Gives

Columbia Energy Group received high marks from Fitch IBCA, theinternational debt rating agency, for significant progress sinceemerging from bankruptcy in 1995. “Columbia exhibits a stablefinancial profile and favorable qualitative operatingcharacteristics,” Fitch said in upgrading the company’s $2 billionoutstanding debentures two notches to A from BBB+ and raising its$850 million commercial paper program F1 from F2.

The FERC majority has approved a settlement that not only givescustomers on Texas Gas Transmission lower rates and refunds, butalso clears the way for NorAm Gas Transmission, a non-shipper andpipeline competitor, to have an evidentiary hearing on a number ofrate-related issues contained in the agreement. Commissioner LindaBreathitt dissented in part, saying the ruling set a dangerousprecedent for other rate settlement cases.

Aside from a mostly weather-related boost to cash prices inCalifornia and a supply-related recovery in San Juan prices, Juneincremental trading finished its last trading session flat to downa couple of cents almost across the board. Moderating temperaturesin areas experiencing record setting readings over the weekend andreduced end-of-month activity resulted in the minor softness.

House Commerce Committee Chairman Thomas Bliley (R-VA) andEnergy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Dan Schaefer (F-CO) tried tojump-start interest in electricity restructuring on Capitol Hillearlier this week by issuing draft legislation that would mandatecustomer choice at the state level by Jan 1, 2001, and wouldgrandfather state retail-access programs that are in effect bythen.

The Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA) voiced its support forfuel- and generation-neutral nitrogen oxide requirements proposedby the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

FERC last week gave New York utilities a conditional go-ahead tocreate the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO), making itthe fourth ISO that the Commission has approved so far.

A road block to retail competition in Oklahoma was smashed lastweek when Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating vetoed Senate bill 565, alast-minute attempt to derail gas unbundling in the state. The billwould have pushed back the effective date for unbundling untilOctober 2001 and erased the final rules completed by the OklahomaCorporation Commission in April and approved by the legislature andthe governor.

Producers and other protesters lost a major skirmish Wednesdaywhen FERC accepted with only minor changes Natural GasClearinghouse’s (NGC) contracts for 1.3 Bcf/d of transportationcapacity on El Paso Natural Gas.

A deal to sell gas to and market power from three Los Angelesgenerating facilities gives Williams a much larger foothold in theburgeoning California energy marketplace and boosts its position inboth gas and power marketer rankings.