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Bellevue, WA-based Puget Energy Wednesday reported a 2 cents/share earnings increase for the third quarter compared to the same period last year, but its year-to-date results were down compared to the same period in 2001. The company attributed the decrease to the first quarter of this year when its principal utility subsidiary, Puget Sound Energy, was undercollected in terms of retail rates lagging behind 2001’s skyrocketing wholesale electricity prices.

Pacific Gas & Electric is allowing zero tolerance for positive imbalances in a systemwide Stage 2 high-inventory OFO declared for Thursday. Penalties are $1/Dth.

In March, Aquila said that it would sell up to $500 million in assets to ensure liquidity, but CEO Robert Green gave the higher figure during a conference call with analysts and investors. He did not provide details on what assets may be put on the sales block, but the company had about $12.3 billion in assets at the end of March.

Enron Corp., the world’s leading energy trader, reported a large third quarter loss Tuesday, recording non-recurring charges of $1.01 billion against the cost of several failed investments, including segments of its retail energy sales, broadband and water ventures. Before charges, however, profits for the company were up 35%, and Chairman Kenneth Lay attempted to assuage investor worries by assuring analysts that the third quarter charges were part of a plan “to clear away issues that have clouded the performance and earnings potential of our core energy businesses.”

Despite a substantial amount of near-winter weather lingering in the Midwest and Northeast market areas, softer cash prices Wednesday showed conclusively that the early-week rally had run out of steam. A few scattered points were flat to barely lower, but otherwise losses ranged up to about 30 cents at the PG&E citygate. Most decreases were around a dime or less, however.

Monday’s huge surge of cash bullishness came to a near-standstill Tuesday, and several NGI sources indicated they expect a gradual price slide to begin Wednesday. Other than moderate increases in the Northeast, Rockies/Pacific Northwest and California and stronger gains in Western Canada, most points were flat to less than a nickel higher Tuesday (a few scattered small declines also were part of the mix).

After checking higher to notch a new, 16-month high for the second straight session, natural gas futures shuffled lower in two distinct surges of commercial selling Tuesday afternoon. At $4.247, the November contract closed nearly a dime off its $4.34 high and 5.6 cents lower for the session.

Aquila Inc. on Tuesday completed the sale its natural gas storage assets in the United Kingdom to an undisclosed energy trader based there for US$34.9 million, bringing its already announced asset sales that are closed or pending to $911 million total.

As long as TXU Corp. can deleverage itself and lower its debt-to-capital ratio in a “fairly rapid fashion,” Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (S&P) analyst Judith Waite believes the company shows strong support for an investment-grade rating.