Refuted

Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) has strongly refuted claims in a lawsuit filed by two Colorado cities which accuse the company of overcharging customers located in high elevations by failing to adjust bills to reflect the effect of the higher altitude on the gas stream.

Power industry officials last Tuesday refuted the idea that the sector has lost sight of the importance of maintaining a reliable flow of power across the nation’s electrical grid as the calendar rapidly closes in on the one-year anniversary of the Aug. 14, 2003 blackout that turned off the lights on millions of customers in Canada and the U.S.

Returning fire in the continuing war of words, a Duke Energy official on Friday refuted claims by former employees of its South Bay power facility that the company was manipulating plant output to drive up prices. The company called the charges unfounded, noting that the plant was actually directed by the California Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO), not Duke, to track fluctuations in electricity demand.