Coastal Corp. raising their E&P budget $290,000,000 (50%)! This is the kind of news Slider and others on this board are looking for.
"Commenting on the results, David A. Arledge, chairman and chief
executive officer, The Coastal Corporation, said: "Earnings for the
quarter reflect the strength of Coastal's diversity and integrated
strategy. Our Natural Gas business delivered a solid, consistent
performance and our Powerbusiness benefited from a 34 percent increase
in its operating capacity. Thisresulted in a substantial earnings
increase from the combined operations, which included offsetting
one-time items in the 1998 quarter. Refining, Marketing and Chemicals
produced lower earnings for the quarter, but results were very
respectable considering that second quarter refining margins were the
lowest in recent history. Our long-standing objective of operating these
businesses profitably in periods of low refining margins was put to the
test this quarter when margins fell to 15-year lows. Our success in this
environment is a direct result of operating improvements implemented
over the past few years."
Arledge continued: "Exploration and Production (E&P) earnings were down
from 1998, reflecting lower natural gas prices together with lower
crudeoil production. However, earlier price weakness in crude oil and
natural gas has resulted in valuable properties being made available at
veryattractive prices. Coastal has taken advantage of this excellent
market for acquisitions by recently completing several transactions in
our core areas of operation. In recognition of price improvements which
began earlier in the quarter, we increased our annual E&P capital budget
by $290 million, or 49 percent, to accommodate further acquisitions and
accelerate development drilling." |
