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I WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBERI4 , 2005 THE HERALD -SUN , DURHAM , N .C . rta ment reserves and foreign iftoge plies, there is no such backstop for natural gas . GAS "We don't have an internation- of atura al market" that the country could rely on for additional supplies as FROM PAGE Cl pp . it does with oil, Norton said, as . causes per production beyond then. Last week, the Energy Infor- Bodman and Norton visited mation Administration estimated one of the government's Strate- that natural gas prices would go Petroleum Reserve facilities, soar this winter because of the erns where the gove coner rnent is provid- hurricane, including i m ncreases as ing several refineries with oil to much as 71 percent in parts of make up for supply losses . They the Midwest. Energy officials then went to an ExxonMobil Bodman and Norton met with refinery near Baton Rouge, La. , senior executives from two worry prices will I which has needed government dozen energy companies Mon- I oil to continue production. Houston. The Soar in the winter . Bruce March, the refinery's day evening in manager, said that about 20 per- executives said they needed gov- BY H . JOSEF HEREBY cent of its crude is coming from ernment help in arranging for Associated Press the government stockpile . The housing for thousands of employ. BATON ROUGE, La. -- It may refinery, the second largest in ees as they struggled to return take months to resume fully nat- the country, scaled back produc- roduction after Hurri- after the hurricane the Gulf 's oil and gas system to ural gas p tion briefly ro_ full operation he said. cane Katrina, top Bush admims_ hit, but it now is again in full p ' tration ' officials said Tuesday while expressing worries about shortages this winter. . duction, March said . Unlike with heating oil and Norton said that 58 percent of gasoline, there's little ability to Gulf oil production remains shut make up the difference with down, as does 38 percent of the importsm region's natural gas production. "There are concerns about the No backup supply of natural gas," Energy Both Cabinet members Secretary Samuel Bodman said expressed concern about upcom- Tuesday, a week after an agency ing supplies of natural gas . About in his department predicted that one-third of the Gulf 's natural natural gas prices in some parts as p roduction has been disrupt, of the country will be 71 percent ed. higher than last winter. Bodman said that "there is less Bodman and Interior Secretary known,, about the extent of dam- Gale Norton took a helicopter age to underwater natural gas tour of the Gulf to observe the pipelines and it's uncertain when damage to oil platforms and flew those facilities will be up in full over the Louisiana Offshore Oil operation. He said it could be Port, the terminal where huge oil several months before the tankers drop off their cargo in region 9s natural gas system deep waters miles offshore. recovers . Evidence that the recovery of While the loss of oil production the regions oil production facili is being made up from govern- ties is incomplete, at least half a dozen tankers were anchored near the port waiting to drop off their cargo . The facility, known as the LOOP, returned to full opera- tion last weekend. Norton said that 90 percent of the Gulf oil platforms will be capable of production by the end of the month. But she emphasized that there is widespread damage to onshore facilities that will hani- see GAS I page C2