Consumers

National Grid USA’s acquisition last year of KeySpan Corp. continued to provide benefits to consumers Wednesday when the New York State Public Service Commission (NYPSC) found nearly $12 million more in merger savings for customers.

Calling it “barely noticeable” to natural gas utility consumers, the Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) raised natural gas rates 0.7% for Spokane, WA-based Avista Utilities’ 92,355 Oregon customers, effective Tuesday. This is the first of two small gas rate hikes the PUC has authorized for Avista this year.

“Just Do It,” is what its advertisements encourage consumers to do, so Beverton, OR-based Nike Inc. followed similar advice on energy matters from California officials and has converted its cargo-hauling fleet at the Long Beach-Los Angeles Port from diesel to liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled vehicles.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulators, a top official of the regulated New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) and natural gas consumers last Tuesday called on Congress to take action to increase agency oversight of unregulated electronic commodity platforms, particularly those that trade natural gas.

The failed hedge fund Amaranth Advisors LLC, affiliates and former natural gas traders filed joint and separate requests last week for FERC to terminate a July show-cause order that accused the parties of indirectly influencing the price of jurisdictional physical gas transactions in 2006 through manipulation of the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) natural gas futures contract.

FERC last Thursday finalized a series of reforms to its market-based rate program that seek to shield consumers from the exercise of market power by electric power sellers.

In an unusual display of harmony, the majority of California and east-of-California shippers, large natural gas consumers and state regulators said they either support or do not oppose El Paso Natural Gas pipeline’s proposed three-year settlement for transportation rates and services on its system. It appears that the only shipper contesting the settlement is Phoenix, AZ-based Phelps Dodge Corp.

In an unusual display of harmony, the majority of California and east-of-California shippers, large natural gas consumers and state regulators either support or do not oppose El Paso Natural Gas pipeline’s proposed three-year settlement for transportation rates and services on its system. It appears that the only shipper contesting the settlement is Phoenix, AZ-based Phelps Dodge Corp.

In some states where consumers are conserving gas and using more efficient appliances, the reduced gas consumption cuts into the net income of local distribution companies (LDC) and it’s necessary to decouple distribution revenue from throughput or gas consumption to preserve utility revenue.