A pair of bills designed to tap “affordable natural gas in the MarcellusShale” and bring gas service to more consumers in Pennsylvania has been approved by the state’s Senate and moved to the House of Representatives for consideration.
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Princeton, NJ-based NRG Energy Inc. and Houston-based GenOn Energy Inc. said Friday that their respective shareholders have approved a proposed merger that has implications for the nation’s mix of natural gas- and coal-fired generation plants (see Daily GPI, Aug. 10). When completed, the NRG-GenOn combination would create the nation’s largest competitive electric generator with nearly 47,000 MW of capacity, spanning gas, coal, solar, nuclear and wind facilities. The merger still needs approvals from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the New York Public Service Commission, among others. “An overwhelming shareholder vote” for the combination reflects the fact that the merger is a “win-win for everyone,” according to NRG CEO David Crane. GenOn CEO Edward Muller pointed to “substantial cost savings and efficiency benefits” from the merger.
Industry Execs See Natural Gas Trumping Politics
Market dynamics will override politics and the job producing and economic stimulus effects of the gas industry will prevail in the years ahead regardless of the outcome of this fall’s presidential elections, according to panelists at the LDC Gas Forum’s mid-continent meeting in Chicago Monday.
EPA, DOI, DOE Each Studying New Fracking Rules
How many U.S. government agencies does it take to frack a well?
Enterprise: Former Partner Wasn’t Spurned
A lawsuit filed by Energy Transfer Partners LP against Enterprise Products Partners LP and Enbridge Inc. over an abandoned proposal to construct an oil pipeline from Cushing, OK, to Houston “is about a company…trying to get in the courthouse what it could not achieve in the marketplace,” Enterprise said in a motion for summary judgment.
Bill Requiring Federal OK of Drilling on State Lands Draws Ire
Texas Railroad Commissioner Elizabeth Jones has slammed Congress’ attempt to usurp the states’ authority over oil and natural gas exploration and production activities on private and state lands.
Industry Briefs
Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPE), Duncan Energy Partners LP (DEP) and Enterprise GP Holdings LP (EPGP) realigned the boards of the respective general partners to strengthen corporate governance policies. The majority of each board now is composed of nonmanagement directors. The EPGP board is to be helmed by CEO and President Michael A. Creel, Executive Vice President (EVP) A.J. “Jim” Teague and three nonmanagement directors. The DEP board is now composed of President and CEO W. Randall Fowler and four nonmanagement directors. EPE is now run by President and CEO Ralph S. Cunningham, EVP Richard H. Bachmann and five nonmanagement directors. The changes to the boards do not impact the business units’ structures or their strategic focuses, EPE said.
Federal, State Alaska Gasline Leaders Quit
As two competing Alaska-Lower 48 gasline projects creep toward their respective open seasons, last week saw the resignations of the gasline’s federal coordinator, as well as that of the project manager for a separate gasline to serve in-state needs.
S&P: Two Munis’ Gas Buying Unaffected by Bank Credit Upgrade
Two public-sector utilities in California and Tennessee won’t see any change in the credit ratings of their respective natural gas-buying units from the ratings upgrade of Wachovia Bank NA, according to an assessment released Monday by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (S&P). Both the ratings and the credit outlook remain unchanged on the $449 million in gas-buying bonds of the two utilities.
Nymex, CME Respond to DOJ Exchange Clearing Concerns
As they watched their respective share values plummet last Wednesday as a result of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) findings that financial futures exchanges that also act as clearinghouses are barriers to competition, the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) — which are currently in talks for an $11 billion merger — fired back.