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                                                                   EXHIBIT 10.34

                   FIRST AMENDMENT TO COMPENSATION TERM SHEET

         This First Amendment to the Compensation Term Sheet dated as of October
15, 2001 between James L. Payne ("Payne") and Nuevo Energy Company (the
"Company") is effective as of September 11, 2002.

         WHEREAS, the Board of Directors of the Company has determined, in the
good-faith exercise of its reasonable business judgment, that it is advisable
and in the best interest of the Company to amend the Compensation Term Sheet
("Employment Agreement"), to allow for cash compensation to be paid to Payne so
that Payne has the opportunity to make a valid "Tax-Deferred Contribution" under
the Company's Retirement Plan.

         NOW, THEREFORE, for and in consideration of the mutual covenants and
promises contained herein and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt
and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, the parties agree as follows:

         Effective September 11, 2002, the Employment Agreement shall be amended
to provide that during each calendar year, beginning in 2002, Payne shall have
the right to elect to receive an amount in cash, as compensation for the
performance of his duties under the Employment Agreement, as set forth below:

                                    2002 ............ $12,000
                                    2003 ............ $14,000
                                    2004 ............ $16,000
                                    2005 ............ $18,000
                                    2006 ............ $20,000,

and, beginning in the calendar year 2007, Payne shall have the right to elect to
receive an amount in cash, as compensation for the performance of his duties
under the Employment Agreement, equal to the sum of (i) the maximum amount which
an employee can defer annually into the Retirement Plan under Section 402(g) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended ("Code") and (ii) the maximum
"Catch-Up Contribution" an employee can defer into the Retirement Plan under
Section 414(v) of the Code, provided that upon Payne electing to receive cash as
set forth herein, the amount of Company common stock to be received by Payne on
the next delivery date as set forth in the Employment Agreement shall be reduced
by a number of shares equal to (z) the amount of cash elected to be received by
Payne, divided by (y) the fair market value of a share of Company common stock
on such delivery date, rounded up to the nearest whole share.

         All other terms and conditions contained in the Employment Agreement
shall remain in full force and effect.

         Acknowledged and agreed to as of September 11, 2002.

---------------------------                          --------------------------
James L. Payne                                       Nuevo Energy Company<PAGE>
                                                                   EXHIBIT 10.35

May 15, 2002

Employee
Nuevo Energy Company
1021 Main Street, Suite 2100
Houston, TX  77002

Dear _______:

The Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors recently agreed to extend
the following benefits to you should your employment with the Company ever be
terminated without cause. The benefits should include the following:

         o        Two weeks base salary (excluding bonuses, commissions and any
                  other forms of incentives or overtime pay) for each continuous
                  full year of employment and a pro rata payment for any partial
                  year of employment with the Company as of the date of the
                  covered employee's termination of employment.

         o        One week of base salary (excluding bonuses, commissions and
                  any other forms of incentives or overtime pay) for each
                  $10,000 of annual income (which shall be the sum of base
                  salary and the highest potential award payable to such
                  executive under the Company's bonus program for the year that
                  the employee is terminated).

         o        All options previously awarded to you will, to the extent not
                  already vested, vest immediately and you shall have the lesser
                  of (i) 365 days or (ii) the remaining option term to exercise
                  any and all of your vested options.

You will not be entitled to duplicate payments if payment is due under any other
severance program offered by the Company. However, you will be entitled to
receive this payment in lieu of a severance payment.

A condition of the payment will be the requirement that you sign a general
release. In addition, it is required that you keep the existence of this benefit
confidential.

Please acknowledge receipt of this letter and your agreement to execute a
general release prior to receipt of the above-referenced benefit.

Sincerely,

James L. Payne

Agreed to:

By:
    ----------------------------
       Employee

Date:
     ---------------------------<PAGE>

                                                                   EXHIBIT 4.B.2

                    CERTIFICATE OF ELIMINATION AND RETIREMENT
                                       OF
                                 PREFERRED STOCK
                                       OF
                               EL PASO CORPORATION

         (PURSUANT TO SECTION 243 OF THE GENERAL CORPORATION LAW OF THE
                               STATE OF DELAWARE)

         El Paso Corporation, a corporation duly organized and existing under
the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the "Corporation"),
certifies as follows:

                  FIRST: The Corporation's Restated Certificate of
         Incorporation, by a Certificate of Designation (as modified by a
         Certificate of Elimination and Retirement), authorizes the issuance of
         40,000 shares of Series B Mandatorily Convertible Single Reset
         Preferred Stock ("Series B Preferred Stock"), each of the foregoing
         shares with par value $.01 per share.

