Amounts

Before he was officially replaced Tuesday by one of the three members from the state public utilities commission, Nevada’s lame duck Consumer Advocate Tim Hay fired a legal broadside against Reliant Energy and some of its affiliates, alleging they conspired with now bankrupt Enron Corp. to drive up wholesale power and natural gas costs in Nevada and California during the infamous 2000-2001 energy market meltdown.

The amounts of decline tended to get smaller Thursday, but it was clear that the price direction remained definitively downward for the foreseeable future. Not counting flat to barely lower quotes at three western points, losses ranged from about a nickel to nearly 60 cents.

The amounts of decline tended to get smaller Thursday, but it was clear that the price direction remained definitively downward for the foreseeable future. Not counting flat to barely lower quotes at three western points, losses ranged from about a nickel to nearly 60 cents.

The cash market rebounded by generally moderate amounts at most points Monday. The gains were attributed to heating load in northern market areas, the return of industrial demand from its usual weekend slump, and to some degree on working off imbalances accrued over the weekend.

The cash market rebounded by generally moderate amounts at most points Monday. The gains were attributed to heating load in northern market areas, the return of industrial demand from its usual weekend slump, and to some degree on working off imbalances accrued over the weekend.

In a now-familiar pattern, prices rebounded at nearly all points Monday by amounts ranging from about a nickel to half a dollar or so. Although cold weather forecasts weren’t able to keep quotes from falling Friday, enough moderate heating load is lingering early this week that along with the return of industrial demand from its usual weekend slump, sellers found no shortage of ready buyers.

It was a wild ride Wednesday in swing trading for the last day of September. All points spiked by amounts ranging from about 30 cents to nearly a dollar, with a heavy majority up 60 cents or more, in a market driven largely by a screen that soared nearly half a dollar Tuesday and was up by almost 90 cents at one point Wednesday morning before retreating in sympathy with falling oil futures.

Prices rose mostly by double-digit amounts Thursday, but traders had trouble identifying what caused the rebound a day after the upward trend earlier in the week had come to a halt. Gains were fairly consistent throughout all regions in ranging from a little less than a dime to about 20 cents.

While there are many upstream players with access to large amounts of liquefied natural gas (LNG), many of them don’t have access to markets, and San Diego-based Sempra Energy’s vision is to provide a “gateway” to these markets through its trading/merchant energy marketing unit and two permitted LNG receiving terminal sites.