Shell

More than 76 Bcf of natural gas, or 240,000 MMBtu/d, was sold to four companies — Constellation Energy Commodities Group Inc., Oneok Energy Services Co., Sempra Energy Trading and Shell Energy North America — in a federal Royalty in Kind (RIK) onshore gas sale conducted in early October by the Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service (MMS). Eleven companies submitted 75 bids for RIK gas located on federal lands in the Jonah-Pinedale area in western Wyoming. The gas was sold under five- or 12-month contracts, with delivery scheduled to begin on Nov.1. If current natural gas prices in the area were to remain at $5/MMBtu, the sale would equate to more than $384 million in total gross revenues, MMS stated. Wyoming will receive nearly 50% of the revenues generated by the sale of gas from federal lands in the state.

Comstock Resources Inc. agreed to purchase oil and gas properties from SWEPI LP, an affiliate of Shell Exploration & Production, for $170 million. With the acquisition, Comstock will acquire 11,500 (7,600 net) acres of producing properties in the Dinn Ranch, Fandango, Rosita and Rosita East fields in Duval and Zapata counties in South Texas. The properties include 70 (43.3 net) producing wells that are currently producing 21.9 MMcf/d. Comstock estimates that the properties have net proved developed reserves of approximately 57.8 Bcf. In addition to the proved reserves, the Frisco, TX-based producer estimates that the properties could yield an additional 90 Bcf from future exploitation. The transaction is expected to close in December.

Shell’s U.S. energy trading arm, Coral Energy Holding LP, has agreed to buy essentially all of Spokane, WA-based Avista Corp.’s merchant energy operations that comprise Avista Energy Inc., the companies said. The value and terms of the sale will not be fully worked out until the closing, which is expected in the late second quarter or early third quarter of this year.

BP, ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil, Shell, and Walter Oil and Gas signed agreements Thursday with C. Stephen Allred, U.S. assistant secretary of Land and Minerals Management, that address the problem of missing price thresholds in deepwater Gulf of Mexico oil and gas leases that were issued in 1998 and 1999. Under the new agreements the producers will pay additional royalties on oil and gas produced under the leases. However, the payments will be made for production that started on Oct. 1, 2006.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is considering a proposal by several producers, including Anschultz, Shell Oil Co. and Ultra Petroleum Corp., to allow year-round drilling access in the Pinedale Anticline natural gas field of Wyoming. The 15- to 18-year operational proposal is focused on about 197,000 acres of mixed federal, state and private land south of Pinedale.

Share repurchases by the top six global integrated oil companies — ExxonMobil Corp., BP plc, Total SA, Chevron Corp., Royal Dutch Shell and ConocoPhillips — could total $40 billion in 2005, up 63% from the record $24.5 billion of buybacks in 2004, according to a study by energy consulting firm John S. Herold Inc. “Super” independents’ stock buybacks also more than tripled to $13 billion in 2005, up from $3.4 billion in 2004.

Coral Energy Resources, a Shell subsidiary, on Thursday became what may be one of the last of many energy trading companies to have settled charges by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) of false price reporting and attempted manipulation of the natural gas market. Coral paid a $30 million civil penalty in the settlement but neither admitted nor denied the charges.

Coral Energy Resources, a Shell subsidiary, on Thursday became what may be one of the last of many energy trading companies to have settled charges from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) of false price reporting and attempted manipulation of the natural gas market. Coral paid a $30 million civil penalty in the settlement but neither admitted nor denied the charges.

Stingray Pipeline Co. LLC’s gas pipe system, a joint venture of Shell Gas Transmission LLC and Enterprise Products Partners LP, has contracted with its first deep shelf natural gas customer in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). Stingray officials said the system will provide natural gas transportation services for Unocal’s Harvest deep shelf development, which is currently producing more than 45 MMcf/d. Unocal constructed a 12-inch gas pipe from the Harvest development to connect to Stingray’s 36-inch pipeline, which offers the producer five downstream takeaway pipeline options. Enterprise CEO O.S. “Dub” Andras said the Harvest field was the first deep shelf gas discovery in the GOM to connect to the Stingray system, but noted that Stingray also will be transporting gas from the deepwater Gunnison development. The Harvest discovery is located at West Cameron Block 44 in 30 feet of water. Unocal owns a 41% working interest and is the operator. The other owners include Marlin Energy Offshore LLC (formerly Duke Energy Hydrocarbons LLC), 37%; The Williams G. Helis Co. LLC, 20%; and Houston Energy LP, 2%.