Aside

Tossing aside its “tortuous” modified primary function methodfor deciding the jurisdiction of offshore pipelines, FERC last weekissued a long-awaited final rule that’s designed to bring”symmetry” to the regulation of natural gas pipelines on the OuterContinental Shelf (OCS) by imposing similar reporting burdens onall facilities.

Tossing aside its “tortuous” modified primary function methodfor deciding the jurisdiction of offshore pipelines, FERC yesterdayissued a long-awaited final rule that’s designed to bring”symmetry” to the regulation of natural gas pipelines on the OuterContinental Shelf (OCS) by imposing similar reporting burdens onall facilities.

FERC has upheld an order approving Tennessee Gas Pipeline’s newtransportation service agreements with six shippers, casting asideproducer arguments that the contracts included negotiated terms andconditions and raised right-of-first-refusal (ROFR) issues.

FERC last week upheld an order approving Tennessee GasPipeline’s new transportation service agreements with six shippers,casting aside producer arguments that the contracts includednegotiated terms and conditions and raised right-of-first-refusal(ROFR) issues.

Southern California Gas Co.’s proposed restructuring plan hasbeen pushed aside by six new confidential alternatives becausecertain aspects of the utility’s plan have been deemedanticompetitive and have the potential to allow gaming at theTopock, AZ, receipt point, according to observers and participantsin discussions taking place at a downtown Los Angeles hotel.

Southern California Gas Co.’s proposed restructuring plan hasbeen pushed aside by six new confidential alternatives becausecertain aspects of the utility’s plan have been deemedanticompetitive and have the potential to allow gaming at theTopock, AZ, receipt point, according to participants in settlementdiscussions taking place at a downtown Los Angeles hotel.

Tossing aside an ongoing state regulatory investigation of someof its billing practices, California’s most aggressive independentenergy service provider (ESP), Commonwealth Energy, plans to moveinto Pennsylvania and New Jersey next month where it expects a morestraightforward and receptive marketplace for its residential andsmall business electricity products. While signing up more than60,000 customers in California’s daunting retail mass power marketsso far, Commonwealth has been able to pass on savings of up to fivepercent, emphasizing green power from environmentally benignsources, developing prospects for new green products and shoppingfor power generation operations of its own, in addition to eyeingother states as the next stage of its two-year-old development.

Traders put bearish fundamentals aside yesterday at the New YorkMercantile exchange when short-covering and some constructive dailychart features helped the expiring February contract spike higherin active trading. Estimated volume was high, with 134,852contracts changing hands. But despite February’s dramatic 9.6-centadvance to settle at $1.810, many doubt that the market will beable to hold on to those gains when the March contract makes itsdebut today as the prompt month.

The federal budget signed by President Clinton last week setaside funding to help jump start negotiations among jurisdictionalfederal agencies on an agreement to coordinate interagency reviewof natural gas pipeline projects, paving the way for potentiallyquicker certification at FERC in the end.