Daily GPI

DTE Energy Co. announced earlier this week that it is closing upshop on its residential and small commercial marketing efforts, atleast for the time being. The Detroit, MI-based company’sderegulated energy marketing company, DTE Edison America, said itwill halt operations in New Jersey and Pennsylvania in May,effectively withdrawing DTE Energy from all deregulated massmarketing efforts.

While winter weather finally made an appearance in the Northeastand Midcontinent last Friday, major price movement in most marketareas did not. Sources in the Midcontinent and Northeast citedweather forecasts calling for major temperature warm-ups for thisweek as the major reason for the market’s inability to rise.

Even an abbreviated pre-holiday trading session at the New YorkMercantile Exchange gave traders no rest last Friday as the marketclawed its way higher from a “disappointing” open only to reverseright back down at the close. When all the dust had settled and theorders were tabulated, the March contract was off 3.4 cents for theday at $2.633.

With a relative whimper, not a bang, a major rate case forPacific Gas and Electric Co. ended last Thursday with Californiaregulators on a 3-2 vote giving the utility about one-third of whatit originally requested. The raise still is quite large, however,at $229 million/annually, including a 6% hike in gas rates. Thehike amounts to about another $20/year for the typical residentialcustomer. Electric rates were hiked by $136 million/year, but therewill be no change in those rates because of the ongoing rate freezethat’s been in effect since 1996 as part of the state’s electricindustry restructuring.

Energy East Corp. has announced the successful completion of itsmerger with Connecticut Energy Corp., the first of four New Englandutility acquisitions initiated by the New York-based company in1999.

The public meeting held by the Gas Industry Standards Board(GISB) last week to determine whether it should develop standardsfor retail gas and power, as well as wholesale power, was short onsolutions but big on questions.

El Paso Natural Gas last week denied accusations of NorthwestPipeline that it has routinely violated the confirmation andscheduling deadlines established by the Gas Industry StandardsBoard (GISB).

Until further notice, East Tennessee remains sealed at metersdownstream of Station 3311 (Glade Springs, VA) through SecondaryServices (IT, Secondary).

Phillips Petroleum Co. replaced 114% of its 1999 worldwideproduction at an average finding-and-development cost of $4.81/Boe.Excluding acquisitions and sales, Phillips replaced 103% of lastyear’s production.