Distribution

Combination utility NorthWestern Energy signed natural gas supply, management and distribution delivery contracts with two new ethanol plants being developed in eastern South Dakota.

Combination utility NorthWestern Energy signed natural gas supply, management and distribution delivery contracts with two new ethanol plants being developed in eastern South Dakota.

Consulting firm R.J. Rudden Associates Inc. is conducting a survey of local distribution companies (LDCs) to determine the impact on their business of the demise of large marketing companies since the Enron bankruptcy.

While seeking a “global” solution to its credit crunch, PG&E Corp.’s merchant energy unit Friday hit the bottom of the credit ratings as its defaulted on debt payments involving nearly $500 million and faces another $900 million of debt due in the first quarter next year that its executives say it can’t make the payments on.

Piedmont Natural Gas reported Tuesday that it has closed on its purchase of North Carolina Gas Service (NCGS), the North Carolina natural gas distribution division of NUI Corp., for approximately $26 million. First announced in mid-May, the sale agreement has received all necessary regulatory approvals (see Daily GPI, May 16).

Midwestern local distribution companies (LDCs) are looking at far fewer suppliers and treading cautiously in the new wholesale market without the large marketers they had relied on in the past.

Midwestern local distribution companies (LDCs) are looking at far fewer suppliers and treading cautiously in the new wholesale market without the large marketers they had relied on in the past.

Following the completion of end of year audits, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) said it has ordered Gasco Distribution Systems to refund more than $1 million to customers in the company’s Kane and Claysville divisions. The PUC alleged that the natural gas utility overcharged its customers and collected incorrect gas cost rates for customers in McKean and Washington counties.

After evaluating the purchasing trends of local distribution companies (LDCs) during the 2001-2002 heating season, the American Gas Association (AGA) said it believes longer term supply contracting may assume more importance in the future.