Dynegy Inc. has closed its acquisition of Northern Natural Gas Pipeline Co. (NNG) and named a former Enron Corp. executive — and the pipeline’s former chief — as president. Dynegy acquired NNG under the terms of its failed merger agreement with Enron after settling a lawsuit with its former rival earlier this month (see Daily GPI, Jan. 7). Enron maintains the option to repurchase the pipe from Dynegy until June 30, 2002 and will provide transition services through the end of the repurchase period.

Daniel L. Dienstbier was named president of NNG and will be responsible for the day-to-day operation. He will report to Dynegy COO Steve Bergstrom and will also serve as an unpaid member of Dynegy’s board of directors. He has more than 30 years of experience in the energy industry, and has held various executive positions at NNG, including president. He was named president of Enron’s Gas Pipeline Group in 1985 and held various other energy-related executive positions when he left Enron in 1988. He has been a member of Dynegy’s board since 1995, and lives in Omaha, NE, where NNG is headquartered.

Dynegy CEO Chuck Watson said Dienstbier’s “knowledge of and experience with NNG and Dynegy” would be important as Dynegy integrates the pipeline into its existing energy delivery network. NNG’s 16,600 miles of pipe extend from the Permian Basin to the Upper Midwest, with storage capacity of 59 Bcf. Its market area is about 4.3 Bcf/d.

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