Fires

In a surprising announcement last week, California’s Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO) revealed that it fired an employee Monday for violating the grid operator’s rules by seeking a specific bid and price from Enron Corp. The issue surfaced last week from some state legislative subpoenaed tape recordings from Enron Corp. The incident at this point is thought to be an isolated case with a market impact of less than $100,000. No criminal or civil charges are contemplated at this time.

As debate on the nation’s energy and environmental policy continues in Washington, coal lobbyists weighed in with a study showing that coal production and generation is responsible for between $163 and $659 billion in increased economic output in the U.S.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Tuesday announced it had determined that Enron common stock and its related securities were “no longer suitable for trading,” and should be suspended immediately. Just hours later Enron came back with a new ticker symbol, announcing it henceforth would trade on the over-the-counter market as ENRNQ. Quotation service will be provided by the National Quotation Bureau, LLC “Pink Sheets.”

After being cited for contempt last month for not handing over confidential documents detailing its western power trading operations, Enron Corp. returned fire at California lawmakers last week, accusing them of making it a “convenient political scapegoat to shoulder the blame for California’s policy mistakes and changes in market fundamentals.” The Houston-based marketing and trading giant filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of the State of California in Sacramento against the Senate Select Committee to Investigate Price Manipulation of the Wholesale Energy Market.

Enron Corp. fired back at California yesterday, filing a lawsuit against a state Senate committee to block a subpoena for internal documents covering virtually its “entire western marketing and trading operations.” The suit against the Senate Select Committee to Investigate Price Manipulation of the Wholesale Energy Market was filed in the Superior Court of the State of California in Sacramento.

In a second lawsuit filed this week to prevent future legalroadblocks, Royal Dutch Shell Group is asking a federal court todeclare that its tender offer to take over Denver-based BarrettResources Corp. complies with the regulations of the Securities andExchange Commission, and that Barrett may not file a lawsuit on anymerger-related issues except in the Delaware courts, where Barrettis incorporated.

Keyspan Corp. announced last week that its consolidated earnings for the year 2000 before restructuring charges soared above 1999 levels.

Keyspan Corp. announced yesterday that its consolidated earningsfor the year 2000 before restructuring charges skyrocketed above 1999levels. The company posted earnings of $323.8 million ($2.21 pershare), compared to 1999’s mark of $223.9 million ($1.62 pershare). The $41.1 million one-time restructuring charge came primarilyfrom Keyspan’s acquisition of Northeast distributors EasternEnterprises and EnergyNorth during November. The charge reducedearnings to $282.7 million ($2.10 per share) (see Daily GPI, Nov. 10, 2000).

Will there be fewer holiday lights this season in Wisconsin?More woodburning fires? Wisconsin Public Service Corp., a unit ofWPS Resources Corp., warned Friday that its natural gas customersmay see a 17% hike in their energy bills this month because of thelatest increase in wholesale gas prices. WPSC said that its averageresidential customer would pay nearly 57% more overall this yearthan last, about $50 total.