text
stringlengths 1
1.59M
| meta
dict |
---|---|
done.
Enron North America Corp.
From: Megan Parker @ ENRON 03/06/2001 10:54 AM
To: Daren J Farmer/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Tenaska IV Feb 2001
We do not have a demand fee for the Feb 2001 Tenaska IV sale, deal 384258.
Can you please put this in so I can bill? From your spreadsheet, it looks
like it needs to be $2,291,888.83, but you can verify. I subtracted the
agency fee from the Tenaska IV receipt number, since we already have that
booked.
Megan | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
IMPORTANT - THE IDS BELOW WILL BE YOUR PERMANENT ACCESS TO PRODUCTION
Your PRODUCTION User ID and Password has been set up on UBSWenergy. Please follow the steps below to access the new environment:
From Internet Explorer connect to the UBSWenergy Production Cluster through the following link:
http://remoteservices.netco.enron.com/ica/ubswenergy.ica (use your UBSWenergy/Enron NT Log In & Password)
From the second Start menu, select appropriate application:
STACK MANAGER
User ID: fsturm
Password: q#9M#npX (Please Change)
Below is a special internal use only link for the simulation purposes only to get to the trading area of the website.
DO NOT PROVIDE THIS LINK TO ANYONE NOT PART OF THE SIMULATION.
(customers should be directed to go to the direct link www.ubsenergy.com).
http://www.ubswenergy.com/site_index.html (FOR SIMULATION ONLY)
WEBSITE - Book (NETCO-LT-MW)
User ID: MUS35286
Password: WELCOME!
Should you have any questions or issues, please contact me at x33465 or the Call Center at 713-584-4444
Thank you,
Stephanie Sever
713-853-3465 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Today's news, and some from the weekend, in the following order:
A year later, energy crisis shows no signs of cooling off, By Ed Mendel , San
Diego Union Tribune April 30, 2001 (Quotes ???
???Smutny on behalf of IEP)
The Daily News of Los Angeles, April 27, 2001 Friday, Valley Edition, NEWS;
????Pg. N9, 275 words, PROPOSED LAW PUTS BOUNTY ON ENERGY MANIPULATORS, Staff
????And Wire Services (Quotes Smutny on behalf of IEP)
San Jose Mercury News, April 27, 2001, Friday, SJ-ELECTRIC-SUIT, 245 words,
????Santa Clara County, Calif., Joins Lawsuit against Electric Suppliers, By
????John Woolfolk (Quotes Smutny on behalf of IEP)
FERC Considers Imposing a Fee on Electricity Sales in California ?????
???Updated: Monday, April 30, 2001 12:40 AM?ET ????-- Dow Jones News Wire?
?
Los Angeles Times, April 30, 2001, Monday,, Home Edition, Page 3, 792 words
????, CAPITOL JOURNAL; ?CALIFORNIA AND THE WEST; ??How Sales Tax Is Falling
????Through a Loophole, GEORGE SKELTON, SACRAMENTO
Los Angeles Times, April 30, 2001, Monday,, Home Edition, Page 3, 1808
????words, CALIFORNIA AND THE WEST; ??THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY CRISIS; ??LIST OF
????PG&E CREDITORS SHOWS FIRM'S WIDE REACH IN BUSINESS; ??BANKRUPTCY: IT
????INCLUDES SMALL AND BIG COMPANIES, GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND FORMER
EMPLOYEES.,
????TIM REITERMAN, TIMES STAFF WRITER, SAN FRANCISCO
Los Angeles Times, April 30, 2001, Monday,, Home Edition, Page 3, 1228
????words, CALIFORNIA AND THE WEST; ??THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY CRISIS; ??POWER
WOES
????COMPLICATE DISCUSSIONS ON BUDGET; ??FUNDING: GOV. DAVIS' PLAN FOR NEXT
YEAR
????FACES DEMANDS FOR BILLIONS AS A RESERVE AND TO CUSHION ELECTRICITY RATE
????HIKES., DAN MORAIN, TIMES STAFF WRITER, SACRAMENTO
Los Angeles Times, April 30, 2001, Monday,, Home Edition, Page 7, 839 words
????, COMMENTARY; ??WILL THE FERC SEE THE LIGHT ON THE LAW?, FRANK A. WOLAK,
????Frank A. Wolak, an economics professor at Stanford University, is,
chairman
????of the Market Surveillance Committee of the California, Independent System
????Operator
The New York Times, April 30, 2001, Monday, Late Edition - Final, Section
????A; Page 1; Column 5; Business/Financial Desk, 1444 words, While a Utility
????May Be Failing, Its Owner Is Not, By By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. and LAURA M.
