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Despite the arrival of another severe winter storm — this onein the Midcontinent — the majority of spot points leaned to thedownside Thursday.

Statoil Energy’s sale of 1.1 Tcf of gas reserves and 6,500 wellsin the Appalachian Basin to Equitable Resources earlier this monthfor $630 million was the first of three possible transactions, aspokeswoman said last week. The latter two, which would include thecompany’s top-30 trading operations, and growing power developmentarm, are expected to involve an eastern-U.S. electric utility buyerand take place before March, according to one inside source.

The company began moving its Houston operations to its Alexandria headquarterslast week in preparation for closing down the Houston office. The Houstonmarketing and trading group is expected to be operating at least throughthe end of the month and plans to come up with a transition plan to ensureservice will not be disrupted.

Questar Pipeline Co. filed an application with FERC this week tobuild a 75.6-mile, 272,000 Dth/d pipeline loop running fromnortheastern Utah to north central Utah. The project, called MainLine (M.L.) No. 104, would cost more than $80.8 million and loop aportion of Questar’s existing M.L. No. 40 and the entirety of M.L.No. 41. It would extend from a coal-seam reserve in the area ofPrice, UT to interconnections with the its own Payson Citygate andalso potentially Kern River. Questar requested the Commission issuean order authorizing construction no later than August.

The Independent Petroleum Association of America came outstrongly against a tax proposal presented earlier this week byDemocratic presidential candidate Bill Bradley that would do awaywith several loopholes currently benefiting oil and gas producers.

The Independent Petroleum Association of America came outstrongly against a proposal presented earlier this week byDemocratic presidential candidate Bill Bradley that would do awaywith several tax loopholes currently benefiting oil and gasproducers.

Dynegy Inc. announced earlier this week that the date of itsproposed merger with Illinova Corp. has been temporarily postponedbecause certain power plant sales to El Paso Energy will takelonger to close than expected. The company had planned on finishingthe merger Jan. 4. Now, Dynegy is pushing back its projected dateof close until later in the month.

El Paso Natural Gas may have gotten the industry’s largest Christmas bonus last week. Its announcement two weeks ago that it recontracted all of its California-bound capacity for $37.5 million was a bit premature and a little understated. As it turned out, Enron North America Corp. upped the ante last week for 1.25 Bcf/d of firm transportation capacity on the pipeline by $8 million following a four-day open season.

El Paso Natural Gas may have gotten the industry’s largestChristmas bonus last week. Its announcement two weeks ago that itrecontracted all of its California-bound capacity for $37.5 millionwas a bit premature and a little understated. As it turned out,Enron North America Corp. upped the ante last week for 1.25 Bcf/dof firm transportation capacity on the pipeline by $8 millionfollowing a four-day open season.