• Retired U.S. Senator John Breaux (D-Louisiana) will be a senior advisor to energy-focused, private-equity fund manager Riverstone Holdings LLC, which has made investments in Belden & Blake Corp., Legend Natural Gas, Frontier Drilling ASA, CDM Resource Management Ltd., Buckeye Partners LP, Magellan Midstream Partners LP, Mariner Energy Inc., Seabulk International and Topaz Power Group LLC. The investments are in partnership with The Carlyle Group. Breaux's role is part of his new job at Washington-based law firm Patton Boggs LLP as senior counsel. "Sen. Breaux will provide the firm and its clients important strategic advice in a number of areas, including energy and health care, " says Patton Boggs managing partner Stuart M. Pape. Breaux was a senator since 1986 and a congressman since 1972, but did not seek re-election in 2004. • Energy Spectrum Capital, Dallas, recently closed its fourth midstream equity fund, Energy Spectrum Partners IV LP, at $353 million. The fund is seeking initial investments of $20- to $30 million of equity. • The Vanguard Group, Valley Forge, Pa., has implemented a temporary "cooling-off" closure period for its $5.3-billion Vanguard Energy Fund. The fund will cease accepting new accounts, though existing shareholders may continue to purchase shares. Vanguard reports that it believes this is the best protection for existing shareholders, given current interest in the energy sector as a whole and the level of cash flow into the energy fund. • Morgan Stanley has appointed Michael Dee head of its Houston office, according to Reuters. Dee was regional chief executive of Morgan Stanley's Singapore office. • Paramount Resources Ltd., Calgary, (Toronto: POU) plans to reorganize into a new energy trust owning existing properties of Paramount with current production of approximately 25,000 BOE per day. The properties included in the new trust are in the Kaybob and Marten Creek areas of Alberta. Paramount will continue operations. • Don Kyle has joined Connecticut-based GE Commercial Finance Energy Financial Services‚ debt products unit, as a managing director and capital markets leader. Kyle was head of project finance debt markets at Societe Generale/SG Gowen Securities and has held project finance/capital markets positions at UBS and Citicorp.

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