Fire

As the rules of the electricity game continue to change, the current set of voluntary transmission system reliability guidelines is starting to look more and more antiquated, several experts told a Senate Governmental Affairs Committee hearing yesterday examining the impact of electric industry restructuring on system reliability. The voluntary approach to reliability should be scrapped in favor of a mandatory set of rules that include an enforcement element, the experts told the panel.

Returning fire in the continuing war of words, a Duke Energy official on Friday refuted claims by former employees of its South Bay power facility that the company was manipulating plant output to drive up prices. The company called the charges unfounded, noting that the plant was actually directed by the California Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO), not Duke, to track fluctuations in electricity demand.

Returning fire in the continuing war of words, a Duke Energy official refuted claims by South Bay power plant ex-employees Friday, and said that output at the company’s plant was actually directed not by Duke, but by the California Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO) to track fluctuations in electricity demand. The plant, he said, operated at top reliability at all times.

Rep. Joe Barton’s (R-TX) emergency legislation for California and FERC’s decision last week to rein in prices on emergency spot transactions in the state’s wholesale power market were broadsided by Democrats on the House Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee Tuesday.

The proposed open-tap policy of Gulf South Pipeline Co. LP,formerly Koch Gateway Pipeline, came under fire last week from anumber of shippers that claimed it violated FERC’s policy withrespect to interconnections.

Independent power marketers have denounced efforts by theCalifornia Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO) to extend itspurchase price cap authority, fearing it would give the Cal-ISO”unfettered” control over wholesale electric market prices in thestate. But California investor-owned utilities, Southern CaliforniaEdison and Pacific Gas and Electric, and the California PowerExchange (Cal-PX) and California Electricity Oversight Board see anupside to the Cal-ISO’s request.

FERC should either reject outright or suspend for the maximumfive-month period Dominion Transmission Inc.’s request for a”massive and unsupported rate increase” of $65 million, a municipalgas distributor contends.

The explosion and fire on El Paso Natural Gas’ system insoutheast New Mexico in August, which killed 12 people, underscoresthe need for a newer gas pipeline infrastructure in the UnitedStates, according to a Department of Energy (DOE) report releasedlast week.

The explosion and fire on El Paso Natural Gas’ system insoutheast New Mexico in August, which killed 12 people, underscoresthe need for a newer gas pipeline infrastructure in the UnitedStates, according to a Department of Energy (DOE) report releasedthis week.