Consumer

A modified settlement agreement reached Friday between Vectren Corp. and the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor (OUCC) requires the utility to establish a five-year energy efficiency program estimated to cost $4.315 million. State regulators included a decoupling mechanism to allow Vectren to recover up to 85% of the natural gas sales it loses by encouraging utility customers to conserve energy.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has approved a settlement agreement between 15 states, consumer groups, environmental groups and the Department of Energy (DOE) that requires DOE to raise the energy efficiency standards on about 20 common domestic appliances and some industrial equipment. According to DOE’s estimates, the new standards covered by the agreement will reduce energy use by as much as 35 quadrillion Btus over a 30-year period.

The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) projection that consumer natural gas bills will be 14% lower this winter heating season is “cold comfort” because gas costs have nearly doubled over the past five years, said the American Chemistry Council (ACC) Tuesday. The group also cautioned Congress against using the expected lower winter gas costs as an excuse to delay action on legislation to open more of the federal offshore to drilling.

ConocoPhillips second quarter profit jumped 65% over the year-ago period, according to figures announced by the company Wednesday.

Four state-wide Colorado consumer groups Wednesday announced they have formed a coalition to oppose a $210 million general rate increase request by Xcel Energy that the company maintains is essential for it to recover $1 billion it has invested in its electric system since 2002. Called the “Xcel Accountability Project,” the coalition effort established a website (www.ExposeXcel.com), making an e-mail pitch for support before the state regulatory commission.

Maryland Gov. Bob Ehrlich late Friday vetoed two pro-consumer bills that had threatened to topple the proposed merger of Constellation Energy Group Inc. and FPL Group. A third measure vetoed by Ehrlich called for the dismissal of the state’s Public Service Commission (PSC) members.

The Citizens Utility Board (CUB), Illinois’ consumer advocate, on Tuesday applauded a record refund package worth more than $196 million for Peoples Gas customers, which settled a long-standing challenge to the utility’s dealings with Enron Corp. in the winter of 2000-2001. CUB had been working with the state’s attorney general’s office and Chicago officials for the past four years to ensure a settlement.

Demand destruction is creeping into the biggest emerging Canadian industrial natural gas consumer, Alberta oilsands operations. The biggest new development, Canadian Natural Resources’ (CNRL) 500,000 bbl/d Horizon Oil Sands Project, includes a C$1.4-billion (US$1.2-billion), long-range commitment to adopt “gasification” technology for making plant fuel from bitumen.

It remains to be seen whether the effort of California state regulators and the incentives in the new energy law will be sufficient to curb the appeal of California’s consumer group-driven energy reregulation ballot measure in November. Unlike much of the rest of the nation, which will begin seeing cooler temperatures in another three weeks, the Southwest, including California, probably will be broiling and that won’t be good for an already stressed power grid, according to Stephen Conant, senior market analyst at Massachusetts-based Energy Security Analysis, Inc. (ESAI).