Opposes

Although it cautioned that the proponents can develop remedies that would cause it to change its mind, the staff of the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) Friday filed its initial opposition to the proposed sale of Tucson-based utility holding company, UniSource Energy Corp., to a private investment group that includes three major Wall Street investment banking firms.

Canadian Ambassador Michael Kergin said this week that he was “disappointed” the revised U.S. Senate energy bill has “resuscitated” a proposed price floor to encourage the construction of a long-line natural gas transportation system from the North Slope to the Lower 48 states.

FERC-regulated entities such as pipelines should not be required to file cash management agreements with the Commission, nor should they have to notify FERC when their proprietary equity falls below 30%, the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) said in comments on a recently-issued interim rule (see NGI, June 30).

FERC-regulated entities such as pipelines should not be required to file cash management agreements with the Commission, nor should they have to notify FERC when their proprietary equity falls below 30%, the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) said in comments on a recently-issued interim rule (see Daily GPI, June 26).

Despite extensive negotiations and concessions by project planners, the U. S. Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) has protested the construction of an underwater Bahamas to Florida LNG pipeline proposed by AES Ocean Express LLC. According to the center, the proposed line would run through the Navy’s south Florida test range compromising “the mission, operations, maintenance, safety and security at the [testing facility]; thereby adversely impacting unique surface and submarine warfare testing which are essential to the Navy and the security of the Nation and the Fleet.”

A Senate bipartisan coalition led by Louisiana lawmakers yesterday overwhelmingly defeated an amendment to postpone oil and natural gas leasing in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

Nymex Chairman Daniel Rappaport last week sent a letter to Rep.Larry Combest, Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture,raising concern over a subsection of H.R. 4541, the “CommodityFutures Modernization Act of 2000,” which would exempt electronicenergy derivatives trading from regulatory oversight.

While it might think the April Fool’s date is appropriate forNew York to impose a new energy tax, the National Energy MarketersAssociation (NEM) still opposes the plan. “On April 1, 2000, NewYork will impose a new tax on natural gas and electricitytransportation. This new tax will severely limit furtherdevelopment of energy competition,” said NEM President CraigGoodman.

The joint request of Texas Eastern Transmission (Tetco) andAlgonquin Gas Transmission (AGT) for FERC to hold a conference toreview alternatives to the proposed Millennium Pipeline and otherprojects is an attempt to block new pipeline competition in theNortheast and should be rejected outright, Millennium said.