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The diversified energy group has seen a “profound change in its market perception,” with players growing faster than ever before, benefiting from the deregulated power industry, expansion in telecommunications and bandwidth trading and emerging technologies, according to Dain Rauscher Wessels’ analyst Mark Easterbrook.

Aquila Energy has won a five-year weather hedge contract toserve the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, a move designed toprotect the California utility from the combined effects of lowprecipitation and the wide swings in electricity prices now facedby other communities in the state.

Evergreen Resources, the largest producer in the Raton Basin ofColorado, got a lot larger last week. The company bought 153 Bcf ofcoal-bed methane reserves in the basin from a subsidiary of KansasCity Power & Light for $176 million, or about $1.15/Mcf.

The current framework of regulation and legislation may beinadequate to ensure there is 30 Tcf of gas demand in 2010 and thatcould have dire environmental and economic consequences, the INGAAFoundation said last week in releasing a new report titledImplications of Reduced Gas Use on Emissions from Power Generation.

In its first major power sale from its still unfinished merchantenergy plant in Arizona, Calpine Corp. has entered into a five-yearpower sales agreement with the Imperial Irrigation District todeliver 150 MW of electricity from its South Point Energy Center tothe district’s Southern California customers beginning in May 2002.

What type of reserves cost comparatively little money toproduce, a few days to complete, have years of production growth inareas once thought to be depleted and offer nearly instant success?If you were thinking coal-bed methane wells, collect your $200 andadvance to Go.

The $270 million marriage of UtiliCorp United and St. Joseph Light & Power (SJLP) is on the rocks following an incident UtiliCorp said might be a breach of St. Joseph’s contract obligations under the merger agreement.

FERC issued a favorable environmental assessment on Central NewYork Oil & Gas Co.’s (CNYOG) Stagecoach Natural Gas StorageFacility, which is to be located near Binghamton, NY.

A close look at the status of the nation’s gas resources lastyear reveals a lethargic industry barely able to build reserves.However, last year was an improvement over the year prior. Dry gasreserve additions reversed the 2% decline in 1998 and grew lastyear by 2.1% to 167,406 Bcf in the United States, according to anAdvance Summary: U.S. Crude Oil, Natural Gas and Natural GasLiquids Reserves 1999 Annual Report by the Energy InformationAdministration. Reserve additions replaced 118% of gas production.It was the fifth time in the past six years that reserves havegrown.