????HOLSON
The San Francisco Chronicle, APRIL 30, 2001, MONDAY,, FINAL EDITION, NEWS;,
????Pg. A3, 1108 words, NEWSMAKER PROFILE; ???Nettie Hoge; ???Taking on power;
????Consumer advocate revels in uphill battle, Chuck Squatriglia
The Washington Post, April 30, 2001, Monday, Final Edition, A SECTION; Pg.
????A03, 1669 words, Energy Forecast for Summer: No Blackouts but Price
Spikes;
????Grid Managers Promote Conservation, Await New Plants, William Claiborne,
????Washington Post Staff Writer, CHICAGO
The Associated Press State & Local Wire, April 30, 2001, Monday, BC cycle,
????9:49 AM Eastern Time, State and Regional, 594 words, Developments in
????California's energy crisis, By The Associated Press
AP Online, April 29, 2001; Sunday, Domestic, non-Washington, general news
????item, 1313 words, Geothermal Plants Need More Steam, JENNIFER COLEMAN,
????MIDDLETOWN, Calif.
The Associated Press State & Local Wire, April 29, 2001, Sunday, BC cycle,
????State and Regional, 413 words, Guns in schools, deregulation delay on
????lawmakers' agenda, By BRAD CAIN, Associated Press Writer, SALEM, Ore.
Idaho Falls Post Register, April 29, 2001 Sunday, News; Pg. a1, 530 words,
????Plenty of blame to go around for West's power woes, PAUL MENSER
Los Angeles Times, April 29, 2001, Sunday,, Home Edition, Page 6, 1312
????words, THE STATE; ??HOW KILOWATT SOCIALISM SAVED L.A. FROM THE ENERGY
CRISIS
????, JEFF STANSBURY, Jeff Stansbury is a PhD candidate in American history at
????UCLA. His, dissertation is on the role of the labor movement in the
building
????of, L.A.'s infrastructure
Los Angeles Times, April 29, 2001, Sunday,, Home Edition, Page 4, 558 words
????, CONSERVATION SANDBAGS; ??THE DAVIS ADMINISTRATION NEEDS TO LAUNCH A
CRASH
????EDUCATION COURSE TO CONVINCE CALIFORNIANS OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE
????ELECTRICITY CRISIS AND THE NEED FOR FAR-REACHING ENERGY-SAVING MEASURES.
