Corp

NGC Corp. touted several recent developments as evidence of itsstrong position in the California electricity marketplace.

A white paper released by Prosper Business Development Corp.outlines three phases of revolution occurring in the energyindustry and explains three mistakes marketers must avoid to ensuresuccess in the competitive marketplace. The paper addressesdifferences from telecommunications deregulation and warns of ashakeout for energy marketing executives who fail to respond to thederegulating market.

Enron Corp. announced first quarter earnings and reportedincreased operating results in each of its core business groups.The company also reported another loss for Enron Energy Servicesdue to start-up costs.

In a transaction making it the largest independent powerproducer in Texas, Calpine Corp. acquired the remaining 50% interest in Texas Cogeneration Co. (TCC), owner of two gas-firedpower plants in Texas City and Pasadena, TX, with 827 MW ofcapacity. Calpine of San Jose, CA, bought the remaining interest inTCC from Dominion Cogen Inc. for about $53 million, plus contingentpurchase payments beginning in 2000 that could approximate 2.9% ofproject revenue. As part of the deal, Calpine now owns a 7.5%interest in a 165 MW gas-fired cogeneration plant located inBayonne, NJ. Calpine Fuels Texas, a subsidiary of Calpine, buys gasfor the Texas plants from Enron Capital & Trade Resources(ECT). In a related transaction, Calpine Fuels Texas paid about$105 million to ECT to restructure its existing gas contracts.

Chesapeake Energy of Oklahoma City has signed a unique agreementwith Gothic Energy Corp., Tulsa, which includes the right for fiveyears to develop 50% of Gothic’s current and subsequently acquiredundeveloped reserves. This includes 60 Bcfe of proved undevelopedreserves and a substantial amount of probable and possiblereserves.

In upholding the rolled-in rate settlement of PG&E GasTransmission Northwest Corp., the Federal Energy RegulatoryCommission ruled last week that replacement shippers who receivedpermanent releases of older, pre-expansion capacity were similarlysituated to the system’s expansion shippers and, therefore, shouldbe charged similar rates.

California regulators have approved the $6.6 billion merger ofPacific Enterprises and Enova Corp., allowing the formation of acompany that will serve 21 million gas and electric consumers inSouthern California. But the merger partners did not get all theyrequested. The CPUC ruled merger savings of $174.9 million must bereturned to ratepayers and savings of $161.5 million returned toshareholders over the five years following completion of the mergerrather than over 10 years

The proposed merger of Pacific Enterprises and Enova Corp. wascleared by the U.S. Department of Justice following a settlementagreement that calls for the merged company to divest itsgeneration assets and seek additional DOJ approval of any purchasesof existing power plants exceeding 500 MW of capacity inCalifornia. It calls for Enova to follow through on its previouslyannounced auction of San Diego Gas & Electric’s (Enova’sprimary electric utility subsidiary) two fossil-fuel power plants,located in Carlsbad and Chula Vista, CA. The agreement ends DOJ’sreview and clears the merger under the notification requirements ofthe Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvement Act.

As a result of KN Energy’s acquisition of MidCon Corp. in lateJanuary, MC2 said it plans to turn its focus to retail natural gasand electric markets in western states in which its new parent doesa lot of trading.