Flowing

In another case inspired by the added information flowing from ongoing federal and state investigations, Reliant Energy and others were targeted last week in a Los Angeles law firm’s class action lawsuit , alleging a “massive conspiracy” to manipulate wholesale natural gas prices through bankrupt Enron Corp.’s now-defunct online energy trading operation.

There’s plenty of capital available for investment in the transmission sector, but that money isn’t flowing more freely because of a lack of certainty that continues to permeate much of the power industry, a Senate hearing looking at the financial condition of the electric market was told last Tuesday.

Shut-ins from Tropical Storm Isidore and property sales failed to slow down natural gas production for Magnum Hunter Resources Inc., which doubled its quarterly production from 2001. The Irving, TX-based independent reported actual production volumes of 19.8 Bcfe, averaging 215 MMcfe/d, and said its total equivalent production volumes were weighted 67% toward natural gas.

Facing the prospect of a fiscal crisis flowing from its electricity woes, a majority of the five-member California Public Utilities Commission last week rejected the governor’s proposal for a rate agreement with the state power-buying agency, the Department of Water Resources (DWR). The rate agreement had been billed as being essential to a future state bond sale backed by retail utility rates. The vote was 4-1, leaving a major question mark of how the state will pay for its power-buying spree.

Kern River Gas Transmission announced last Monday it had completed construction and was flowing gas through emergency expansion facilities on its Kern River natural gas transmission system. The expansion, which consisted mostly of adding compression, increased delivery capacity of the Wyoming to California pipeline by 135,000 Dth/d.

Kern River Gas Transmission announced Monday it had completed construction and was flowing gas through emergency expansion facilities on its Kern River natural gas transmission system. The expansion, which consists mostly of adding compression, increased delivery capacity of the Wyoming to California pipeline by 135,000 Dt/d.

The offshore Destin Pipeline shut in about 600 MMcf/d of gasthat was flowing on its system Sunday but is expected to resumeflows sometime today pending repairs to a liquids pipelinedownstream of the Pascagoula gas processing plant.

Operating under a two-week extension of emergency orders to keeppower and gas supplies flowing, courtesy of the new Bushadministration, California government leaders last week conductedthe state’s first-ever power auction for long-term contracts, andcontinued to work on new legislation to revitalize its crumblingpower structure.

Northwest finally issued an OFO on Friday after posting warningsmost of the week. Primary nominations flowing north through theKemmerer Compressor Station on Friday exceeded available capacityat that point because of a shortfall in displacement volumes. Thedeclared Stage II (8%) entitlement for delivery points north of theKemmerer Compressor is in effect until further notice. Grants PassLateral requests are exceeding the design capacity at Oregon City,McMinnville, Albany and Eugene. Nominations were cut to designcapacity for the timely process, Northwest said. Kemmerer primarynorthbound volumes remain high with heavy reliance on displacement.NWP cut all alternate capacity at Green River for the timelyprocess.