Attorney

Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch fired another shot last Thursday in the heated legal battle that has developed over KeySpan Energy’s plan to convert an existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) peak shaving facility (formerly Algonquin LNG) in Providence into a 525 MMcf/d LNG import terminal.

California Energy Commission (CEC) Chairman William Keese said last week he was leaving the power plant siting and energy planning commission as of March 4. Keese, an attorney, made the announcement as part of the commission’s regular business meeting last Wednesday in Sacramento. Originally appointed to the commission in 1997 by then Gov. Pete Wilson, Keese was re-appointed by Gov. Gray Davis in the midst of the 2000-2001 western energy crisis. He alluded to that in making his announcement, indicating he never planned to stay on the CEC as long as he has. His fellow commissioners expressed surprise at Keese’s decision, and lauded his leadership in recent years. Keese’s current term was set to run until the end of this year. At Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s request, Keese will continue to be California’s designee and co-chair of the Western Governors’ Association advisory committee on “clean and diversified” energy. Schwarzenegger will have 30 days after Keese leaves to name a replacement to fill out his term.

The number was still hot off first press reports of FERC staff testimony before a regulatory judge when the California Attorney General’s Office called for more than the $1.67 billion federal regulatory analysts have calculated is owed by Enron Corp. for its alleged wholesale energy market manipulation during the 2000-2001 western energy crisis. California’s AG thinks it should be $2.8 billion, a spokesperson told western news media.

The number was still hot off first press reports of FERC staff testimony before a regulatory judge when the California Attorney General’s Office called for more than the $1.67 billion federal regulatory analysts have calculated is owed by Enron Corp. for its alleged wholesale energy market manipulation during the 2000-2001 western energy crisis. California’s AG thinks it should be $2.8 billion, a spokesperson told western news media.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and the state’s Attorney General Patricia Madrid announced Monday they will vigorously continue to oppose the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) decision to open parts of the Otero Mesa to oil/natural gas leasing. They said BLM is ignoring the state’s alternatives and appeal of the decision.

After refusing to testify against his co-workers, former Dynegy tax attorney Jamie Olis, one of the architects of Project Alpha, was sent to a minimum security federal prison in Texas Thursday to begin serving a 24-year sentence. He was convicted of conspiracy and five counts of securities, wire and mail fraud last year for helping push through the 2001 scheme.

After refusing to testify against his co-workers, former Dynegy tax attorney Jamie Olis, one of the architects of Project Alpha, was sent to a minimum security federal prison in Texas Thursday to begin serving a 24-year sentence. He was convicted of conspiracy and five counts of securities, wire and mail fraud last year for helping push through the 2001 scheme.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has sent subpoenas to owners of power plants in Connecticut as part of an ongoing investigation into whether power suppliers may have done anything untoward during a cold snap that lasted several days in January. Blumenthal is also preparing to issue similar subpoenas to other generators in the New England region.

Against the backdrop of a recent decision by Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal to investigate the actions of power suppliers during this month’s bone-chilling freeze that covered much of the Northeast, FERC Chairman Pat Wood last Wednesday told reporters that he has seen no indications that the power market in New England was manipulated.