Stepped

FERC said it plans to begin audits of three additionalinterstate pipelines next month as part of its stepped-up effort tocrack down on abuses involving marketing affiliates. The on-siteaudits of Columbia Gas Transmission, Great Lakes Gas TransmissionL.P. and CNG Transmission are expected to get underway around May18, according to a spokeswoman.

Frustrated by the pace of electric competition’s development inCalifornia, Enron has stepped out of the battle for residentialcustomers, at least for the time being. Enron blamed severalfactors for its decision. Consumer response has been disappointing,and state regulations put a crimp on the profitability of thebusiness.

No one stepped up to take either of the two 593,000 MMBtu/dpackages of El Paso Natural Gas transportation capacity NGC postedfor release over the past 10 days. One package was offered thoughthe end of April and the other through December 1999. Theycomprised 40% of the 1.3 Bcf/d NGC holds on El Paso and 80% of itsaccess to the San Juan Basin under the purchased contracts. NGC’sMike Flinn said market players missed a huge opportunity. One thatNGC isn’t likely to offer again.

The producer refund case has taken a unique turn as severalpipelines have stepped up to argue that while natural gas producersmust pay them the $500 million in refunds – yesterday was thedeadline for payment – they don’t believe they have to pass thatmoney on to their customers.