The Gas Industry Standards Board (GISB) will facilitate ameeting to be held at the Department of Energy (DOE) Jan. 26 on theneed for an organization to develop retail standards for the gasand electric industries. The meeting, to be held at DOE’s ForrestalBuilding, 1000 Independence Ave., SW, will begin at 8:30 a.m.Robert W. Gee, assistant secretary for fossil energy, will open themeeting. Representatives of companies and trade associations in thegas and electric industries, as well as interested individuals, areinvited.

The meeting is an outgrowth of a request by the Coalition forUniform Business Rules (CUBR) in late September that GISB developgas and electric retail standards. GISB’s work to date has focusedon the development of wholesale natural gas standards forelectronic commerce. At its December meeting in Houston, GISB’sboard of directors agreed to form a committee to study CUBR’srequest and to facilitate an industry-wide forum on the subject ofretail gas and electric standards.

Jim Buccigross, chairman of the GISB executive committee anddirector and general counsel of the National Registry of CapacityRights, said, “There’s no question that what were once separatenatural gas and electric industries are moving to a single energyindustry. This meeting at DOE will provide an opportunity to takestock of the impact of this unification on industry participants.”

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