Strategic

The Williams Cos. warned Tuesday in its annual report with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that limited access to capital due to its non-investment-grade credit status and insufficient cash flow from operations to pay debt obligations make it imperative that the company sell its previously announced $2.25 billion in additional assets this year.

Southwestern Energy Co. on Tuesday closed the sale of its Mid-continent oil and gas properties in Oklahoma for $26.9 million. The non-strategic assets were sold to an unnamed private company.

New York City-based Caminus Corp., a leading provider of software and strategic consulting services to energy market participants worldwide, announced Tuesday that it has registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed underwritten public offering of 3,370,000 shares of its common stock. Of the total, the company will be offering 1,500,000 shares, with the remaining shares offered by certain selling stockholders. The registration statement also covers an additional 505,500 shares that will be subject to an option granted to the underwriters for over-allotments, if any. The company currently has 17.9 million common shares outstanding. The managing underwriters of the offering are Banc of America Securities LLC, Robertson Stephens and Wachovia Securities. Caminus also said late Tuesday that a number of leading energy utilities, producers, pipelines, gas and power marketers, physical and financial traders, and integrated energy companies have licensed software spanning all of the company’s product lines during the fourth quarter of 2001. Customers included Eni S.p.A., Hess Energy Trading Co. LLC, Nicor Enerchange LLC, RWE Trading Americas Inc., Sequent Energy Management LP. and Prior Energy. In addition, the company said that a lot of existing customers, including American Electric Power Service Corp. and PG&E Gas Transmission Corp., licensed additional software during the fourth quarter.

Gas storage is a strategic asset for any energy portfolio, more critical than it has ever been, as the volatile power market becomes one of the gas industry’ fastest growing customer bases, a panel of natural gas, power and pipeline executives said Wednesday. Speaking at Ziff Energy Group’s North American Gas Storage Conference in Houston, panelists said that despite the current economic downturn and low commodity prices, natural gas storage has become a critical component for all facets of the energy delivery business.

CMS Energy announced a major reorganization plan that includes a $2.4 billion sale of its non-strategic international power generation and distribution assets. The sales are expected to strengthen its balance sheet, provide more predictable earnings and lower its business risk by focusing its future business growth primarily on its Michigan utility, interstate pipeline assets and energy trading operations in North America. However, the transactions will have a significant negative short-term impact on net income, forcing a $613 million asset write-down and a third quarter net loss of $569 million. Investors pushed down the company’s stock price by more than 2% in trading Friday.

CMS Energy announced a major reorganization plan that includes a $2.4 billion sale of its non-strategic international power generation and distribution assets. The sales are expected to strengthen its balance sheet, provide more predictable earnings and lower its business risk by focusing its future business growth primarily on its Michigan utility, interstate pipeline assets and energy trading operations in North America. However, the transactions will have a significant negative short-term impact on net income, forcing a $613 million asset write-down and a third quarter net loss of $569 million. Investors pushed down the company’s stock price by 3% in early trading Friday.

U.S. energy trader Dynegy saw its second quarter income rise 60% as electricity and natural gas prices surged in North America, but as important, CEO Chuck Watson said last week he expects to see the Houston-based company continue to profit, despite sagging energy prices. Watson told analysts during a conference call that Dynegy’s capital investments are “setting up our success for the future,” reiterating that the “strategy has always been about being prepared.”

U.S. energy trader Dynegy saw its second quarter income rise 60% as electricity and natural gas prices surged in North America, but as important, CEO Chuck Watson said Tuesday he expects to see the Houston-based company continue to profit, despite sagging energy prices. Watson told analysts during a conference call that Dynegy’s capital investments are “setting up our success for the future,” reiterating that the “strategy has always been about being prepared.”

In a strategic realignment of business operations, the board of directors of KeySpan Corp., the company announced that Robert J. Fani has been elected president, KeySpan Energy Services and Supply, Wallace P. Parker Jr. has been elected president, KeySpan Energy Delivery, and Steven L. Zelkowitz has been named executive vice president and general counsel. “The new positions will enable us to implement our growth strategy and are consistent with the evolution of our organizational structure into regulated and unregulated businesses,” said CEO Robert B. Catell. “To accomplish this, our unregulated business activities will be combined into a new business unit, KeySpan Energy Services and Supply, while our regulated gas and electric business will be combined under KeySpan Energy Delivery.” the company reported that Fani and Zelkowitz will report directly to Catell, while Parker will report to Craig G. Matthews, vice chairman and COO. In addition, Catell, Matthews, Fani and Parker will compose a newly formed office of the chairman, which will focus on corporate strategy and develop a leadership team to position the company for the future.