Warren

Billionaire Warren Buffett’s venture into the energy utility business continues its focus on the lower-risk, steadier rewards inherent in prudently operated public utilities while passing on his Midas touch to a growing stable of companies, including PacifiCorp, Northern Natural Gas Co. and MidAmerican Energy Co., according to Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (S&P).

Berkshire Hathaway’s charismatic CEO, Warren Buffett, assured state utility regulators last week that his multi-billion-dollar conglomerate is in the energy utility business for the long haul and views the sector as a steady source of income — not an extraordinary one.

Berkshire Hathaway’s charismatic CEO, Warren Buffett, assured state utility regulators this week that his multi-billion-dollar conglomerate is in the energy utility business for the long haul and views the sector as a steady source of income — not an extraordinary one.

News that famed investor Warren Buffett plans to plow more money into the nation’s power industry by investing in transmission lines and power plants and will take other steps to bolster power reliability in the U.S. has FERC Chairman Patrick Wood feeling pretty good as he prepares to depart the federal agency, since these are top priorities for the Commission.

Warren Buffett’s appetite for energy assets displayed itself again last week as his MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. reached a definitive agreement with United Kingdom-based ScottishPower to buy electric affiliate PacifiCorp for $5.1 billion in cash, plus the assumption of $4.3 billion of debt. MidAmerican already has two major interstate natural gas pipelines in addition to its midwestern utility operations.

Warren Buffett’s MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. on Tuesday said it reached a definitive agreement with United Kingdom-based ScottishPower to buy electric affiliate PacifiCorp for $5.1 billion in cash, plus the assumption of $4.3 billion of debt. MidAmerican already has two major interstate natural gas pipelines in addition to its midwestern utility operations.

Warren Buffett, the “Omaha Oracle” whose knack for investment risk has turned a mighty profit for believers, added another energy company to his hefty portfolio on Friday, as Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) agreed to loan cash-poor CenterPoint Energy Inc. $1.31 billion. The three-year loan, which carries a 12.75% interest rate, ensures CenterPoint will make a Nov. 15 deadline to pay off a $400 million facility, and more important, allow it to maintain a $4.7 billion credit facility.

Warren Buffett, the “Omaha Oracle” whose knack for investment risk has turned a mighty profit for believers, added another energy company to his hefty portfolio on Friday, as Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) agreed to loan cash-poor CenterPoint Energy Inc. $1.31 billion. The three-year loan, which carries a 12.75% interest rate, ensures CenterPoint will make a Nov. 15 deadline to pay off a $400 million facility, and more important, allow it to maintain a $4.7 billion credit facility.