Venture

A new “dream team” of companies formed last week appears to havemore than enough market muscle and expertise to succeed whereothers have failed in the retail energy market. Enron Corp., IBMand America Online have launched an ambitious plan to build a majornational retail energy company with IBM as back office manager,Enron as energy supplier, and AOL as the key link to the smallcustomer marketplace.

ECONnergy Energy Co., a competitive energy services providerthat serves the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey andConnecticut, gained financial fuel yesterday with a $15 millionRevolving Enterprise Value Loan from RFC Capital Corp. – a boostexpected to drive ECONnergy’s plans to become an energy alternativeleader in the Northeast.

Duke Energy Gas Transmission has named Tom O’Connor, TheopolisHoleman, Dorothy Ables and Richard Kruse to new positions as seniorvice presidents. This new market-oriented executive team willreport to Robert B. Evans, president of Duke Energy GasTransmission, and will be responsible for the management of DukeEnergy’s interstate natural gas pipelines.

MCN Energy Group Inc. completed the previously announced sale ofits share of the Midland Cogeneration Venture Limited Partnership(MCV) in Michigan. Subsidiaries of Coastal bought MCN’s 23% interestin MCV for an undisclosed amount said to be near book value. MCV wasdesignated as a Qualifying Facility (QF) under the federal PublicUtility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, or PURPA. PURPA requiresutilities to purchase power from QFs at the utilities’ avoided cost ofproducing power. MCN is selling its interests in three other QFs inanticipation of its pending merger with DTE Energy Co. (see Daily GPI,Oct. 6).

BC Gas Inc. and Invensys Energy Metering, a gas metering andservices company, announced the formation of a new meter managementjoint venture yesterday called Measurement Solutions International.The companies said MSI is positioned to manage the metering assetsand services of gas, electric and water utilities that are lookingto strengthen or divest the measurement functions embedded in theirsystems as they refine their core competencies at a time ofderegulation, growing competition and converging utility deliverysystems. MSI’s goal is to afford utilities efficiencies inmeasurement management by spreading the costs of equipment,maintenance, services and logistics over a larger user-base. Formulti-utilities, MSI offers single-source management of gas,electric and water measurement needs. MSI said it also brings theresources necessary for utilities to apply new technologies toenhance their operations. MSI can also assist utility clients indealing with state regulatory commissions on issues associated withmeasurement practices, standards and statistical samplingtechniques.

Southern Company Energy Marketing (SCEM), the energy trading andmarketing joint venture of Southern Energy Inc. and VastarResources, Inc., has named Gary J. Morsches president. Currentlysenior vice president and COO, Morsches will have responsibilityfor all of SCEM’s commercial and administrative functions. He willoversee the trading, marketing, asset management, structuring,research and human resources functions for the company. MarceFuller, previously SCEM’s CEO, was named president and CEO ofSouthern Energy in July.

Rio Bravo Energy, a joint venture between Tidelands Oil &Gas Corp., a Texas-based producer and Hudson SVD, a natural gasgathering and marketing company, announced the formation of SonoraPipeline yesterday. Sonora will own and operate a 53-mile gatheringsystem located in Dimmit and Zavala counties, TX. This line will beinterconnected with Rio Bravo’s Pena Creek Gathering System, whichservices the Chittim Gas Processing Plant recently acquired by RioBravo from Conoco. The plant is a propane refrigeration plant witha nominal capacity of 5 MMcf/d and a liquid fractionation train.The Pena Creek Gathering System which serves the Plant consists of15 miles of gathering and compression facilities.

El Paso Energy’s Tennessee Gas Pipeline and CNG’s CNG Transmission announced an open season for their joint venture, the Atlantic Alliance Project, which started last week and will extend to Thursday, Sept. 30. Shippers will be asked to submit binding precedent agreements for service commencing November 2001 as part of the open season.

El Paso Energy’s Tennessee Gas Pipeline and CNG’s CNGTransmission announcedan open season for their joint venture, theAtlantic Alliance Project, begins today and will extend toThursday, Sept. 30. Shippers will be asked to submit bindingprecedent agreements for service commencing November 2001 as partof the open season.