Los Angeles Times, April 29, 2001, Sunday,, Home Edition, Page 27, 1316
????words, BUSH: THE FIRST 100 DAYS; ??BUSH IS OFF TO A ROCKY START IN HIS
????HANDLING OF ALL THINGS CALIFORNIAN; ??POLITICS: BUT WHY WOO THE GOLDEN
STATE
????WHEN HE CAN'T CARRY IT IN AN ELECTION 'NO MATTER HOW HARD HE TRIES,' ONE
????ANALYST POINTS OUT., RICHARD SIMON, TIMES STAFF WRITER, WASHINGTON
Los Angeles Times, April 29, 2001, Sunday,, Home Edition, Page 2, 1290
????words, WEEK IN REVIEW; ??TOP 10 STORIES / APRIL 23-27, Lisa Girion and
????Terril Yue Jones and Sallie Hofmeister and James Bates and Peter Pae and
????Jeff Leeds and Nancy Rivera Brooks and Peter Gosselin
The New York Times, April 29, 2001, Sunday, Late Edition - Final, Section
????4; Page 17; Column 1; Editorial Desk, 756 words, Reckonings; The Real
Wolf,
????By PAUL KRUGMAN
Sacramento Bee, April 29, 2001, Sunday, Pg. A1;, 1323 words, Diesel plants
????spark concern They're expected to generate big air-quality problems when
????predicted summer blackouts hit., Chris Bowman and Stuart Leavenworth Bee
????Staff Writers
Sacramento Bee, April 29, 2001, Sunday, Pg. A1, 1544 words, Why Edison,
????PG&E split on strategy, Dale Kasler Bee Staff Writer
Sacramento Bee, April 29, 2001, Sunday, Pg. A3, 679 words, What will be
????fallout from California's energy meltdown?, Dan Walters
The San Francisco Chronicle, APRIL 29, 2001, SUNDAY,, FINAL EDITION,
????INSIGHT;, Pg. D1, 1419 words, The energy crisis is good for you, Louis
????Freedberg
Ventura County Star, April 29, 2001 Sunday, Editorials; Pg. B09, 704 words,
????Reality is what's needed for real policy ?GOVERNOR: Consumers deserve to
get
????real facts from Davis., Dan Walters
Los Angeles Times, April 28, 2001, Saturday,, Home Edition, Page 19, 679
????words, OFFICIALS CALL PRICE STABILITY PLAN ILLEGAL; ??UTILITIES: AGENCY
????CHIEFS SAY THE FEDERAL PROPOSAL COULD ALSO CAUSE MORE BLACKOUTS THIS
SUMMER.
????, NANCY VOGEL and MIGUEL BUSTILLO, TIMES STAFF WRITERS, SACRAMENTO
Los Angeles Times, April 28, 2001, Saturday,, Home Edition, Page 19, 688
????words, BILL COULD FOIL DAVIS' ELECTRICITY OFFENSIVE; ??POWER: CONGRESSMAN
????WANTS TO LET SMALL PRODUCERS SELL ON WHOLESALE MARKET. BACKERS SAY PLAN
????WOULD BOOST SUPPLY, BUT FOES SEE IT COSTING CALIFORNIA DEARLY., JULIE
TAMAKI
????and MIGUEL BUSTILLO, TIMES STAFF WRITERS, SACRAMENTO
Los Angeles Times, April 28, 2001, Saturday,, Home Edition, Page 2, 137
????words, BRIEFLY / ENERGY; ??PUC ORDERS UTILITIES TO POST BLACKOUT DATA,
Nancy
????Rivera Brooks
Sacramento Bee, April 28, 2001, Saturday, Pg. A3;, 1109 words, Cities take
????new look at public power The state's uncertain electricity picture has
local
????officials deciding it's time to revisit the idea of municipal utilities.,
????Carrie Peyton Bee Staff Writer
A year later, energy crisis shows no signs of cooling off
By Ed Mendel
San Diego Union Tribune
April 30, 2001
SACRAMENTO -- The first anniversary of the California energy crisis is coming
up next month, and as the Queen of England once remarked when the royal
family seemed to deregulate, it's been an "annus horribilis."
The horrible year for California began last May when electricity prices
suddenly began to soar, triggering a debate about the cause of the mysterious
price increase that is likely to continue for years.
It started when a three-day heat wave, from May 21 to May 24, set records in
some areas of the state and drove up the demand for electricity as
Californians sought relief with air conditioning.
More record heat June 14 in the San Francisco Bay Area strained the
overloaded system of Pacific Gas & Electric and resulted in rolling
blackouts, the planned temporary power outages that some fear may be routine
this summer.
The average price of electricity on the now-defunct Power Exchange soared to
$120 per megawatt hour in June, five times higher than the same month the
previous year, and remained roughly at that level until skyrocketing to $377
in December.
San Diego sounded the statewide alarm last summer as San Diego Gas &
Electric, the first utility to be deregulated, passed along much of the
higher cost of electricity to its customers, until legislation rolled back
and capped the utility's rates in September.
The executive director of a San Diego consumers group, the Utility Consumers'
Action Network, thinks the generators and the marketers of power, using
sophisticated computer methods, learned something as the heat wave drove up
the demand for power.
"It was the first time the generators had an opportunity to see how high the
price could go," said UCAN'S Michael Shames. "It was their primer. It was
Gouge 101."
