Owned

TransCanada PipeLines Ltd., through its wholly-owned subsidiary,TransCanada OSP Holdings Ltd., reported last week it purchased anadditional 29.9% interest in an Ocean State Power (OSP) plant fromNational Grid USA for an estimated $61 million, making it the soleowner of the OSP facility. The transaction is expected to close bySeptember, pending regulatory approvals.

Houston’s Torch Energy Advisors Inc. announced Monday that itformed a wholly owned subsidiary, Torch Energy TM Inc. (TETM).Natural gas marketing, along with refined products, derivativesmarketing and specialty product transactions will now be handled byTETM. Torch and its subsidiaries provide extensive outsourcingservices, including financial and accounting services, oil and gasoperations, hydrocarbon marketing and property acquisitions anddivestitures. Contact Blake Beyer at (713) 756-1881 forinformation.

NRG Energy Inc., a Minneapolis-based wholly owned subsidiary ofNorthern States Power Co., is going public and filed for anoffering of 18% of its common stock. The maximum aggregate offeringprice of the offer is $600 million. All proceeds will remain withNRG Energy.

Utilipro Inc., an 80% AGL Resources-owned billing and customerservice provider, announced last week it is cutting staff andreorganizing because energy deregulation is taking hold too slowly.

Utilipro Inc., an 80% AGL Resources-owned customer-caresolutions provider, announced yesterday it is cutting staff andreorganizing because energy deregulation is taking hold too slowly.

In its order (CP99-94) approving the downsized project last week, FERCnoted that FGT had amended its plan and cut facilities for the New SmyrnaBeach Lateral that would have served a trailblazing 514 MW merchant powerplant proposed by Duke Energy and approved by the Florida Public ServiceCommission. The PSC’s certification of the power plant was appealed bythe IOUs in a case that currently is lodged in the state Supreme Court.A Duke spokesman said the company was confident its New Smyrna Beach PowerPlant ultimately would be approved, but it has dropped back from FGT’sPhase IV expansion due to go into service in May, 2001 to its Phase V expansiondue in 2002 (see NGI, Dec. 6).

Florida Gas Transmission received the go-ahead for constructionof its Phase IV expansion to serve investor-owned utilities (IOUs)and industrials in Florida, minus capacity that would have servedthe state’s first merchant power plant.

The bitter cold that cut through the Northeast last week,triggering record gas demand on distribution systems owned by SouthJersey Gas, KeySpan, Berkshire Gas, and Baltimore Gas and Electric,didn’t spare Con Edison of New York. The company said the severecold snap was responsible for record-setting gas usage as well asthe total amount of gas transported through its gas transmissionand distribution system.

Conectiv is selling 1,875 MW of fossil-fired generation andrelated assets that are owned by its subsidiaries, Atlantic CityElectric Co. and Delmarva Power & Light, to NRG Energy ofMinneapolis, a subsidiary of Northern States Power, for $800million. The deal includes a power sales contract at closing, inwhich Delmarva will buy 500 MW from NRG.