P.Morgan. And some will profit more than others, the financial giantsaid, in naming seven natural gas-based companies the winners inthe new market.