Stipulation

A slim FERC majority Thursday voted out four stipulation and consent agreements, requiring marketers and other energy firms to pay more than $8 million in civil penalties and disgorge approximately $4 million in unjust profits for allegedly engaging in fraudulent open-season bidding for natural gas transportation capacity on the Cheyenne Plains Natural Gas Co. pipeline. The agency also, in sharply divided decisions, issued two orders to show cause resulting from an 18-month investigation into the allegedly illegal activity.

FERC Thursday approved four stipulation and consent agreements, requiring marketers and other energy firms to pay more than $8 million in civil penalties and disgorge approximately $4 million in unjust profits for allegedly engaging in fraudulent open-season bidding for natural gas transportation capacity on the Cheyenne Plains Natural Gas Co. pipeline. The agency also issued two orders to show cause resulting from an 18-month investigation into the illegal activity.

FERC is continuing its crackdown on violators of its shipper-must-have-title (SMHT) requirement, approving two separate stipulation and consent agreements in late December that require Sempra Energy Trading LLC and DCP Midstream LLC to pay a combined penalty of nearly $800,000.

FERC Tuesday continued its crackdown on violators of its shipper-must-have-title (SMHT) requirement, approving two separate stipulation and consent agreements that require Sempra Energy Trading LLC and DCP Midstream LLC to pay a combined penalty of nearly $800,000.

FERC Wednesday approved a stipulation and consent agreement that requires Nebraska-based Cornerstone Energy to pay a civil penalty of $325,000 for violations of the agency’s shipper-must-have-title (SMHT) requirement and to disgorge $121,825, plus interest, in unjust profits.

FERC last Wednesday approved a stipulation and consent agreement that requires Nebraska-based Cornerstone Energy to pay a civil penalty of $325,000 for violations of the agency’s shipper-must-have-title (SMHT) requirement and to disgorge $121,825, plus interest, in unjust profits.

Houston-based CenterPoint Energy and the staff of the Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC) have filed a stipulation and agreement with the commission in the company’s pending rate case. If approved by the APSC, the settlement would resolve all issues in that proceeding. The settlement would increase the company’s natural gas distribution base rate revenues for Arkansas customers by about $20 million per year. Additionally, if approved, the settlement would implement a decoupling mechanism to help stabilize revenues by separating or decoupling company revenues from the volume of gas sold. Pending approval, the new rates would go into effect Nov. 1. Residential customer rates would increase less than 5% a month, CenterPoint said.

FERC last Tuesday approved a stipulation and consent agreement requiring Louisiana-based Cleco Power LLC to pay a civil penalty of $2 million for violating its code of conduct and a settlement agreement approved by the agency in 2003.

FERC last Wednesday approved a stipulation and consent agreement that allows Calpine Corp. affiliate Calpine Energy Services LP (CES) to include a $4.5 million civil penalty claim in its bankruptcy proceeding to resolve self-reported violations of the agency’s shipper-must-have-title requirements. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York approved payment of the claim to the agency.