Exhibit 99.1
Aug. 30, 2000 CONTACTS: Gail Schutz
Duke Energy
Phone: 713/627-4060
Regina Biddings
NiSource
Phone: 219/647-6204
DUKE ENERGY GAS TRANSMISSION ANNOUNCES PURCHASE
OF MHP GAS STORAGE FROM NiSOURCE
HOUSTON and MERRILLVILLE, IND.-- Duke Energy Gas Transmission Corporation (DEGT)
announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the
natural gas salt cavern storage business commonly known as Market Hub Partners
(MHP) from subsidiaries of NiSource Inc., for $250 million in cash plus the
assumption of $150 million in debt.
This new line of business for DEGT has 23 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of storage
capacity with significant expansion capability. The stock purchase is expected
to close later this year, pending Federal Trade Commission approval.
"We are enthusiastic about our entry into this business that has an increasingly
important value in the natural gas marketplace," said Robert Evans, president,
DEGT. "The characteristics of the combined salt cavern storage facilities with
delivery capabilities of up to 2 Bcf/day (Bcf/d) and injection capabilities of
up to 1 Bcf/d are well suited to meet load swings brought about by gas-fired
electric power generation and the peak winter heating load growth of local
distribution companies. Additionally, the location of the Moss Bluff and Egan
storage
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facilities provide additional supply security to mitigate the effects of severe
weather conditions in the Gulf Coast supply region."
"We are selling these superior assets in order to prepare for our merger with
Columbia Energy Group," said Gary L. Neale, NiSource chairman, president and
chief executive officer. "Through our ongoing storage contracts with MHP, we
will continue to derive optionality from those assets, and we look forward to
working with Duke Energy as they enter this business. Combining with Columbia,
NiSource will have over 650 Bcf of storage capacity in its key market areas.
Columbia's extensive storage assets at both the local distribution and
interstate pipeline levels support NiSource's strategy going forward."
The Moss Bluff storage facilities are in Liberty County,Texas, and the Egan
storage facilities are in Acadia Parish, La. Both are situated near
industry-recognized market hubs at the convergence of major interstate and
intrastate natural gas pipelines and serve as aggregation points for natural gas
collected along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf coasts. MHP is also developing high
deliverability salt cavern storage facilities in Copiah County, Miss., and Tioga
County, Pa.
MHP is a subsidiary of EnergyUSA, a wholly owned subsidiary of NiSource Inc.
NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI) is a holding company with headquarters in Merrillville,
Ind., whose primary business is the distribution of electricity, natural gas and
water in the Midwest and Northeastern United States. The company also markets
utility services and customer-focused resource solutions along a corridor from
Texas through Chicago to Maine. More information about the company is available
on the Internet at www.nisource.com.
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Duke Energy Gas Transmission, based in Houston, operates 12,000 miles of natural
gas pipelines known as Texas Eastern Transmission Corp., Algonquin Gas
Transmission Co., East Tennessee Natural Gas Co. and with other partners,
Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline.
Together, these companies transport 8 percent of the natural gas consumed in the
United States.
Duke Energy, a diversified multinational energy company, creates value for
customers and shareholders through an integrated network of energy assets and
expertise. Duke Energy manages a dynamic portfolio of natural gas and electric
supply, delivery and trading businesses -- generating revenues of nearly $22
billion in 1999. Duke Energy, headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is a Fortune 100
company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More
information about the company is available on the Internet at:
www.duke-energy.com.
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