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The platform and pipeline damage from Hurricane Ivan is proving more difficult to repair than some producers thought as recently as last week. The Minerals Management Service (MMS) said on Friday that although about 1 Bcf/d of the 1.8 Bcf/d of gas production currently shut in could return to service by the end of October, it may take much longer to restore the remaining 800 MMcf/d portion.

After making in August 2002 what were expected to be the last remaining organizational changes since it bought Columbia Energy Group in 2000 (see Daily GPI, Aug. 30, 2002), NiSource announced another major corporate restructuring last week that includes the internal promotion of six new leaders for its major utility companies.

Citing continuing wholesale price increases, even in these summer months, Spokane, WA-based Avista Corp. earlier this month filed a request to increase natural gas retail rates in four counties that its Avista Utilities serve in the southern end of Oregon. Avista said the influences of a national gas market were evident this year as eastern gas shortages and continuing low storage inventories for this time of year are influencing the prices it pays for gas in the West.

Despite the near total collapse of the merchant energy sector, some natural gas insiders are cautiously optimistic that the market ultimately will deal effectively with the current challenges it faces and new players eventually will fill the gap left by the former merchant energy “titans,” according to a recent study conducted by R. J. Rudden Associates Inc.

Effective with the start of Tuesday’s gas day, MRT is posting a System Protection Warning subject to these conditions: (1) MRT will not schedule any Main Line IT, AOR (authorized overrun) or imbalance volumes for delivery north of Glendale, AR; (2) firm volumes will be limited to their primary direction of flow; (3) MRT is not accepting short imbalance positions; and (4) shippers may not nominate supply from existing long imbalance positions. Saying it has capacity available on the East Line, MRT urged shippers who were relying on Main Line IT, AOR and/or imbalance volumes to re-source supply to the East Line or reduce applicable delivery volumes in order to avoid OFOs.

With refining margins down, production problems up and its Dynegy Inc. investment blown, ChevronTexaco Corp. reported a net loss of $904 million (85 cents/share) for the third quarter, compared to earnings of $1.27 billion ($1.19/share) for the same period a year ago. Total net charges were $2.07 billion, including the $1.55 billion Dynegy write-off.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Division of Regulatory Audits last week began an industry-wide audit of annual financial reports to determine why such a high number of jurisdictional natural gas and electricity companies reported negative balances in their asset (cash) accounts pertaining to subsidiary investments for 2001.

In an effort to strengthen its liquidity in these tumultuous times for the energy industry, Calpine Corp. said late last week that it has entered into an agreement to sell certain non-strategic Canadian oil and gas properties for $81 million (C$125 million). In addition, the San Jose, CA-based company secured $106 million in non-recourse project financing to give it the leverage to complete construction of its 300 MW Blue Spruce Energy Center in Aurora, CO, east of Denver.

In an effort to strengthen its liquidity in these tumultuous times for the energy industry, San Jose, CA-based Calpine Corp. said Thursday that it has entered into an agreement to sell certain non-strategic oil and gas properties for $81 million (C$125 million). Calpine inked the deal with NAL Resources on behalf of NAL Oil & Gas Trust and another institutional investor.