Energy Stocks: Anadarko, Nabors up as energy stocks rise

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) � Energy stocks rose on a triple-digit advance from the Dow Jones Industrial Average and higher natural gas prices on Wednesday, with Anadarko Petroleum and Nabors Industries among the gainers.

Click to Play Gold bonanza hits Mexico

High gold prices are compelling companies to start mining more aggressively in the difficult terrain in Mexico's mountainous areas. Video and reporting by WSJ's Nicholas Casey.

Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM advanced 0.6% and Chevron Corp. CVX moved up by about 0.4%.

The companies are components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA , which rose 103 points by the closing bell.

The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund XLE , which tracks energy stocks contained in the S&P 500 Index SPX , rose 0.9%.

Among them, Nabors Industries NBR rose 2.7% and oil well services firm Helmerich & Payne HP moved up by 2.8%.

EOG Resources EOG rose 1.5% and Ultra Petroleum UPL �moved up by 1.8%.

Natural gas producers tapped into a 4% increase in natural gas futures to $2.90 per million British thermal units.

MDA EarthSat forecast more intense heat in the Midwest and East in the next week to week and a half. The hot weather is expected to increase demand for electricity, used to power air-cooling equipment, produced from natural gas-powered generators.

In major benchmarks in the energy sector, the NYSE Arca Oil Index XX:XOI rose 0.7%, the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index XX:XNG advanced 0.6% and the Philadelphia Oil Service Index OSX moved up by 1.4%.

Among stocks in the spotlight, Anadarko Petroleum Corp. APC rose 1.1% after the Houston-based oil and natural gas producer announced a fresh discovery off the coast of the African nation of Ghana in the Atlantic Ocean. The Wawa-1 exploration well hit 43 net feet of oil and 65 feet of gas-condensate, the company said.

Bloomberg News reported Royal Dutch Shell RDS.A is in talks to buy Anadarko�s natural gas assets off the coast of Mozambique. Anadarko�s 36.5% stake in the Rovuma-1 offshore gas field could fetch $8 billion, said the Bloomberg report, which cited unnamed sources.

Shell bowed out of bidding for Cove EnergyUK:COV , which owns a stake in the same field, after a $1.9 billion offer from Thailand-based oil firm PTT Exploration & Production TH:PTTEP .