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Exhibit 10.1

                                                                Contract #3147

                      TRANSPORTATION SERVICE AGREEMENT
                            For Rate Schedule FSS

This STORAGE SERVICE AGREEMENT, hereinafter referred to as "Agreement," made
and entered into as of the 11th day of February, 2002, by and between
Mississippi River Transmission Corporation, a Delaware corporation,
hereinafter called "MRT," and Laclede Gas Company, a Missouri corporation,
hereinafter called "Customer."

In consideration of the mutual covenants herein contained, the parties
hereto agree that MRT shall provide natural gas storage service for
Customer, on a firm basis, and Customer shall furnish, or cause to be
furnished, to MRT natural gas for such storage during the term hereof, at
the rates and on the terms and conditions hereinafter provided and attached
hereto.

1)        TERM

          Effective Date:                May 1, 2002
          Primary Term End Date:         April 30, 2007

This Agreement is binding as of February 11, 2002, and shall continue for a
primary term ending April 30, 2007; provided, however, that this Agreement
shall continue to be in effect thereafter unless and until terminated by
either MRT or Customer by written notice to the other delivered at least
twelve (12) months prior to the date of intended termination.

2)        QUANTITIES

          Maximum Stored Quantity (MSQ): 23,550,243 Dth

          (Based on a heat content of 1,020 Btu per Cubic Foot)

          Maximum Daily Withdrawal Quantity (MDWQ): 410,231 Dth

3)        RATE

Service hereunder shall be provided pursuant to Rate Schedule FSS. Customer
shall pay, or cause to be paid, to MRT each month for all services provided
hereunder the maximum applicable rate and any other charges specified in
MRT's FERC Gas Tariff, Third Revised Volume No. 1, as on file and in effect
from time to time, for services rendered hereunder, unless otherwise agreed
in writing by MRT and Customer.

<TABLE>
<S>       <C>                                  <C>                              <C>
4)        ADDRESSES
          For Notices to Customer:             For Bills to Customer:
          Steven F. Mathews                    Gas Accounting
          Laclede Gas Company                  Laclede Gas Company
          720 Olive Street                     720 Olive Street, 13th Floor
          St. Louis, MO  63101                 St. Louis, MO 63101
          Telephone: (314) 516-8585            Telephone: (314) 516-8595
          Facsimile: (314) 516-8551            Facsimile: (314) 241-2278

          For Notices to MRT:                  For Payments to MRT:             For Wire Transfer Payments to MRT:
          9900 Clayton Road                    P. O. Box 502161                 Mississippi River Transmission
          St. Louis, MO 63124                  St. Louis, MO 63150-2161         Chase Bank of Texas
          Facsimile: (314) 991-7600                                             ABA No. 113000609
                                                                                Account No. 00103275674


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          MRT Nominations (other               MRT Pipeline Operations:
          than electronic):                    Gas Control Department
          Transportation Services              9900 Clayton Road
          Facsimile: (318) 429-3298            St. Louis, MO 63124
                                               Telephone: (314) 991-9900
</TABLE>

            IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement as
of the date hereinabove first written.

LACLEDE GAS COMPANY                            MISSISSIPPI RIVER TRANSMISSION
                                                 CORPORATION


By:    /s/ Kenneth J. Neises                   By:  /s/ Robert Trost
Name:  Kenneth J. Neises                            Robert Trost
Title: Executive Vice President -                   Vice President, Marketing &
       Energy and Administrative Services            General Manager
       St. Louis, MO 63101                          9900 Clayton Road
                                                    St. Louis, MO 63124


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                        GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS

                            FOR RATE SCHEDULE FSS

1)       Upon termination hereof for whatever reason, Customer agrees to stop
         delivering gas to MRT for storage hereunder. In addition, upon
         termination of this Agreement, Customer agrees that it will thereafter
         make no further demand for service hereunder and MRT agrees that it
         will make no further demand for the continuation of services or any
         payment related thereto, other than payments which are due with
         respect to any services previously provided. Customer agrees to
         cooperate with and assist MRT in obtaining whatever regulatory
         approvals and authorizations, if any, as are necessary or appropriate
         in view of such termination and abandonment of service hereunder.

2)       Termination of this Agreement shall not relieve either party of any
         obligation that might otherwise exist to correct any volume
         imbalance hereunder nor relieve Customer of its obligation to pay
         any monies due hereunder to MRT.

3)       In accordance with the terms and conditions of Section 17 of the
         General Terms and Conditions of MRT's FERC Gas Tariff, Third
         Revised Volume No. 1 (General Terms and Conditions), if Customer
         fails to pay within thirty (30) days after payment is due all of
         the amount of any bill for service rendered by MRT hereunder, MRT,
         upon ten (10) days' written notice to Customer, may suspend further
         injections and/or withdrawals of gas until such past due amount is
         paid, or satisfactory credit arrangements have been made in
         accordance with Section 5 of the General Terms and Conditions. If
         Customer fails to pay or make satisfactory credit arrangements
         within such ten (10) day notice period, MRT, in addition to any
         other remedy it may have hereunder, may, upon thirty (30) days'
         written notice to Customer, terminate this Agreement and cease
         further injections and/or withdrawals of gas on behalf of Customer.

4)       Service hereunder shall be provided pursuant to Rate Schedule FSS
         of MRT's FERC Gas Tariff, Third Revised Volume No. 1. Customer will
         provide fuel in kind.

