Wake

In the wake of a well blowout and fire that burned for months inthe oil/gas saturated area between Bakersfield and the Elk Hillspetroleum reserve, a flood of small and medium-size Canadianbackers have moved into this old production region 100 miles northof Los Angeles, betting that new significant pools of natural gascan be found with deep-drilling below 15,000 feet.

In the wake of last year’s oil bust, energy industry lenders arestill keeping a tighter grip on their money. However indicationsare some banks and investors are starting again to look for placesto put capital in the energy patch.

In the wake of last year’s oil bust, energy industry lenders arestill keeping a tighter grip on their money. However indicationsare banks and others are looking for places to put capital in theenergy patch.

BP Amoco added another 3,000 to the heap of 7,000 job cutsalready announced in the wake of the merger of British Petroleumand Amoco and in the midst of depressed oil and gas prices. Thenewest job cuts will be worldwide, and it is not yet known how manywill be in the United States. Last week the company also announcedreplacement cost operating profit for 1998 of $6,437 million, off39% from $10,583 in 1997.

In the wake of a recent court ruling overturning FERC on a keyissue in the El Paso Natural Gas rate settlement, the Commissionyesterday in an unrelated case spelled out the standards andprocedures it follows in settlement cases where contested issuesare raised.

ANR Pipeline has yet to decide whether to proceed with expansionof its Eugene Island system in the Gulf of Mexico in the wake of aFERC order upholding a previous decision that approved the projectbut put ANR at risk for its cost. “I think all I can say at thispoint is we’re continuing to review the order and consider ouroptions,” an ANR spokesman said Friday.

In the wake of last week’s Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC)order on upstream unbundling, an appeal filed Thursday by OklahomaNatural Gas (ONG) promises to at least put a damper on upstreamcompetition and possibly delay it while the case winds through thecourt.

Cinergy Corp. is reorganizing its power and gas tradingoperations in the wake of former President J. Wayne Leonard’sdeparture to Entergy Corp. Cinergy has named Madeleine W. Ludlow,currently vice president and chief financial officer, to be the newpresident of Cinergy Capital and Trading and announced Michael J.Cyrus, an executive with Electric Clearinghouse, will becomeexecutive vice president, overseeing power trading operations.