Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.energy From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: energy Fri, Mar 6 1992 Date: Fri, 6 Mar 92 05:54:04 EST Message-ID: 03-06 0000 DECISIONLINE: Energy USA TODAY Update March 6-8, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network OPEC CUT OUTPUT IN FEBRUARY: OPEC nations restrained surging oil production a bit last month apparently beginning output cutbacks, the International Energy Agency reported Thursday. The agency, which regularly estimates the 13-nation Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' output, reckoned it pumped 24.3 million barrels of crude a day in February, about 100,000 barrels off January's supply. CUT IS FIRST SINCE LAST SPRING: February's apparent decline in production by OPEC was the first recorded by the the International Energy Agency's Monthly Oil Market Report since last spring. Further cuts were expected after OPEC promised to slash production by at least 1.2 million barrels a day, starting in March. In doing so, the cartel set a new output cap of 22.98 million barrels a day. OIL PRICES FALL IN DULL TRADING: Oil prices settled lower in uneventful trading. Light sweet crude oil for delivery in April, which slipped 1 cent the previous day, settled at $18.55 a barrel Thursday, off 8 cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Unleaded gasoline for delivery in April slipped 0.29 cent to 59.32 cents a gallon. In natural gas trading, the April contract lost 1.1 cents to $1.180 per 1,000 cubic feet. HOME HEATING OIL ADVANCES: April home heating oil gained 0.10 cent Thursday to settle at 51.52 cents a gallon at the NYMEX. The rise in heating oil prices was attributed to lower supplies. Wholesalers and retailers typically sell off inventories in late February, only to be caught unawares when temperatures dip in March, said Thomas Blakeslee, an analyst with Pegasus Econometric Group Inc. in Hoboken, N.J. VA. POWER FORESEES LOWER GROWTH: Virginia Power Thursday said it has postponed construction and operation of a 400-megawatt, coal-fired power station planned for Virginia's Southside region. The utility said that its latest long-range forecast indicates it won't need to build new generating units. The utility cited slower economic growth, increased conservation efforts and a new purchase power arrangement. O&Y SELLING STAKE IN PIPELINE: Olympia & York, the developer owned by Toronto's Reichmann family, is set to raise about $508.4 million by selling its controlling interest in Interprovincial Pipe Line, which operates the world's longest network of oil pipelines. An O&Y subsidiary, G.W. Utilities, Thursday said it was in the final stages of discussions to sell its 63.5% stake in Interprovincial. ELECTRIC BICYCLE LAUNCHED: British inventor Sir Clive Sinclair Thursday launched an electric bicycle which travels at a top speed of about 12 miles an hour. The Zike was unveiled seven years after the failure of Sir Clive's electric tricycle, the C5. The Zike uses a nickel-cadmium battery and a motor based on a new form of "rare-earth" magnet which are concealed in the frame. WESTINGHOUSE LINKS WITH POLES: Westinghouse Electric Corp. and the management of seven Polish power stations have formed a joint venture company to modernize and maintain Poland's fossil-fueled power plants. Under terms of the agreement, Westinghouse will work with the Polish power stations to plan and coordinate steps to improve the efficiency, output and environmental performance of the plants. SUIT OVER WELL TO BE FILED: The Chesapeake Bay Foundation Thursday said it will file a suit in Maryland seeking to stay a December permit given to Texaco Inc. to drill an exploratory well in Charles County so that further study can be done. Texaco plans a 10,000-foot well near Faulkner, Md. CHRYSLER, WESTINGHOUSE PLAN VAN: Chrysler Corp. and Westinghouse Corp. plan to build an electric vehicle by the end of the decade. In an announcement this week, they joined Ford and General Motors Corp., which earlier announced their own electric car ventures. The Chrysler-Westinghouse van will be aimed at companies managing fleets but also will be sold to consumers. RULING HURTS PSI'S EARNINGS: PSI Resources Thursday said its net income fell last year as a result of a Indiana Supreme Court decision reversing the utility's rate reduction exemption. PSI reported net income of $19 million, or 35 cents per share, vs. net income of $119 million, or $2.20 per share, in 1990. PSI recorded a potential loss of $135 million ($85 million or $1.56 per share after tax) as result of the ruling. FIGHT OVER GAS TAX BLOCKS FUNDS: A political feud between the Alabama Legislature and Gov. Guy Hunt over a 5 cents gas tax hike is blocking the state's match of federal highway grants, a U.S. Highway Department official said Thursday. Cited: Legislature hasn't approved money the state needs to spend so it can start using federal money. Energy Editor: William Snoddy. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM