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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery, the benchmark in North America, lost four cents to $82.71 on the New York Merc, while Brent for December, the international benchmark, lost 76 cents to $85.40 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select, Canada's heavy oil benchmark, traded at a discount of $14.85 to WTI ($67.86), down from a discount of $13.50. Natural gas for November, the international benchmark, lost 9.6 cents to $3.67. The TSX energy index added 1.04 points to close at 261.93.

Today's newsmakers were on the smaller side. Bob Disbrow's big investment, Niko Resources Ltd. (NKO), lost 40 cents to 33 cents on 15.5 million shares, after its soap opera in India took a disappointing twist. (Mr. Disbrow is neither an officer nor a director of Niko, but a venture capitalist and a vice-president of Haywood Securities. He owns 9.3 million of Niko's 94 million shares, including nearly 470,000 net shares acquired since September.) Niko owns 10 per cent of deepwater block KG-DWN-98-3, which it calls the D6 block, along with India's Reliance Industries (60 per cent) and BP (30 per cent). A large gas discovery at this block, followed by the Indian government's decision to double domestic gas prices to $8.40 per million British thermal units in the spring of 2014, carried Niko's stock to $9.79 in late June, 2013, from less than $6 a month earlier. Then the problems started. Although the price hike was supposed to take effect on April 1, 2014, it was repeatedly delayed amid political infighting, with some politicians in favour, others completely opposed and still others arguing that the new price should not apply to D6. This block was singled out because of allegations that Niko and the other owners deliberately underproduced gas while waiting for the hike. They deny this, blaming geological complications and a gas price that barely covered operating costs. The matter is in arbitration. Over the weekend, the Indian government finally made up its mind on the gas price. It will not be doubled to $8.40 as planned. Instead, it has been fixed at $5.61, and will not apply to all domestic production. Output from certain producers, such as the D1 and D3 discoveries at the D6 block, will get the old price of $4.20 because of the dispute over the production shortfall.

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