Cruz

As he had done against five merchant generators last year, California’s lieutenant governor Cruz Bustamante Wednesday filed a criminal lawsuit in a Los Angeles state Superior Court on behalf of the state’s taxpayers against energy traders and two McGraw-Hill industry publications that publish natural gas price indices relied on by state officials and the market to establish energy prices.

As he had against five merchant generators last year, California’s lieutenant governor Cruz Bustamante Wednesday filed a criminal lawsuit in a Los Angeles state Superior Court on behalf of the state’s taxpayers against 38 energy trader/marketers and two McGraw-Hill industry publications that publish natural gas price indices relied on by state officials and the market to establish energy prices.

Pacific Gas & Electric said less than 1,000 of the more than60,000 customers who lost natural gas service last week in SantaCruz County, CA, were still without service Monday. A massivelandslide Wednesday had ruptured two main transmission pipelinesserving the county, which is southwest of San Jose. More than 600PG&E workers and another 190 from Southern California Gasworked thoughout the weekend to restore service. Facilities withhot showers were set up in two towns for those without gas to heatwater. It was PG&E’s largest gas restoration project since the1989 Loma Prieta earthquake caused severe damage to thedistribution system throughout Northern and Central California, thecompany said.