Daily GPI

Joining the list of third quarter 2000 earnings success stories,Williams reported its third quarter net income more than quadrupledover last year’s figure for the same time period, from $28.1million ($0.06 per share) to $121.1 million ($0.27 per share). Thecompany attributed the growth to its fourth successive quarter ofyear-over-year earnings improvement within its energy businesses.

Koch Gateway will perform maintenance Tuesday on its 30-inchWest Line (Index 129) southwest of Houston from mile pole 137.34 tomile pole 148.60. Capacity southwest of the work may be reduced by100 MMcf/d that day, the pipeline said. Capacity through KochGateway’s Napoleonville (LA) Compressor Station has been cut by 100MMcf/d until further notice due to unscheduled repairs being madethere.

Traders correctly assumed prices would keep dropping Thursday,but many likely were surprised by how much the overall downtrendslowed. Except for some sizeable declines in the Rockies/PacificNorthwest, most points fell by about a nickel or less, and a fewregistered flat to up a smidgen.

With little in the way of fresh fundamental news, natural gasfutures traded mostly sideways yesterday as traders rested after atumultuous 10 days of trading activity. A modest gain in the promptmonth was more than offset by losses in each of the out months.November finished up 0.5 cents at $4.664 while the 12-month stripclosed 1.6 cents lower at $4.313.

Natural gas pipeline capacity appears “adequate” to meet mostpeak-day demands as the nation heads into the 2000-2001 winterheating season, assuming the weather is normal. But there are someareas where capacity constraints and bottleneck problems could cropup – most notably in the Northeast region, according to a newreport by the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

A revised auction process for firm capacity, described as moremarket responsive, on Kinder Morgan’s Natural Gas Pipeline Companyof America won approval from the Federal Energy RegulatoryCommission yesterday (RP97-431-009).

Within hours of a FERC vote yesterday ratifying proposed changesin its interruptible transportation (IT) queue, PG&E GasTransmission Northwest announced new procedures effective today.

The Michigan Public Service Commission has approved orders forDearborn, MI-based CMS Energy Corp. that authorize securitizationof $469 million in stranded electric utility costs, expand the gascustomer choice program and authorize accounting changes tomitigate future increases in the cost of natural gas.

The vice chairman and COO of Enron Corp.’s international divisionhas resigned, two months after the chair and CEO of the division wasapparently forced out. Joseph W. Sutton will leave Enron Nov. 1 topursue other opportunities, said the company. His boss, Rebecca Mark,resigned in August (see Daily GPI, Aug. 28).