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The Texas Public Utility Commission last week finalized rules,which among other things, guarantee utility customers get a 6% ratecut when retail competition begins Jan. 1, 2002. The final rulesestablish the price utility affiliates will be allowed to charge.

The hoped-for agreement among California’s three investor-ownedutilities and the California’s political establishment was stillout of reach last Friday, but feeling the need to announce someprogress in preparation for his political trip to Washington, DC,and Wall Street early this week. Gov. Gray Davis said the state isclosest to a deal to pay $2.76 billion for the transmission linesof Southern California Edison.

With prices still at record highs by Canadian standards,interest is heating up among producers in accelerating natural gasdevelopment in the East Coast offshore, including remote prospectson the Grand Banks of Newfoundland.

With prices still at record highs by Canadian standards,interest is heating up among producers in accelerating natural gasdevelopment in the East Coast offshore, including remote prospectson the Grand Banks of Newfoundland.

Earnings among companies within the oil and gas industrycontinue to show significant growth in 2000, as evidenced by FPLGroup and TECO Energy, two Florida-based corporations whichreported sizeable gains in earnings for the fourth quarter 2000, aswell as the entire year.

Regional Reliability Councils and their members are about 90%compliant, but work still needs to be done to bring standards upand encourage non-members to join, according to the latest reportfrom the North American Electricity Reliability Council. NERC haspublished its findings for the second of four phases of its Year2000 Compliance Program, created to ensure adherence to NERC andregional standards.

Two basis swap contracts based on NGI’s bidweek indexes atChicago and the Southern California border were among a number ofenergy products approved last week for listing on enymex, the NewYork Mercantile Exchange’s Internet-based trading system. Nymexexpects to launch the new system during the second quarter of 2001.

Two basis swap contracts based on NGI’s bidweek indexes atChicago and the Southern California border were among a number ofenergy products approved yesterday for listing on enymex, the NewYork Mercantile Exchange’s Internet-based trading system. Nymexexpects to launch the new system during the second quarter of 2001.

If you were among those amazed by the virtual hailstorm ofmergers and acquisitions in the power and utility sector this year,PricewaterhouseCoopers warns, you haven’t seen anything yet.According to an M&A forecast by the Transaction Services groupwithin the firm, the “once sleepy and over-regulated [energy]industry” is the key M&A segment to watch in 2001.