“Desperate for derivatives” cried the headline on the front page of the first issue of Energy Risk in 1994. “The omens look good for the natural gas derivatives market this year, as continuingprice volatility forces private utilities to move their hedging activities upa gear,” read the article. The first Gulf War had created a golden opportunityfor energy traders, and risk management was on everybody’s business agenda – themagazine could not have been launched at a more opportune time.

It was