Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.energy,americast.usa-today.energy From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: energy Mon, Aug 24 1992 Date: Mon, 24 Aug 92 04:10:13 EDT Message-ID: 08-24 0000 DECISIONLINE: Energy USA TODAY Update Aug. 24, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network GASOLINE DROP LEADS DECLINE: Oil prices fell slightly Friday, led by a steep drop in gasoline prices. September unleaded gasoline settled 1.07 cents per gallon lower at 60.57 cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, gasoline finished 0.23 cent lower. October light sweet crude oil settled at $21.08 per barrel, down 17 cents Friday. The contract for September light sweet crude oil expired Thursday. REFINED OIL PRODUCTS MIXED: Home heating oil for delivery in September settled at 57.81 cents a gallon, down 0.61 cent on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Heating oil fell 1.09 cents from last week. Natural gas prices were mixed. Natural gas for delivery in September settled at $1.854 per 1,000 cubic feet, up 0.9 cent. Longer-term contracts fell. For the week, the near-term delivery price fell 2.2 cents. EXXON NAMES SUCCESSOR FOR RESO: Exxon Corp. said Friday that Rene Dahan, a 29-year veteran of the company, will become president of Exxon Co. International, following the abduction and slaying of former president Sidney Reso. Dahan, 50, has been executive vice president of Exxon International since March 1991. The subsidiary is responsible for non-exploration oil and gas operations outside North America. SEC SUES ENERGY COMPANIES: The Securities and Exchange Commission Friday sued Sunaco Energy Inc. and Femethanol Inc. and the companies' principals, accusing them of violating federal securities laws. The SEC claimed that Sunaco and Fermethanol collected $3 million from 240 investors by selling interests in limited partnerships allegedly involved in natural gas drilling, gas processing and and ethanol plant. (For more, see special SEC package below.) THREE NUKE PLANTS SHUT DOWN: Three nuclear power plants went through emergency shutdowns Saturday. In Omaha, a safety valve in a coolant system shut down the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station. An electrical problem shut down the H.B. Robinson reactor near Hartsfield, S.C. And officials were trying to determine what caused the Nine Mile Two plant near Scriba, N.Y., to shut down. COUNTY CLAIMS BREACH OF CONTRACT: Western Energy Management Inc. said Friday it has been served with a complaint alleging breach of contract and negligence for its energy management systems performance contract with the County of Alameda, Calif. The utility said the motion may have been triggered by Western's notice of default. The complaint seeks damages of more than $1 million. Western plans a countersuit. LONG LAKE DEAL SETTLED: Long Lake Energy Corp. said Friday that stockholders approved the remaining terms of its agreement with Adirondack Hydro Development Corp. as well as a plan of liquidation and dissolution. Following the vote, Long Lake withdrew its antitrust suit against Niagara Mohawk Power Corp., transferred certain of its remaining assets to Adirondack and received a payment of $20 million. MICROWAVES TO FIGHT ACID RAIN: Acid rain may be just a memory one day because of a development being unveiled Monday at the American Chemical Society meeting. High-frequency microwaves would zap the poisonous sulfur dioxides and nitrogen oxides, formed from burning high-sulfur coal, into byproducts that could be used for treating wastewater and cleaning toxic gases, researchers said. PILOT PROGAM DUE IN 1993: The Department of Energy said a process that uses microwaves to convert sulfur dioxides and nitrogen oxides into useful sulfur and nitrogen is 98% effective. That compares to 90-95% for conventional smokestack scrubbers and 80-85% for catalytic systems. Department of Energy officials say they expect the first commercial microwave system to be installed at a pilot power plant by mid-1993. TESTING SUSPENDED: American International Petroleum Corp. said it has suspended testing of Maranon No. 1, the first exploratory well on its Rio Planas Association Contract Area, Bloomberg Business News reported Friday. The company had a 22-degree API gravity oil column in the initial testing and coring. Due to the high permeability of the formation, isolation of the water zone wasn't successful. EQUIPMENT TO RETURN TO SERVICE: Equipment at Frontier Refining and Oil's refinery in Cheyenne, Wyo., will return to service early next week, a company spokesman said Friday. A fluid catalytic cracker, crude unit and alkylation complex were taken off line for planned maintenance last week. The crude unit will come back on line Monday and the other units will come back Tuesday. HARKEN IN COMMON STOCK DEAL: Harken Energy Corp. Friday announced that E-Z Serve Corp. has requested that Harken undertake a Securities and Exchange Commission registration for 2.2 million shares of Harken common stock owned by E-Z Serve. The request is a part of E-Z Serve's demand registration rights. Harken said it expects to file a preliminary registration statement for the shares in September. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON SEC: COMPANIES MAKE FALSE PROMISES: The Securities and Exchange Commission Friday sued Sunaco Energy inc. and Femethanol Inc., claiming that the companies used telephone solicitation to find investors for limited partnerships. The SEC claims the companies and four of their executives violated federal securities laws by making untrue promises about returns on investments. FEES WERE DIVERTED: The SEC said the four executives diverted investors' money to pay exorbitant salaries and fees, as well as sales representatives' commissions. The companies also misrepresented their own financial stability, according to the SEC. The companies owed about $3 million on a joint-venture purchase of an ethanol plant and needed partnership sales to pay the debt. ETHANOL PLANT INOPERATIVE: Investors weren't told that the companies depended solely on the sale of partnership interests to pay the debt on the ethanol plant, the SEC said. Investors weren't told that the ethanol plant was inoperative and needed substantial improvements. The SEC said several of the principals named have been disciplined by securities commissions or federal courts in the past. (End of package.) Energy Editor: Beth Mann. (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