Remanded

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals last week remanded orders in aPanhandle Eastern Pipe Line case that it says marked a cleardeparture from FERC’s established policy on pipeline interconnectswithout providing any justification for the action.

In a stunning move, a D.C. federal court judge yesterdayremanded Nicholas J. Bush, former president of the Natural GasSupply Association (NGSA), to a halfway house pending sentencing ontwo felony charges for embezzling $2.8 million from the producergroup. Bush had pleaded guilty.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th District has reversed andremanded an order in which FERC asserted jurisdiction over two KNWattenberg Transmission laterals that provide connecting servicefrom Colorado Interstate Gas to two food-processing plants in FortMorgan, CO., thus bypassing the municipal gas provider.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals remanded Friday a FERCdecision approving a 20-year cap on bids for Tennessee Gas Pipelinecapacity that are considered under the net-present-value approach.The Process Gas Consumers Group (PGC), which includes industrialgas users, challenged the Commission order, arguing that it failedto engage in “reasoned decision-making” by allowing the cap on theNPV bids. “…..[W]e find FERC’s reasoning on the cap to beunpersuasive and largely conclusory,” the court opined [No.98-1075]. The court said it didn’t “quarrel” with the goal behindthe Commission’s approval of the NPV capacity-allocation method forTennessee, “but [we] remind FERC of its admitted need to balancethe goal with its duty to prevent exploitation of Tennessee’smonopoly power. FERC appears to have forgotten the latter…..” PGCalso took issue with FERC’s decision allowing Tennessee to applyNPV to shippers attempting to change primary receipt and deliverypoints, and the court agreed with industrials on this point. Thecourt ordered the Commission to “better explain or modify” itsapproval of both issues.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has remanded FERC’s rejectionof a 1997 complaint in which Southern California Edison accusedSouthern California Gas (SoCalGas) of gaming the secondary marketfor firm capacity on key transportation links between the low-costSan Juan producing basin and the California border.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday remanded a case inwhich industrial and LDC customers challenged a FERC-approvedmethod for compensating customers that are curtailed beyond theirpro rata share on Texas Eastern Transmission (Tetco). “This was avery good result for us,” said an attorney for one of thepetitioners.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday remanded a case inwhich industrial and LDC customers challenged a FERC-approvedmethod for compensating customers that are curtailed beyond theirpro rata share on Texas Eastern Transmission (Tetco). “This was avery good result for us,” said an attorney for one of thepetitioners.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit Tuesday remanded tothe FERC the Commission’s ruling that interstate pipelines must getprior approval before leasing capacity on other pipelines. Thedecision came at the behest of Coastal affiliates ColoradoInterstate Gas and ANR Pipeline in their petition for rehearing ofa 1996 ruling from a Texas Eastern Transmission case. The Coastalaffiliates maintain the preclearance requirement burdens them witha competitive disadvantage.