The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission voted Wednesday to push back the planned conversion on El Paso Natural Gas of full requirements (FR) service to contract demand (CD) service from Nov. 1, 2002 to May 1, 2003, allowing existing CD shippers whose transportation capacity may be subject to continuing pro rata cuts to receive demand charge credits in the interim period.
Delayed
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New Arizona Power Plants’ Viability Questioned after Deregulation Delayed
Arizona Public Service (APS) will file a motion to reconsider a move to slow down deregulation, after the three-member Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) on Tuesday voted unanimously to reverse a 1999 requirement that the state’s utilities divest their generating assets. The vote followed a ruling by the commission’s administrative law judge in July, who recommended that Arizona delay competition past July 2004 because the wholesale market was not ready (see Power Market Today, Aug. 28).
WI Lateral to Guardian Delayed to Resolve Permits, Land Access
Milwaukee-based We Energies (formerly Wisconsin Energy Corp.) is delaying construction of a 38-mile natural gas lateral extension into the Guardian pipeline project until the spring of 2003, but Guardian will remain on schedule for an in-service date later this year, a spokeswoman said. We Energies is halting construction of the lateral through Jefferson and Waukesha counties until next year to resolve some permit and land acquisition issues.
CPUC Takes Long-Delayed Direct Access Action; New Majority Evident
The California Public Utility Commission’s (CPUC) newest member and fourth Democratic appointee, Michael Peevey, joined in a new coalition majority Thursday on a narrow (3-2), politically charged vote to make the CPUC’s earlier suspension of retail direct access effective on the date of the original decision, Sept. 20. The vote derails the CPUC president’s desire to make the suspension retroactive to July 1 and may have implications for future issues facing the regulators.
Delayed Projects to Have ‘Significant Impact’ on North American Infrastructure
Outside factors, led by the scrutiny of the credit ratings agencies, could become the biggest deterrent to building new infrastructure, according to energy executives speaking at the GasMart/Power 2002 conference in Reno last Wednesday. Bill Hobbs, CEO of Williams Energy Marketing & Trading, said that while the “Enron hype is gone,” the $15 billion worth of capital cuts made by companies in the past few months “will have a significant impact” in the next five years.
Moody’s, S&P Split Over Williams’ Communications Liabilities
It was a rocky week for Williams, which delayed its final earnings estimate Tuesday in order to evaluate contingent liabilities with its spin-off Williams Communications Group (WCG), an action that sparked a rash of investor lawsuits and split the two main ratings agencies down the middle. Late Friday Moody’s Investor Service confirmed Williams ratings, and classified them as stable, while even later Friday Standard and Poor’s (S&P) placed Williams and subsidiaries on CreditWatch with negative implications.
Initial ALJ Decision in Transwestern Case Delayed
FERC Chief Administrative Law Judge Curtis Wagner Jr. has extended by two weeks the deadline for an initial decision in the case in which Transwestern Pipeline is alleged to have arranged more lucrative negotiated-rate deals last winter prior to posting available firm transportation capacity to its web site — a move that extracted higher rates and limited the capacity availability for recourse-rate shippers for service to California.
Initial ALJ Decision in Transwestern Case Delayed
FERC Chief Administrative Law Judge Curtis Wagner Jr. has extended by two weeks the deadline for an initial decision in the case in which Transwestern Pipeline is alleged to have arranged more lucrative negotiated-rate deals last winter prior to posting available firm transportation capacity to its web site — a move that extracted higher rates and limited the capacity availability for recourse-rate shippers for service to California.
Attacks Delay Vote on Montana Power Asset Divestiture
The terrorist attack on New York delayed a shareholder vote on Montana Power Co.’s planned sale of its gas and power distribution business to NorthWestern Corp. for $602 million in cash and assumption of $488 million in debt. The vote was scheduled to take place on Friday at 1:30 p.m. at the Mother Lode Theater in Butte, MT, however the New York company in charge of tabulating the votes was affected by the terrorist attacks. In addition, the New York Stock Exchange was closed and isn’t expected to open until today.
Attacks Delay Vote on Montana Power Asset Divestiture
The terrorist attack on New York has delayed a shareholder vote on Montana Power Co.’s planned sale of its gas and power distribution business to NorthWestern Corp. for $602 million in cash and assumption of $488 million in debt. The vote was scheduled to take place on Friday at 1:30 p.m. at the Mother Lode Theater in Butte, MT, however the New York company in charge of tabulating the votes was affected by the terrorist attacks. In addition, the New York Stock Exchange is closed and isn’t expected to open until Monday.