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

**Office of Energy Assurance**

**ENERGY ASSURANCE DAILY**

**September 8, 2004**

**Highlights/Major Developments**

**Hurricane Frances Update from The Office of Energy Assurance Situation
Report**

To read Office of Energy Assurance's (OEA) latest Hurricane Frances
Situation Reports click the following link. Some highlights from the
latest report are included in this report.

[http://www.ea.doe.gov/pdfs/hurrfrances_sitrept_090804_1000.pdf](http://www.ea.doe.gov/hurricane_frances.html)

Hurricane Frances, now a tropical depression, continues to move north
and is depositing considerable rain in Georgia and the Carolinas where
the greatest threat continues to be flooding.

**ELECTRIC INFORMATION**

• Currently, some 1.488 million Florida customers are without power.
Sixteen percent of Florida's electricity customers remain without power.

> \- Florida Power and Light is reporting 813,600 customers remain
> without power as of 5:30 AM 9/8/04. About 81% of FPL customers now
> have power. Some 19% of customers remain without power.

1.  \- Progress Energy is reporting 310,000 customers without power from
    a peak of 832,898 on 9/6 as reported on the utility's website.
    Twenty-five percent of their customers remain without power.

    \- Tampa Electric Company is reporting 51,000 customer outages,
    approximately 8% of its customers. The company now estimates that it
    will restore power to all customers within three to five days, not
    including those who are inaccessible due to flooding or other
    damages that prevent electrical service.

    \- Municipal utilities are reporting a total of 144,565 customers
    (12%) without power.

    \- Cooperative utilities are reporting a total of 168,876 customers
    (20%) without power.

• Georgia Power has 78,000 customers without power and EMC has 52,000
customers without electricity.

• Alabama Power has restored power to nearly all customers. []{.mark}

[]{.mark}

**OIL AND GAS INFORMATION**

1.  • Terminals in the Port of Tampa have begun to replenish supplies of
    gasoline and diesel. The Port is operating with restrictions on
    vessels only while entering the channel. Companies indicating low
    supplies yesterday are receiving shipments.

    • Port of Jacksonville is now open. Port of Canaveral is still
    closed. []{.mark}

[]{.mark}

# STORM TRACK 

EA has begun planning for Hurricane Ivan, which may impact the
continental U.S. late this week. The storm currently has sustained winds
of 140 mph and is a Category 4 hurricane. An image of the current storm
path is available at:
<http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ftp/graphics/AT09/refresh/AL0904W+GIF/080318W.gif>
At 5 a.m. EDT, the hurricane's center was 210 miles west of Grenada and
was moving west at about 16 mph towards Jamaica and Cuba.

There are also many press reports on Hurricane (now Tropical Storm)
Frances. Here are links to some of them. The information reported in the
Energy Assurance Daily above does not come from press reports, but comes
from information collected from the Florida State Emergency Operations
Center and by other Federal, State and local officials monitoring and
coordinating response and restoration efforts. []{.mark}

<http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040908/85664_1.html> []{.mark}

<http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040908/clw051_1.html> []{.mark}

<http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040907/76073_1.html>

<http://www.energycentral.com/centers/news/daily/article.cfm?aid=5100233>

**Electricity**

**See Highlights / Major Developments for details (and links to
additional articles) on outages related to Hurricane Frances.**

**California Sees Record Power Demand, Blackout Averted**

California saw record-breaking demand for power on Tuesday but the
threat of a blackout in the wine country north of San Francisco was
allayed by the restoration of key power lines, which had been affected
by a wildfire. A blistering heat wave across the state prompted heavy
use of air conditioning systems and demand peaked at 45,164 megawatts,
breaking the previous record of 44,872 MW set on Aug. 11, the California
Independent System Operator said. Power officials had warned earlier
Tuesday that the Santa Rosa area, about 50 miles north of San Francisco,
faced the threat of a blackout later in the day with key transmission
lines in the area shutdown since Saturday due to a wildfire. ISO
spokesman Gregg Fishman said, however, the power lines were brought back
into service early Tuesday afternoon, helping to diminish the blackout
threat.

## Reuters, September 7, 2004, 2023

## PG&E Works to Restore Power to 6,000 San Francisco Customers

PG&E Corp.\'s Pacific Gas & Electric unit, California\'s largest
utility, is working to restore power to about 6,000 San Francisco
customers after an underground cable failed, cutting off electricity at
about 10:25 a.m. local time. "An underground transformer, which converts
high voltage to a lower voltage failed earlier \[Wednesday\]," said a
spokesman for PG&E.

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 1429

## Fermi 2 Nuclear Plant Restarted After Repairs

Detroit Edison's 1,139-Megawatt Fermi 2 nuclear-power plant in Newport,
Michigan increased electricity production to 95% (up from zero from the
previous report). The plant auto shut on Friday at 11:45 p.m. central
time, after a voltage regulator to the main generator failed.

