Settlements

Putting an end to the two-day string of higher natural gas futures settlements, the natural gas bears were having their way Thursday after the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that a healthy 108 Bcf was put into underground storage for the week ended July 9.

Marking the latest in a series of similar settlements recently reached between power companies and FERC staff, Idaho Power Co. has agreed to pay $83,373 under a proposed agreement filed with FERC trial staff on Thursday. The deal is aimed at resolving allegations that Idaho Power attempted to manipulate the California energy market in 2000-2001.

The two biggest success stories of FERC’s Office of Market Oversight and Investigations (OMOI) during its first year were a record $20 million civil penalty brought against Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp. for engaging in marketing affiliate abuse, and a $1.7 billion settlement to resolve charges that El Paso Corp. drove up natural gas prices in California during the state’s energy crisis, said OMOI Director William F. Hederman last Tuesday.

The two biggest successes of FERC’s Office of Market Oversight and Investigations (OMOI) during its first year were a record $20 million civil penalty brought against Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp. for engaging in marketing affiliate abuse, and a $1.7 billion settlement to resolve charges that El Paso Corp. drove up natural gas prices in California during the state’s energy crisis, said OMOI Director William F. Hederman Tuesday.

In one of the largest settlements ever, Halliburton, the Houston-based oilfield services company that was once run by Vice President Dick Cheney, agreed to pay $4 billion to settle all present and future asbestos claims, allowing the $13 billion company to continue business as usual while providing for victims of asbestos exposure. The company also disclosed last week that it is under formal investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission into disclosure and accounting practices during the vice president’s tenure as chief executive from 1995 to 2000.

In one of the largest settlements ever, the Houston-based company that was once run by Vice President Dick Cheney said the agreement resolves all present and future asbestos claims, allowing the $13 billion company to continue business as usual while providing for victims of asbestos exposure.