Updated

The too-much-of-a-good-thing story of natural gas continued Friday as analysts at Tudor, Pickering Holt & Co. updated their outlook to 2 Bcf/d of annual onshore supply growth, which far outstrips their 1 Bcf/d projection of normalized demand growth.

Analysts with Raymond James & Associates Inc. last week issued an updated exploration and production (E&P) capital expenditure (capex) survey, which indicates that spending should rise 25% this year over 2009. Many of the large caps in the survey, said the analysts, are positioned to ramp up onshore resource development, particularly the shales.

Analysts with Raymond James & Associates Inc. on Monday issued their updated exploration and production (E&P) capital expenditure (capex) survey, which indicates that spending will be up 25% this year over 2009. Many of the large caps in the survey, said the analysts, are positioned to ramp up onshore resource development, particularly the shales.

Analysts with Raymond James & Associates Inc. on Monday issued their updated exploration and production (E&P) capital expenditure (capex) survey, which indicates that spending will be up 25% this year over 2009. Many of the large caps in the survey, said the analysts, are positioned to ramp up onshore resource development, particularly the shales.

Xcel Energy filed with Colorado regulators for approval of a $52.7 million rate increase to cover the utility’s updated forecast of fuel and purchased energy prices for the second quarter of this year and an undercollection for the first quarter. It asked the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to make the increase effective April 1. Minneapolis-based Xcel said the electric commodity adjustment (ECA) filing is estimated to drive up residential and small business customer bills an average of 8%. The ECA portion of Xcel customers’ electric bills would increase to 3.73 cents/kWh in the second quarter, compared to 2.93 cents/kWh currently. For the typical residential customer, bills would increase by about $5.18 monthly to around $71.53. Small businesses face a monthly increase of $9.21, taking the average bill to more than $122. Costs associated with increase or decreases through the ECA are passed through on a dollar-per-dollar basis.

Xcel Energy filed with Colorado regulators for approval of a $52.7 million rate increase to cover the utility’s updated forecast of fuel and purchased energy prices for the second quarter of this year and an undercollection for the first quarter. It asked the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to make the increase effective April 1. Minneapolis-based Xcel said the electric commodity adjustment (ECA) filing is estimated to drive up residential and small business customer bills an average of 8%. The ECA portion of Xcel customers’ electric bills would increase to 3.73 cents/kWh in the second quarter, compared to 2.93 cents/kWh currently. For the typical residential customer, bills would increase by about $5.18 monthly to around $71.53. Small businesses face a monthly increase of $9.21, taking the average bill to more than $122. Costs associated with increase or decreases through the ECA are passed through on a dollar-per-dollar basis.

The updated reserves reporting rules for U.S. exploration and production (E&P) companies enacted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may prove a struggle for independents in choosing whether to be aggressive with their bookings versus a more conservative approach, particularly when booking proved undeveloped (PUD) locations, analysts said Thursday.

The updated reserves reporting rules enacted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for U.S. exploration and production (E&P) companies may prove a struggle for independents in choosing whether to be aggressive with their bookings versus a more conservative approach, particularly when booking proved undeveloped (PUD) locations, analysts said Thursday.

XTO Energy Inc. has completed its $4.2 billion acquisition of privately held Hunt Petroleum Corp. and has updated its natural gas and oil hedges through 2010. Hunt, which agreed to the transaction in June (see NGI, June 16), sold XTO total estimated proved reserves of 1.05 Tcfe, 62% proved developed. Production was estimated at 197 MMcf/d of gas, 8,500 b/d of oil and 2,300 b/d of natural gas liquids. XTO paid Hunt $2.6 billion in cash and provided about 23.5 million shares of XTO common stock. About 70% of the acquired properties are in East Texas and in central and northern Louisiana where XTO has stepped up its exploration activities. Another 28% of the reserves, both onshore and offshore, are along the Gulf Coast of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Nonoperating interests, reflecting more than 300,000 net acres of potential in the North Sea and the balance of proved reserves, also were conveyed in the deal. In addition, XTO gained about 15,000 net acres of leasehold in the Bakken Shale region of North Dakota. In conjunction with the transaction XTO added gas and oil hedges through 2010. For gas XTO hedged through December 1.45 Bcf/d at $8.79/Mcf.; total gas equivalent hedged through December is 1.75 Bcfe/d at $10.06/Mcfe. XTO hedged 1.185 Bcf/d at $9.59/Mcf for 2009; total gas equivalent hedged is 1.515 Bcfe/d at $11.97/Mcfe. And for 2010 XTO hedged 300 MMcf/d at $9.50/Mcf; total gas equivalent hedged is 450 MMcfe/d at $13.57/Mcfe.