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The solar energy industry’s chief lobbyist called for a full-court press in the days and weeks ahead to urge Congress to pass an energy bill this year, and longer-term for solar to assert itself as a listened-to voice in Washington, DC. Rhone Resch, president of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), made these comments last Tuesday in what he called the largest U.S. solar meeting ever in Long Beach, CA.

Cheniere Energy Partners LP, a limited partnership formed by Cheniere Energy Inc. to develop, own and operate the Sabine Pass LNG [liquefied natural gas] receiving terminal currently under construction in western Cameron Parish, LA (see Daily GPI, July 21, 2006), is being spun off as an initial public offering (IPO). Cheniere Energy Partners will be listed on the American Stock Exchange under the symbol “CQP.” The IPO of 12.5 million common units represents 7.6% interest in Cheniere Energy Partners. Of the units being offered, 5.2 million will be offered by Cheniere Energy Partners; the other 7.3 million will be offered by Cheniere LNG Holdings LLC. Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC will act as joint book-running managers. RBC Capital Markets Corp., Sanders Morris Harris Inc., Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. Inc., Howard Weil Inc., Pritchard Capital Partners LLC and FIG Partners LLC Energy Capital Group will act as co-managers.

McMoRan Exploration Co. last Thursday said that it received final approval for its proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) deepwater project — the Main Pass Energy Hub (MPEH) — to be located offshore Louisiana.

McMoRan Exploration Co. said Thursday that it received final approval for its proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) deepwater project — the Main Pass Energy Hub (MPEH) — to be located offshore Louisiana.

The American Gas Association (AGA) has begun running radio ads in the Washington, DC area that call on Congress to pass during the lame-duck session legislation opening the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to more oil and natural gas drilling. The fate of an offshore drilling bill, however, remained uncertain as lawmakers returned to Capitol Hill Monday.

Ex-Enron Corp. CFO Andrew Fastow, who was sentenced to six years in prison last month (see Daily GPI, Sept. 27), will be given a day pass through October to allow him to participate in a deposition to prepare for a trial against several of Enron’s former banking partners. Also on Friday, Dynegy Inc. agreed to pay Enron $44 million to resolve litigation issues, a bank settled with Enron for another $20 million, and Enron’s former corporate secretary received probation for helping prosecutors convict Enron founder Kenneth Lay and ex-CEO Jeffrey Skilling.

Ex-Enron Corp. CFO Andrew Fastow, who was sentenced to six years in prison last month (see NGI, Oct. 2), will be given a day pass through October to allow him to participate in a deposition to prepare for a trial against several of Enron’s former banking partners. Also on Friday, Dynegy Inc. agreed to pay Enron $44 million to resolve litigation issues, a bank settled with Enron for another $20 million, and Enron’s former corporate secretary received probation for helping prosecutors convict Enron founder Kenneth Lay and ex-CEO Jeffrey Skilling.

The U.S. Coast Guard and Maritime Administration has issued a finding of no significant environmental impact to McMoRan Exploration Co. for its amended Main Pass Energy Hub (MPEH) liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, which would be located 16 miles offshore Louisiana. In addition, McMoRan also received a letter from the Department of Natural Resources for the state of Louisiana on Sept. 21, indicating that the proposed facility is consistent with the Louisiana Coastal Resources Program.

The U.S. Coast Guard and Maritime Administration last week issued a finding of no significant environmental impact to McMoRan Exploration Co. for its amended Main Pass Energy Hub (MPEH) liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, which would be located 16 miles offshore Louisiana. In addition, McMoRan also reported that it received a letter from the Department of Natural Resources for the state of Louisiana on Sept. 21, indicating that the proposed facility is consistent with the Louisiana Coastal Resources Program.