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Independent producers plan to present a resolution later thismonth to congressional lawmakers and others in the federalgovernment, asking them to support measures to lift the oil and gasindustry from its currently depressed state.

The energy industry has begun the “last days of the age of oil,”with a cast of cleaner fuels waiting to take center stage,according to ARCO CEO Mike R. Bowlin.

The energy industry has begun the “last days of the age of oil,”with a cast of cleaner fuels waiting to take center stage,according to ARCO CEO Mike R. Bowlin.

The gas market actually did pretty well last year considering itwas the warmest year on record, but it may take an ice age toreduce the surplus storage gas bequeathed to 1999. Spotdelivered-to-pipeline gas prices in the U.S. averaged $2.02/MMBtuin 1998, down 41 cents, or 17%, from 1997. Some points fared betterthan others and the West generally did better than the East. Canadaactually came out ahead.

The gas market actually did pretty well last year considering itwas the warmest year on record, but it may take an ice age toreduce the surplus storage gas bequeathed to 1999. Spotdelivered-to-pipeline gas prices averaged $2.02/MMBtu in 1998, down41 cents, or 17%, from 1997. Some points faired better than othersand the West generally did better than the East. Canada actuallycame out ahead.

Halliburton Co. said it plans to take a $35 million pretaxcharge this quarter to lay off an additional 2,750 employees fromits Energy Services Group. Job cuts are a response to low oilprices and oil company customers’ plans to sharply reduce spendingin 1999.

KN Energy said it will take a fourth quarter charge as 1998earnings will fall short of market expectations due to record warmweather during November and most of December, plus a decline innatural gas processing marginsto about 1 cent, and lowertransportation revenues.

Shell Chairman Mark Moody-Stuart said yesterday the companyplans to sell 40% of it chemicals business and take a relatedfourth quarter $4.5 billion after-tax charge. He described it as”clearing out the cupboard.” It is the first part of a radicalrestructuring of the company that is designed to achieve $2.5billion in annual cost savings by 2001 and to create greaterefficiency during an extended period of low crude prices andincreasing competition because of consolidation among its peers.

It didn’t take long to eclipse what had been the lowest-everprices for a December date recorded by Daily GPI, and the new lowmarks weren’t even close to the ones seen earlier in the week.Continuing record warmth in the eastern two-thirds of the nationyielded record low gas prices for this time of year. Gulf Coastnumbers were almost a dollar under December indexes only three daysinto the month.