5)       This Agreement shall be subject to the provisions of the applicable
         rate schedule as well as the General Terms and Conditions set forth
         in MRT's FERC Gas Tariff, Third Revised Volume No. 1, as on file
         and in effect from time to time, and such provisions are
         incorporated herein by this reference. Any curtailment of storage
         service hereunder shall be in accordance with the priorities set
         out in MRT's General Terms and Conditions. To the extent not
         inconsistent with effective law, MRT shall have the right to
         determine the priority and/or scheduling of the storage service
         under this Agreement and to revise the priority and/or scheduling
         of this storage service from time to time.

6)       MRT shall have the right at any time and from time to time to file
         and place into effect unilateral changes or modifications in the
         rates and charges, and other terms and conditions of service
         hereunder, as set forth in the applicable rate schedule and in the
         General Terms and Conditions, in accordance with the Natural Gas
         Act or other applicable law.


7)       In the event that MRT places on file with the Commission another
         rate schedule which may be applicable to service rendered
         hereunder, then MRT, at its option, may, from and after the
         effective date of such rate schedule, utilize such rate schedule in
         the performance of this Agreement. Such rate schedule or
         superseding rate schedule(s) and any revisions thereof which shall
         be filed and become effective shall apply to and be a part of this
         Agreement. MRT shall have the right to propose, file and make
         effective with the Commission, or other body having jurisdiction,
         changes and revisions of any effective rate schedule(s) and/or
         General Terms and Conditions, or to propose, file, and make
         effective superseding rate schedules and/or General Terms and
         Conditions, for the purpose of changing the rates, charges, and
         other provisions thereof effective as to Customer.

8)       This Agreement shall not be assigned by Customer in whole or in
         part without MRT's prior written consent, which consent shall not
         be unreasonably withheld, provided however, that Customers under
         Rate Schedule FSS may release their capacity consistent with the
         terms and conditions of the applicable rate schedule and the
         General Terms and Conditions of MRT's FERC Gas Tariff, Third
         Revised Volume No. 1.


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         In addition to all other rights and remedies, MRT may terminate the
         Agreement immediately if it is assigned by Customer without MRT's
         consent, whether the assignment or contract be voluntary or by
         operation of law or otherwise. Subject to the above, the respective
         rights and obligations of the parties under the Agreement shall
         extend to and be binding upon their heirs, successors, assigns and
         legal representatives.

9)       Any notice, statement, or bill provided for in this Agreement shall
         be in writing and shall be considered as duly delivered when
         hand-delivered, telecopied, or when received by the other party if
         mailed by United States mail, postage prepaid, to the addresses
         specified herein (unless and until either party notifies the other,
         in writing, of a change in its address).

10)      Each party shall notify the other in writing of the name, address,
         telephone number and telecopy number of the person or persons who
         shall have authority to act for such party in connection with this
         Agreement, and operating notices shall thereafter be served upon
         such person or persons.

11)      This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties
         and no waiver, representation or agreement, oral or otherwise,
         shall affect the subject matter hereof unless and until such
         waiver, representation or agreement is reduced to writing and
         executed by authorized representatives of the parties. No waiver by
         either Customer or MRT of any one or more defaults by the other in
         performance of any of the provisions of the Agreement shall operate
         or be construed as a waiver of any other existing or future default
         or defaults, whether of a like or of a different character.

12)      This Agreement supersedes and cancels the Firm Storage Service
         Agreement No. 502 between the parties hereto.

13)      Customer shall have the option to reduce its FSS capacity in
         proportion to Customer's reduction of the MDQ under FTS Contract 3310,
         section 17 of the General Terms and Conditions, between MRT and
         Customer. Customer must exercise its option within thirty (30) days
         after service commences to the Bypassing Customer over its direct
         connection with MRT, with the reduction of FSS capacity becoming
         effective reasonably concurrent with the reduction of FTS capacity,
         taking into consideration that any gas that Customer may be required
         to remove from storage as a result of the FSS capacity reduction
         must be undertaken in a reasonable manner and in a reasonable time
         period.

14)      The parties agree that Customer has the Right of First Refusal
         (ROFR). If customer chooses to exercise its ROFR, it shall do so by
         following the procedures applicable to the exercise of a ROFR
         provided for in the tariff.

15)      Customer is a local distribution Company which has requested the
         opportunity for additional storage service flexibility to meet the
         requirements of its residential and commercial heating customers
         and others. Accordingly, for each year during the term of this
         agreement, upon request received by MRT from Customer no later
         than September 25, MRT and Customer will agree that Customer will
         inject 100% of its MIQ by November 1 and will begin its withdrawal
         season on November 1, with a Maximum Monthly Withdrawal level for
         November of 30.06% of Maximum Customer Inventory. The relevant
         provisions of Rate Schedule FSS will be waived to permit this
         agreement between MRT and Customer for the year, and MRT will plan
         its storage operations for that year in reliance upon its
         agreement with Customer. This agreement and waiver is conditioned
         on Customer's agreement for the year (1) to a November Minimum
         Monthly Withdrawal requirement of 7.48% of Maximum Customer
         Inventory and (2) to withdraw a minimum of 21% of its Maximum
         Customer Inventory by December 31. To reach 100% of its MIQ by
         November 1, Customer may not exceed the Maximum Daily or Maximum
         Monthly injection amounts set out in Rate Schedule FSS, unless
         waived by MRT in a non-discriminatory manner upon request by
         Customer.


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