Segment

Properties in the gas pipeline and storage segment, among the billions of dollars of assets flooding the market from companies looking to raise cash quickly, offer the most value at the fairest prices, according to Entergy Corp. officials who are studying the possibilities hard.

Effective today, Northern Border is lifting a firm-only restriction on its 42-inch Monchy/Port of Morgan to Ventura segment. The constraint had been implemented Wednesday due to compressor station outages upstream of Ventura (see Daily GPI, Oct. 4).

The near-term risk of more natural gas price erosion due to mild temperatures, high storage levels, the economic downturn and higher production levels across the nation led top industry analysts with Salomon Smith Barney (SSB), Lehman Brothers, ABN-AMRO, Simmons & Co. International, and Merrill Lynch to downgrade their 2002 stock price forecasts for several U.S. exploration and production (E&P) companies last week. Many of the same analysts also decided yet again to lower their respective 2001 and 2002 natural gas wholesale price outlooks.

Sea Robin reported completing an investigation of a leak in its “J” leg segment (see Daily GPI, May 16). The “J” leg is being returned to service after the leak was isolated on the lateral serving Eugene Island Block 305 (receipt location 94027), Sea Robin said. It resumed taking nominations for Thursday’s gas day at all affected points except for location 94027.

Unocal Corp. has separated out its oil and gas exploration andproduction assets in the Permian and San Juan basins, merging thatsegment of its operations with Midland, TX-based Titan Exploration,Inc. to create a new publicly traded company named Pure Resources,Inc.

Unocal Corp. has separated out its oil and gas exploration andproduction assets in the Permian and San Juan basins, merging thatsegment of its operations with Midland, TX-based Titan Exploration,Inc., to create a new publicly traded company named Pure Resources,Inc.

Due to nominations exceeding capacity, Transwestern wasallocating deliveries Wednesday to SoCal Gas at Needles, CA. About196,000 MMBtu/d in the West of Thoreau segment was affected,Transwestern said.

Reporting that linepack was heavy on its south end, Northwestsaid Monday no on-system balancing and limited off-system balancingis being allowed in that segment.

Heavy merger activity is impacting the wholesale energymarketing segment, causing several of the top-20 marketers of 1998to exit the market, and spurring other companies to acquire assetsand start online trading, a new study has found.