State Sen. Steve Peace, D-El Cajon, who chaired a two-house committee that
completed the deregulation plan in 1996, had seen routine monitoring data
suggesting that the power market was being manipulated to drive up prices.
Peace took the unusual step last June of personally urging the adoption of a
much lower price cap by the board of the agency that makes last-minute power
purchases to maintain the grid, the Independent System Operator.
But the motion failed by a single vote. The consumer representative who cast
the decisive vote against the lower cap resigned afterward with a blast at
Peace, complaining of heavy-handed pressure.
Peace is unapologetic. He believes that stronger action by the ISO last June
would have sent a signal that might have discouraged market manipulation.
"It's just like the Federal Reserve mis-timing an interest-rate move," Peace
said.
The former ISO chairman, who represents generators, cited an ISO report
attributing the price increase last May to the heat wave, power plant
outages, less hydroelectric power and higher prices for the natural gas used
by power plants.
"I think all of those things showing up at the same time resulted in
significantly higher prices," said Jan Smutny-Jones of the Independent Energy
Producers.
Why power prices remained at high levels and even soared last winter, instead
of dropping as usual, is more difficult to explain.
The ISO contended last month that generators overcharged by more than $6
billion from last May through February. But federal regulators, who have
their critics, have found only $125 million in overcharges, making it an
"annus marvelous" for generators.
Ed Mendel is Capitol bureau chief for the Union-Tribune.
Copyright 2001 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.
The Daily News of Los Angeles
April 27, 2001 Friday, Valley Edition
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. N9
LENGTH: 275 words
HEADLINE: PROPOSED LAW PUTS BOUNTY ON ENERGY MANIPULATORS
BYLINE: Staff And Wire Services
BODY:
??California stepped up its war on the power industry Thursday as state
legislators offered to pay millions of dollars to "bounty hunters" who provide
information leading to the arrest and conviction of energy executives and
others
who manipulate the electricity market.
???California "is being plundered by an energy cartel," said Lt. Gov. Cruz
Bustamente, who is promoting a bill that would level criminal penalties for
exploiting energy markets. ?"If what they are doing isn't illegal, it ought to
be."
???Bustamente was one of a crowd of state leaders who went before microphones.
???On the floor of the Assembly, Speaker Bob Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys, rallied
his
Democratic colleagues behind a bill to create a state power authority with
equally blistering attacks on private power suppliers.
???But after Thursday's hearing before a Senate committee formed to
investigate
alleged price-fixing in the energy market, committee chairman Joe Dunn,
D-Garden
Grove, told a reporter: "I've never seen this much smoke when there wasn't a
fire."
???Power generators insist they are operating fairly and say there is no
evidence of them acting outside the law.
???Jan Smutny-Jones, executive director of the Independent Energy Producers
Association, dismissed the harsh rhetoric as unproductive. "Putting people in
prison isn't going to encourage more generation," Smutny-Jones said, warning
that the political posturing would make energy generators think twice about
investing in California.
???Also on Thursday, experts said federally ordered caps on wholesale
electricity prices won't necessarily mean California will escape rolling
blackouts this summer.
Copyright 2001 San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News
April 27, 2001, Friday
KR-ACC-NO: SJ-ELECTRIC-SUIT
LENGTH: 245 words
HEADLINE: Santa Clara County, Calif., Joins Lawsuit against Electric Suppliers
BYLINE: By John Woolfolk
BODY:
??Santa Clara County agreed Thursday to join a lawsuit against power
suppliers,
alleging they conspired to raise prices and boost profits while subjecting
consumers to higher bills and rolling blackouts.
??The county is the first to join the suit originally filed by San Francisco
in
January. ?The suit seeks refunds for consumers of more than $ 1 billion in
alleged excess electricity profits.
??"The San Francisco suit contains significant allegations of manipulation and
collusion by the wholesalers, resulting in the disastrous consequences we're
all
familiar with," said lead deputy county counsel Alan Tieger. "We looked at the
evidence on which those allegations were grounded and found they were indeed
supported by the evidence, expert and otherwise."
