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The Colorado Oil and Gas Commission says the state will issuemore than 1,400 permits for oil and gas drilling before the end ofthis year. In Wyoming, coal bed methane production has never beenmore active. The Rockies haven’t seen this much exploration sinceLewis and Clark were here. Today, the interest is underground, ascompanies map strategies to tap energy reserves.

Today began with one more operational cross-border natural gaspipeline in place than there was last month, as Coral Energy andMexico-based Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) announced yesterday thecompletion of their 104-mile pipeline linking the Pemex pipelinesystem at Arguelles in the Mexico state of Tamaulipas, with Coral’spipeline system on the King Ranch in South Texas.

Producers are in for a very profitable year if recent third quarterearnings reports are any indication. Following on EOG’s announcementTuesday of a 250% earnings hike, Occidental Petroleum Corp. (Oxy)Wednesday reported a three-fold increase in third quarter earningscompared to the same period last year, going from $126 million ($0.35per share) in 3Q99 to $402 million ($1.09 per share) in 3Q2000 (seeDaily GPI, Oct. 18).

High prices and increased production led to a blockbuster thirdquarter for PanCanadian Petroleum. The company’s cash flow morethan doubled to $654 million, or $2.59 per share, up from $303million, or $1.21 per share, during the same period last year. Netincome increased 194% to $297 million, or $1.17 per share comparedto $101 million, or $0.40 per share.

Nevada’s governor last week delayed opening the state’selectricity market until no later than Sept. 1, 2001, choosing toestablish a bipartisan statewide committee to develop a new energypolicy for the state.

AGL Resources Inc. has closed on its $533 million acquisition ofVirginia Natural Gas, more than two months ahead of schedule andprior to the start of the winter heating season.

In the hodgepodge of trading for split weekend periods Friday,little trend was evident other than the October aftermarket wasstarting out below indexes in nearly all cases. However, a fellownamed Keith could play a large part in reversing the generallysofter market as early as today.

TXU Energy Services inked a five-year, $300 million energyservices contract to provide natural gas, electric and riskmanagement services to more than 80 of John Deere’s North Americanfacilities. TXU Energy Services will also help to developenergy-efficiency improvement projects for John Deere’s NorthAmerican operations.

The first merchant electric generating plant proposed followingindustry restructuring in California more than three years agofinessed a crucial court challenge Tuesday and moved toward aconstruction start-up early next year on a $300-350 million, 700 MWplant on a former Air Force base in the high desert 75 milesnortheast of Los Angeles.