Undermined

As most investors and analysts continue to scratch their respective heads in search of evidence as to why the country’s natural gas storage facilities continued to fill at an exceptionally fast pace over the past three months with prices falling, Fred Schultz, of Raymond James & Associates, thinks the answer might lie in an overlooked indicator, namely nuclear power.

Retail gas unbundling in California is “currently beingundermined” by Dynegy Marketing and Trade’s withholding of asignificant portion of firm transportation capacity on El PasoNatural Gas from the market, the head of the California PublicUtilities Commission (CPUC) said last week. As a remedy, CPUCPresident Richard A. Bilas called on FERC to implement regulationsprohibiting the “hoarding” of pipeline capacity and to investigateallegations of anticompetitive conduct, which he contends wasevident in the Dynegy-El Paso arrangement.

Retail unbundling in the California natural gas market is”currently being undermined” by Dynegy Marketing and Trade’swithholding of firm transportation capacity on El Paso Natural Gas,the head of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) saidThursday. As a remedy, CPUC President Richard A. Bilas called onFERC to implement regulations prohibiting the “hoarding” ofpipeline capacity and to investigate allegations of anticompetitiveconduct, which he contends was prevalent in the Dynegy-El Pasocontract arrangement.