??The suit names a dozen electricity generating and marketing companies,
including Duke Energy and Enron Energy Marketing.
??Similar claims have been filed by three water districts in the San Diego
area, and two class-action lawsuits by private attorneys on behalf of
consumers
are pending against power suppliers.
??The companies have vigorously denied the charges.
??"I don't think there will be any evidence of illegal activity by anyone,"
said Jan Smutny-Jones, executive director of the Independent Energy Producers
Association, when asked about various government probes.
??-----
??To see more of the San Jose Mercury News, or to subscribe to the newspaper,
go to http://www.sjmercury.com
FERC Considers Imposing a Fee on Electricity Sales in California ????
Updated: Monday, April 30, 2001 12:40 AM?ET ?????
?
Such a surcharge, at least in the short run, would fall hardest on the state
of California, which since January has spent more than $5 billion buying
power because the utilities have been unable to meet their obligations. For
now, the idea is nothing more than a proposal that occupies one paragraph
buried in a 39-page order issued Thursday concerning changes to California's
flawed deregulated electricity market. The commission is seeking public
comment on the surcharge proposal for 30 days. After that, it will decide
whether to implement it.
The fee was proposed by Commission Chairman Curt Hebert, a Mississippi
Republican, as a way "to stabilize the market," he said Friday, "since part
of the problem in California has to do with nonpayment of bills by the
utilities." But the provision also has the potential to funnel billions of
dollars to energy suppliers at a time when those payments are the subject of
intense negotiation.
One of the utilities, PG&E Corp.'s Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (PCG, news,
msgs), filed for protection from creditors under U.S. bankruptcy law on April
6, hoping to settle its claims with power suppliers for something less than
face value. Representatives of Pacific Gas & Electric and Edison
International's (EIX, news, msgs) Southern California Edison declined to
comment on the FERC proposal Friday.
The surcharge idea faces stiff opposition from some state officials, one of
whom said it amounts to an "unwarranted intrusion" into state jurisdiction.
Loretta Lynch, president of the California Public Utilities Commission, said
imposition of a surcharge would put pressure on wholesale-power costs that
already are too high. Bulk power cost $7 billion in California in 1999 and
topped $27 billion last year as prices careened out of control. Ms. Lynch
said she opposes the surcharge provision and the entire order given Thursday,
but that it will be up to the full commission to decide how -- or whether --
to file a challenge at FERC.
A spokesman for Gov. Gray Davis said "the governor would be strongly opposed
to any attempt to siphon money away from the state" and expects to lodge an
objection.
Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, Home Edition
SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 3; Metro Desk
LENGTH: 792 words
HEADLINE: CAPITOL JOURNAL;
CALIFORNIA AND THE WEST;
How Sales Tax Is Falling Through a Loophole
BYLINE: GEORGE SKELTON
DATELINE: SACRAMENTO
BODY:
??Dot-coms are in distress and laying off. Silicon Valley is a home buyer's
bazaar. The Nasdaq is nauseous. So is this any time to be siccing the tax
collector on Internet retailers?
??You bet. Coddling these techie traders with tax favors doesn't seem to be
helping them much anyway. So why not treat e-tailers like everyone else, like
brick-and-mortar merchants? Treat everybody evenhandedly.
??That's the view of Assemblywoman Carole Migden (D-San Francisco), assertive
chair of the Assembly Appropriations Committee. For the second straight year,
Migden is pushing a bill she says will close a loophole that benefits some
Internet retailers. She insists it's about fairly enforcing existing law, not
about a new Web tax, as critics claim.
??Present law requires Internet e-tailers to collect the sales tax if they
have
a physical presence in California, such as a traditional brick-and-mortar
store.
But some big outfits have created separate out-of-state subsidiaries to handle
their Internet orders. Same goods, same ads--with a large tax loophole because
the subsidiary ostensibly does not have a physical presence in California.
??Never mind that an unsatisfied customer of bookseller Barnes & Noble
dot-com,
for example, can return the Internet purchase to the local Barnes & Noble
store.