                  SECOND: The Corporation has acquired, and a duly constituted
         committee of the Board of Directors of the Corporation has retired, all
         of the authorized shares of the Series B Preferred Stock.

                  THIRD: The Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the
         Corporation prohibits the reissue of shares of Series B Preferred Stock
         purchased or otherwise acquired by the Corporation as shares of the
         series to which they were originally designated.

                  FOURTH: Pursuant to the provisions of Section 243 of the
         General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, the 40,000 shares of
         Series B Preferred Stock are hereby retired, all references to Series B
         Preferred Stock in the Restated Certificate of Incorporation are hereby
         eliminated, and the 40,000 shares of Series B Preferred Stock are
         hereby returned to the status of authorized but unissued shares of the
         Preferred Stock of the Corporation undesignated as to series.

         IN WITNESS WHEREOF, El Paso Corporation has caused this certificate to
be signed by its duly authorized officer this 30th day of January 2003.

                                        EL PASO CORPORATION

                                        By:  /s/ David L. Siddall
                                           --------------------------------
                                           David L. Siddall, Vice President<PAGE>

                                                                  EXHIBIT 10.E.1

                             AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO THE
                               EL PASO CORPORATION
                             1995 COMPENSATION PLAN
                           FOR NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTORS

      Pursuant to Section 8.7 of the El Paso Corporation 1995 Compensation Plan
for Non-Employee Directors, Amended and Restated effective as of January 29,
2002 (the "Plan"), the Plan is hereby amended as follows, effective as of
January 29, 2003:

      Sections 5.3 and 5.4 shall be renumbered as Sections 5.4 and 5.5,
respectively, and a new Section 5.3 shall be added to read as follows:

      "5.3 PHANTOM STOCK UNITS

      Notwithstanding Section 5.2, the Management Committee may determine that
the maximum number of shares of Common Stock which may at any time be awarded
pursuant to Section 4.1 of the Plan (and, if appropriate, pursuant to Section
5.1 of the El Paso Corporation Strategic Stock Plan) have been issued and
phantom stock units which shall have an accounting value equal to the fair
market value of one (1) share of Common Stock ("PSUs") shall be credited to the
Participant's Memorandum Deferred Account for his or her Common Stock Deferral
and/or Deferred Retirement Benefit Credit for the Plan Year. [The amount of PSUs
credited to the Participant's Memorandum Deferred Account for his or her Common
Stock Deferral shall include the Conversion Premium (as defined below).]

      Each Participant who receives PSUs shall, once the PSUs have been credited
to his or her Memorandum Deferred Account, have the right to receive dividend
equivalents and other distributions on such PSUs, subject to applicable laws.
Any such dividend equivalents and other distributions shall be deemed reinvested
promptly in additional PSUs and such additional PSUs shall be credited to the
Memorandum Deferred Account until the Memorandum Deferred Account is
distributed. Participants do not have the right to vote the PSUs.

      PSUs shall be exchanged, on a pro rata basis, for an equivalent number of
shares of deferred Common Stock when, and if, additional shares of Common Stock
become available under the Plan. Such shares of deferred Common Stock shall be
treated as all other Common Stock Deferrals under the Plan. If no additional
shares of Common Stock become available under the Plan at the time of
distribution of the PSUs to the Participant, an amount equal to the PSU balance
of the Participant's Memorandum Deferred Account shall be paid to the
Participant (or the Participant's beneficiary in the case of the Participant's
death) in a lump sum cash payment based on the Common Stock's fair market value
(as defined in Section 6.2(b)) on the day preceding the date of such payment.
Payment of PSUs in cash shall be made in the month following the date on which
the Participant ceases to be a Director. PSUs credited to the Participant's

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Memorandum Deferred Account for the Participant's Deferred Retirement Benefit
Credit shall be subject to any additional restrictions of such other Deferred
Retirement Benefit Credits under the Plan."

      IN WITNESS WHEREOF, El Paso Corporation has executed this document as of
January 29, 2003.

                                        EL PASO CORPORATION

                                        By:  /s/ David E. Zerhusen
                                            ------------------------------------
                                            David E. Zerhusen
                                            Its Executive Vice President
                                            Administration

ATTEST:

By:    /s/ David L. Siddall
   ------------------------------
Title:  Corporate Secretary

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