California regulators Thursday approved two more components of the Southern California natural transmission/storage system restructuring that has been unfolding for several years. Sempra Energy’s two utilities got what they asked for from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).
Unfolding
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Advanced Metering Industry Poised to Take Off in Current Utility Push
Pushed by regulators and the aggressive approach unfolding in California, the industry supporting advanced meter infrastructure (AMI) technology is gearing up for growth it could only hope for a decade ago. A combination of improved technology and regulatory-induced incentives for major utilities to change out their entire systems is sparking the growth.
Advanced Metering Industry Poised to Take Off in Current Utility Push
Pushed by regulators and the aggressive approach unfolding in California, the industry supporting advanced meter infrastructure (AMI) technology is gearing up for growth it could only hope for a decade ago. A combination of improved technology and regulatory-induced incentives for major utilities to change out their entire systems is sparking the growth.
Western Gas Infrastructure Growing More Competitive
With or without electric generation and transmission expansion plans in the West, a number of new natural gas pipeline and storage projects are unfolding throughout the region, according to a panel of executives from major developers at the “LDC Forum — Rockies & West” conference Tuesday in Los Angeles. The assortment of projects place many of the major industry players in direct head-to-head competition in the Rockies, Pacific Northwest and at the California-Arizona border.
Perot Systems Seen Offering ‘Crime School’ to CA Market Players
In some of his most colorful language yet in the still-unfolding western energy trading scandals, Portland, OR-based economic consultant Robert McCullough late last month assessed some of the documents turned over to California state legislators by Plano, TX-based Perot Systems Corp, offering an unnamed energy lawyer’s assessment that the Perot firm ran a veritable “crime school” for at least nine would-be market participants in 1997-98, even before the state’s industry restructuring kicked off.
Dingell Seeks Federal Safety Probe of Enron Pipes
In yet another chapter in the unfolding saga of Enron Corp., Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) has called on the Department of Transportation’s Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) to look into whether the company’s questionable practices extended to cutting corners on the safety and security of its pipeline operations.
Gulfstream Caught Up in Unfolding Debate on FL Drilling Ban
Gulfstream Natural Gas System, an Alabama-to-Florida pipeline project jointly owned by Duke Energy and Williams, was caught in the middle of what began as a feud between the House Alabama and Florida delegations on Capitol Hill last week, and led to a heated debate over the need for Florida to re-think its ban on offshore drilling in light of the state’s expanding appetite for natural gas. If not, one Texas lawmaker warned Florida could become the next California.
Gas Production Mostly Up in Q1
Beneath the hefty first quarter earnings’ figures for oil and gas companies, a more compelling tale is unfolding as both majors and independents operating in North America appear to be benefiting from the move to the drill bit. Production numbers so far are mixed, but some indicate that gas production is up significantly — with some companies predicting the best is yet to come.
Speculation Mounts on Elk Hill Production
Occidental Petroleum, the unpredictable mid-size producer, holdssome wild cards in California’s unfolding natural gasrestructuring, and it’s so far playing them close to the vest.Independents in the south San Joaquin Valley oil patch think Oxy is”up to something,” perhaps a merger with another Californiaproducer, while others are watching the company put increasinglymore gas supplies on the market since buying Elk Hills reservesfrom the federal government two years ago.