??Many e-tailers with dual "bricks-and-clicks" operations do collect the sales
tax from Internet customers. Migden cites Macy's, Wal-Mart, REI,
Hewlett-Packard
and Eddie Bauer. Others refuse, she says: Barnes & Noble, Borders Books, KB
Toys, Gateway Computers, Radio Shack.
??Her bill simply "clarifies" that the sales tax applies when the e-tailer is
affiliated with a California business, sells identical products, and they
market
jointly.
??"Right now," Migden contends, "certain big businesses blatantly violate the
tax law and put hard-working, honest small business people at a disadvantage."
??*
??Gov. Gray Davis is miffed at Migden, she hears. He vetoed her bill last
year,
declaring "it would send the wrong signal about California's international
role
as the incubator of the dot-com community." Internet marketing "must be given
time to mature," he maintained.
??Now Migden's at it again. "The governor's exercised. He thinks I'm jamming
him," she says. "But I'm moving the bill. He can veto it if he wants. I'm
putting it on his desk."
??It already has cleared the Assembly tax committee and will shoot out of her
panel Wednesday, headed for the Assembly floor. Last year, Democrats backed
the
bill. Republicans opposed it, siding with the Democratic governor.
??Davis fears some future opponent will claim he signed a bill to tax the
Internet. Migden is frustrated by that Internet tax tag, calling it "a lazy
misinterpretation."
??"I'm not picking on e-commerce," she protests. "I'm picking on the
multinationals who are arrogantly evading the law in complicity with the state
Board of Equalization."
??That would be, in particular, Republican board member Dean Andal of
Stockton.
"It's the usual liberal nut case bill," Andal says. "Just a bill chasing no
problem."
??*
??The BOE administers the sales tax. And Andal does agree that if an Internet
purchase can be returned to a store, the e-tailer legally must collect the
tax.
"We've been looking into that," he says.
??The board shouldn't have to look far. Barnes & Noble tells e-customers right
on its Web site that "you can return purchases to ANY Barnes & Noble store for
in-store credit."
??But other than that, Andal contends, a company has a constitutional right to
create an out-of-state subsidiary to avoid taxes.
??And, he notes, we're talking about relative pennies: $ 17 million annually,
the BOE estimates, compared to $ 39 billion in total California sales tax
collections. That lost revenue would cover only about seven hours worth of
electricity the state now is buying for utilities.
??But e-tailing is bound to grow. Tax avoidance could become significant,
benefiting dot-coms while discriminating against small retailers and the poor
who cannot afford Internet access.
??Migden will be in a strong position to change sales tax policy if she wins
her race next year for the five-member BOE. She's the early front-runner.
??Her concern--her reverence--is for the local booksellers, the mom-and-pop
merchants, the neighbor shopkeepers who can be smothered by the big tax
evaders.
"The little guy with the books stacked in the back," she says, "sweeping the
sidewalk, putting on extra locks, obeying the law and collecting taxes--trying
to make a go."
??Davis wants to be seen as a futuristic, New Age pol, worthy of campaign
donations from wealthy Web masters. But he can manage that without tromping on
his Democratic roots as protector of the little guy.
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????13 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, Home Edition
SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 3; Metro Desk
LENGTH: 1808 words
HEADLINE: CALIFORNIA AND THE WEST;
THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY CRISIS;
LIST OF PG&E CREDITORS SHOWS FIRM'S WIDE REACH IN BUSINESS;
BANKRUPTCY: IT INCLUDES SMALL AND BIG COMPANIES, GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND
FORMER
EMPLOYEES.
BYLINE: TIM REITERMAN, TIMES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SAN FRANCISCO
BODY:
??It reads like a phone book: Able Auto Body, Able Building Maintenance, Able
Fence Co., Able Printing, Able Termite & Pest Control. . . .
??These companies are among about 50,000 entries on Pacific Gas & Electric
Co.'s roster of creditors recently filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
??Another company, A&J Electrical Cable Corp. of Hayward, has supplied PG&E
with utility cables since 1980. But now the unpaid bills are hitting the $
100,000 mark--and that is a big deal to a relatively small business.
??"Who would ever think that PG&E would be in bankruptcy?" said owner
Magdalene
Reilly. "This is something affecting people. I've got a lot of paychecks on
Friday.
