Scheme

The trial of three former Dynegy Inc. executives involved in the financing scheme Project Alpha is expected to begin Aug. 4 and last at least eight weeks, attorneys said last week. Jamie Olis, 37, Gene Shannon Foster, 44, and Helen Christine Sharkey, 31, pleaded innocent in separate appearances before a Houston judge last Tuesday.

The trial of three former Dynegy Inc. executives involved in the financing scheme Project Alpha is expected to begin Aug. 4 and last at least eight weeks, attorneys said Tuesday. Jamie Olis, 37, Gene Shannon Foster, 44, and Helen Christine Sharkey, 31, pleaded innocent in separate appearances before a Houston judge.

ChevronTexaco (CVX) has applied to the U.S. Coast Guard for a deepwater port license in an ambitious scheme to construct and operate a liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving and regasification terminal in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GOM), which could be operational as soon as 2006.

Morgan Stanley Capital Group Inc. revealed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week that it has been subpoenaed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as part of an energy trading investigation. The company, which markets gas and power, said it would cooperate with the CFTC but failed to provide further details about the investigation.

MCN Energy said last week deliberate financial miscalculationsby several former employees at CoEnergy trading, its unregulatedgas marketing subsidiary, led to a net loss of $2.7 million,significantly lower earnings in 1997 and 1998, and slightly higherearnings in 1Q99.

MCN Energy said yesterday it has had to chop millions from its 1997and 1998 earnings reports and raise slightly its 1Q99 results becauseof deliberate financial miscalculations by several former employees atCoEnergy trading, its unregulated gas marketing subsidiary. MCNdiscovered the problem last month and fired three employees, includingtwo subsidiary officers (see Daily GPI, May18), for falsely showing good financial results from marketing.

A House bill proposing a nationwide royalty in-kind (RIK) schemefor collecting royalties on oil and natural gas produced on federallands would result in a net revenue loss of $141 million to $367million to the federal government during the first 8 1/2 years ofits implementation.