Okays

A federal court in Washington, DC, on Wednesday rejected a challenge by several environmental groups of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) decision authorizing a Denver producer to conduct seismic gas exploration activity on the West Tavatus Plateau in eastern Utah.

Although critical of the utility’s handling of market risk, Idaho regulators Tuesday approved a $22.1 million, or 10%, rate hike for Intermountain Gas to cover increased wholesale natural gas costs, and they encouraged the utility to file another rate adjustment late this summer, before the winter heating season. The new rates take effect Thursday.

In a case settled months ago, the California Public Utilities Commission in a rare unanimous decision last Thursday approved a $326 million 2003 general rate case for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., whose increased rates have been in effect subject to change once the state regulators acted.

In a case settled months ago, the California Public Utilities Commission in a rare unanimous decision Thursday approved a $326 million 2003 general rate case for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., whose increased rates have been in effect subject to change once the state regulators acted.

South Dakota-based NorthWestern Corp., parent of NorthWestern Energy, announced Tuesday that it was granted a handful of bankruptcy motions to continue its utility operations, including energy buying, by the Delaware federal district court following its Chapter 11 filing on Monday.

With state regulatory okays for its near-term programs designed to shave 40 MW of electricity and 5 million therms of gas loads, Bellevue, WA-based Puget Sound Energy (PSE) announced Friday it will seek outside help through a request-for-proposal (RFP) process to reach and exceed its conservation goals.

California regulators Thursday unanimously approved an accounting approach for distributing nearly $500 million of the state’s more than $1 billion portion of the settlement earlier this year with El Paso Corp. The settlement followed years of litigation over whether El Paso manipulated the power and gas markets in the West (see NGI, March 24).

California regulators Thursday unanimously approved an accounting approach for distributing nearly $500 million of the state’s more than $1 billion portion of the settlement earlier this year with El Paso Corp. The settlement followed years of litigation over whether El Paso manipulated the power and gas markets in the West (see Daily GPI, March 24).

South Dakota-based NorthWestern Corp., parent of NorthWestern Energy, announced last Tuesday that it was granted a handful of bankruptcy motions to continue its utility operations, including energy buying, by the Delaware federal district court following its Chapter 11 filing on Monday.