Regulatory

Responding to regulatory and industry warnings of potentialpower outages this summer, Pacific Gas and Electric Co., SanFrancisco, has begun offering its largest customers payments forvoluntarily curtailing at least 20% of their loads during peaksummer days. The large combination utility covering the northernhalf of California is targeting its 450 largest customers and arelatively few small businesses to obtain up to 500 MW of savingsin a given peak hour.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last week endorsed acustomer-friendly interconnction plan by Commonwealth Edison,calling it “another critical step” toward getting new merchantpower plants on the transmission grid.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this week took “anothercritical step” toward providing new power generators with more”certainty and assurance” in their efforts to interconnect with thetransmission grid.

ANR Pipeline received Federal Energy Regulatory Commissionapproval to offer two, new flexible transportation servicesspecifically tailored to meet the needs of electric-generationcustomers. The new firm and interruptible transportation services,FTS-3 and ITS-3, respectively, feature variable hourly flows, shortnotice start-up and more delivery flexibility than are provided bytraditional services. “The primary market for these services iselectric generators, including new peaking plants that often favorusing clean-burning natural gas but require the ability to start-upand shut down on shorter notice than is provided by the normalnomination and scheduling process,” said ANR President Jeffrey A.Connelly. “Our new services are intended to meet the requirementsof these shippers for greater flexibility in managing theirtransportation needs.” For more information on the new services,contact an ANR marketing representative via ANR’s Web site atwww.anrpl.com or by calling 1-800-8-ASK-ANR.

Absent a showing of market support, the Federal EnergyRegulatory Commission staff last week threatened to dismiss PetalGas Storage L.L.C.’s amended proposal in which it seeks to expandthe deliverability of its storage facilities in Mississippi.

Absent a showing of market support, the Federal EnergyRegulatory Commission staff has threatened to dismiss Petal GasStorage L.L.C.’s amended proposal in which it seeks to expand thedeliverability of its storage facilities in Mississippi.

In a very terse order, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissiondenied producers’ request to stay the waiver of the price caps onshort-term capacity release transactions in time for the scheduledlifting of the price ceiling over the weekend.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission could go a long waytoward increasing liquidity in the pipeline transportation marketby combining capacity release and pipeline interruptibletransportation under one set of rules, according to the head of thelargest electronic gas and power trading system.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission could go a long waytoward increasing liquidity in the pipeline transportation marketby combining capacity release and pipeline interruptibletransportation under one set of rules, according to the head of thelargest electronic gas and power trading system.