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 0825

## Oconee 1 Nuke Plant at Full Power After Repairs

Duke Energy Corp.'s 846-Megawatt Oconee 1 nuclear-power plant in Seneca,
South Carolina increased electricity production to 100% (up from 45%
from the previous report). The plant reduced power on Saturday to
perform unscheduled piping inspections. The plant reached full power
earlier Wednesday.

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 1058

## Baltimore Gas and Electric Company to Provide 

## Additional Assistance to Southern Utilities

Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE), a subsidiary of Constellation
Energy, announced Tuesday that it is making available additional
personnel and equipment to assist Florida utilities with their ongoing
response to Hurricane Frances. Nearly 75 BGE overhead line and support
personnel, along with roughly 30 vehicles, will be departing early
Wednesday morning for Augusta, Ga., where they will provide restoration
assistance to Georgia Power. It is expected that upon completing work in
Georgia, the BGE crews will be redeployed to Florida to assist with
additional restoration activities.

PRNewswire, September 7, 2004, 1744

<http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040907/phtu041_1.html>

**Alert System Damage Idles Reactors on Hutchinson Island, Fla., Nuclear
Plant**

The Hutchinson Island, Florida nuclear-power plant is built to withstand
195-mph winds, but damage to the island's system to alert residents of
potential radioactive leaks kept the plant closed Monday. The plant,
operated by Florida Power & Light, is expected to reopen later this week
after officials make sure safety measures are in place, said FPL's
nuclear-communications manager. An evaluation Monday found that six of
the system's 89 sirens suffered minor damage from heavy winds and rain.
The sirens are meant to alert everyone within a 10-mile radius of the
plant of danger. The nuclear plant on the island generates enough
electricity every year for 500,000 homes.
<http://www.energycentral.com/centers/news/daily/article.cfm?aid=5100112>

<http://pro.energycentral.com/professional/news/power/news_article.cfm?id=5100112>

**Petroleum**

#  

## OPEC Says It Can Raise Output Capacity 1 Mln B/D

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which supplies a
third of the world\'s crude oil, can raise production capacity by 1
million b/d by year-end, the group\'s President Purnomo Yusgiantoro
said. The producer group\'s spare capacity is currently between 1
million and 1.5 million b/d, he said. Purnomo later said he expects oil
production in Iraq, the world\'s third-largest holder of oil reserves,
to rise to 3 million b/d from about 2 million barrels now.

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 0116

## 

## Progress Energy Announces Temporary Suspension of Synthetic Fuel Production

Progress Energy announced Wednesday that it has temporarily suspended
production at some of its synthetic fuel facilities. Although
year-to-date production has occurred according to plan, potential costs
associated with the recent hurricanes have necessitated that the company
reevaluate its production levels for the remainder of 2004. In prior
years, adjustments to production levels have typically occurred during
the fourth quarter. However, due to the potential financial impacts
associated with the hurricanes, production levels are under review
earlier than usual.

PRNewswire, September 8, 2004, 1312

# 

## Petroleos Venezuela Stops Shipments From El Palito Refinery, 

## May Reopen La Isla Refinery Thursday

Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state oil company, said it suspended
shipments from its El Palito refinery as a safety precaution as
Hurricane Ivan approaches. At least two cargos are affected, a company
spokesman said from El Palito, which is located on the coastline of the
central industrial state of Carabobo. The refinery continues to operate
normally, processing about 140,000 b/d. A decision to close the refinery
will be made later Wednesday, depending on the forecast trajectory of
Ivan, the spokesman said. The company also said it may reopen idled
units at its La Isla refinery in Curacao as early as Thursday because
Ivan will probably miss the island. La Isla had been processing about
196,000 b/d of crude before the shutdown.

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 0847

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 1218

**Natural Gas**

**Trinidad and Tobago Resumes LNG Exports**

Trinidad and Tobago, the top supplier of liquefied natural gas to the
U.S., resumed shipments of the fuel after suspending them yesterday for
Hurricane Ivan. The first tanker left the country\'s Atlantic LNG Co.
plant this morning, said an Atlantic spokeswoman. Atlantic LNG is the
island country\'s sole LNG producer. "We suspended shipments for less
than 24 hours as a precaution," she said.

Bloomberg, September 8, 2004, 1301

**Other News**

Nothing to report.

**Energy Prices**

+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
|                               | **Latest  | **Week    | **Year     |
|                               | (         | Ago**     | Ago**      |
|                               | 9/8/04)** |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **CRUDE OIL**                 | 42.77     | 43.89     | 28.85      |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **West Texas Intermediate     |           |           |            |
| US**                          |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Barrel                     |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **NATURAL GAS**               | 4.69      | 5.02      | 4.82       |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **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