![](media/image1.jpeg){width="8.5in" height="3.5027777777777778in"}U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

**Office of Energy Assurance**

**ENERGY ASSURANCE DAILY**

**January 6, 2005**

**Electricity**

**FirstEnergy Crews Restore Service to 122,000 of 237,000 Customers
Affected by Ice Storm**\
A winter ice storm in the region has taken out electric service to some
237,000 customers of FirstEnergy\'s Ohio Edison and the Cleveland
Electric Illuminating Company subsidiaries. As of 11:30 a.m. today,
crews are responding to more than 3,200 downed wire calls that are the
result primarily of ice-coated branches and trees falling into the
wires. Since the storm began, repairs have been made at hundreds of
locations, restoring power to more than 122,000 customers.
<http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050106/cgth060_1.html?printer=1>

**Investigators Find Four Safety Violations at Power Plant in Phoenix\
**Operators of the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station west of Phoenix
failed to properly maintain a key safety system at the power plant. The
four-month-long investigation by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission cites
four safety violations related to the emergency cooling systems for
three nuclear reactors at the plant. However, the N-R-C says the
violations have been corrected and do not represent a current safety
concern.

<http://www.kvoa.com/global/story.asp?s=2771970&ClientType=Printable>

# Exelon's 1,116 MW Peach Bottom 2 Nuke Returns to Full Power

In Pennsylvania, Exelon\'s Peach Bottom 2 nuke returned to full power by
early Thursday, up from 73 percent on Wednesday following a rod pattern
exchange.

Reuters, 1331 January 6, 2005

# FirstEnergy's 1,320 MW Perry Nuke Shut

In Ohio, FirstEnergy shut the Perry nuke due to a recirculation pump
trip. This was the second time in two weeks FirstEnergy had to shut the
unit due to a problem with the recirculation pumps. A company spokesman
said they were ready to restart the reactor but were holding off to
further investigate the cause of the shutdown.

Reuters, 1331 January 6, 2005

# PG&E Calif. 1,100 MW Diablo Canyon Nuke Unit 1 at 50 Percent Power

San Francisco-based energy holding company PG&E Corp.\'s 1,100-megawatt
unit 1 at the Diablo Canyon nuclear station in California dipped to 50
percent of capacity by early Thursday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission said in its power reactor status report. On Wednesday, the
unit was operating at full power.

Reuters, 0756 January 6, 2005

# TXU's 750 MW Monticello Unit 3 Shut

TXU shut the 750 MW Unit 3 at the Monticello coal-fired station this
week to repair a boiler tube leak. The unit was expected to restart
either on Friday or Saturday, according to reports filed with state
regulators.

Reuters, 1425 January 6, 2005

**Petroleum**

# ConocoPhillips starts oil production at US Gulf\'s Magnolia

ConocoPhillips started initial oil production at its Magnolia project in
the Gulf of Mexico last month, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday. \"We
have one well online now, producing about 10,000 barrels per day,\" said
a company spokeswoman about the more than \$600 million development. She
said oil output is expected to be about 35,000 bpd by the end of the
year.

Reuters, 1412 January 6, 2005

# Iraq Attacks Delay Restart of Oil Exports From North 

Iraq, holder of the world\'s third-largest oil reserves, said persistent
attacks against pipelines are delaying resumption of oil exports from
northern fields after sabotage halted flows three weeks ago. A pipeline
near Kirkuk was set on fire by an explosion on Dec. 20, cutting supplies
to Turkey, Agence France-Presse reported, citing an Iraqi security
official it didn\'t identify. The line is linked to local oil refineries
and depots, as well as Turkey\'s Ceyhan port, which ships about 10
percent of Iraq\'s exports.

Bloomberg News, 0958 January 6, 2005

# 

# Shell Regains 22,000-Barrel Daily Output in Nigeria 

Royal Dutch/Shell Group said it resumed oil production at two Nigerian
pumping stations, regaining about a fifth of the output that was shut
last month because of local protests. The Santa Barbara and Belema
pumping stations reopened today, restoring 22,000 barrels a day. Four
others \-- Ekulama I, Ekulama II, Awoba North and Egbema \-- remain
shut. Daily output lost to shutdowns is now 92,000 barrels, down from
114,000 yesterday.

Bloomberg News, 0921 January 6, 2005

# Natural Gas

# Egypt Will Start Natural-Gas Exports to the U.S. in March

Egypt will start exporting natural gas to the U.S. in March as the
Middle Eastern country aims to boost revenue from energy sales amid
rising demand worldwide. Egypt\'s first gas shipments to the U.S. will
come from the country\'s first gas liquefaction plant in the northern
city of Damietta, operated by Spain\'s Union Fenosa Gas, the official
MENA news agency cited Egyptian Petroleum Minister Sameh Fahmy as saying
after a meeting with U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham today in
Cairo.

Bloomberg News, 1132 January 6, 2005

**Other News**

**St. Louis-based Peabody Energy to close Colorado coal mine**

Peabody Energy Co. plans to close the Seneca coal mine in northwestern
Colorado by the end of the year, affecting 100 employees. The mine\'s
annual output of 1.6 million tons serves the nearby Hayden generating
station, a power plant operated by Xcel Energy\'s Denver- based Public
Service Company of Colorado.

The Denver Post
<http://www.energycentral.com/centers/news/daily/article.cfm?aid=5378176>

<http://pro.energycentral.com/professional/news/power/news_article.cfm?id=5378176>

**Energy Prices**

+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
|                               | **Latest  | **Week    | **Year     |
|                               | (         | Ago**     | Ago**      |
|                               | 1/6/05)** |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **CRUDE OIL**                 | 45.51     | 43.36     | 33.54      |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **West Texas Intermediate     |           |           |            |
| US**                          |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Barrel                     |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **NATURAL GAS**               | 5.79      | 6.02      | 7.04       |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **Henry Hub**                 |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Million Btu                |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+

> Source: Reuters

**This Week in Petroleum** from the Energy Information Administration
(EIA)

[*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp*](http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp)

Updated on Wednesdays

**Weekly Petroleum Status Report** from EIA**\
**[*http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/wpsr.html*](http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/wpsr.html)

Updated after 1:00pm (Eastern Time) on Wednesdays

**Natural Gas Weekly Update** from EIA

[*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/ngw/ngupdate.asp*](http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/ngw/ngupdate.asp)

Updated after 2:00 pm (Eastern Time) on Thursdays