??"We have orders for the rest of the year from PG&E ," she added. "It is a
question: Do you decide to ship? . . . We probably will. They are a good
customer."
??When PG&E filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors April 6, businesses
from California to Canada were caught by surprise. The names of the 20 biggest
creditors, some with billion-dollar claims, were filed with the court. The
utility also submitted a list of potential creditors--more than 3,500 pages
worth.
??The roster speaks to the remarkable economic clout and reach of a company
that prospered for almost a century before plunging into the third-biggest
bankruptcy case in U.S. history. It provides a glimpse into the relationships
between a giant utility--the state's largest--and businesses of all sorts and
sizes. And it underscores the high stakes as a bankruptcy judge reorders
PG&E's
financial affairs and decides in the coming months, if not years, who should
be
paid and how much.
??The case, said U.S. bankruptcy trustee Linda Ekstrom Stanley, "has a ripple
effect. . . . Creditors are affected, and they can't pay their bills either."
??There are small companies and conglomerates that sold power to PG&E.
??There are financial institutions from Wall Street to San Francisco's
Montgomery Street that lent money or provided services.
??There are government agencies at all levels, even the California Public
Utilities Commission.
??There are some retired PG&E employees and officers, including at least one
of
the company's former chief executive officers.
??But there also are vendors that have provided goods and services to PG&E for
years: tree trimming around power lines, bodywork for the utility's truck
fleet,
fencing for its vast land holdings, calibration of meters, fans to cool
electrical transformers, printing of brochures, signs for office doors, flight
suits for aviators who patrol power lines, limousine service for traveling
executives.
??No dollar amounts are attached to names on the master list. But records and
interviews with dozens of creditors show that the sums owed range from
hundreds
of millions of dollars to very little--or nothing at all. Many of the smaller
creditors were unaware they were on the roster until contacted by The Times.
??PG&E used to buy pump filters from California Pump & Supply in Sacramento.
??"We just closed out their account because they owed us $ 29," said office
manager Lisa Giordano. "It's a hassle to get anyone over there. I just wrote
it
off."
??The utility bought $ 38 worth of plants from Forest Nursery in Los Osos,
west
of San Luis Obispo. "It's nothing to go to court about, especially since they
paid it," said bookkeeper Lori Parsons.
??A wine wholesaler, an ice cream company and a coastal hotel are listed. So
is
Sing A Long Productions in Burlingame, which supples disc jockeys and karaoke.
??"I am sure we have done business with PG&E and other companies that have
parties from time to time," said owner Nick Foster. "Maybe somebody forgot
that
we did not get paid."
??PG&E spokesman Ron Low said the list includes everyone to whom the utility
wrote a check in the last two years, such as homeowners who received energy
conservation rebates and retirees who received checks related to benefits.
??"It was an attempt to notify anybody who possibly could have a claim against
the company and to cast the widest net possible," he said.
??Several PG&E retirees, such as Robert W. Oliver of Berkeley, were baffled by
their inclusion on the list. "I draw a little pension," said Oliver, who was a
personnel executive and left the company in 1980. "It's a vested pension."
??Another retiree on the list is former Chief Executive Richard A. Clarke.
??He and about 10 other former high-ranking PG&E executives or their survivors
have retained an attorney to help ensure that their retirement benefits are
protected during the bankruptcy case.
??"We don't want someone to get the idea that this is a bunch of well-heeled
executives trying to get a piece of the action," said the attorney, John T.
Hansen. "Some in our group are widows of former executives who depend on the
pensions they receive as survivors."
??Hansen said some retired executives have deferred-compensation packages that
might be considered a general unsecured bankruptcy claim.
??One concern, he said, is that PG&E Chairman Robert D. Glynn Jr. wrote
recently in a San Francisco Chronicle op-ed article that health care plans and
other benefits "for employees and most retirees" will continue.
??"We would want to know what 'most' is," Hansen said. "We want to sort it
out."
??Low of PG&E said fewer than 100 retired employees, most former officers,
"have a portion of their pension that is unsecured." That means their claims
will be handled in Bankruptcy Court with those of other unsecured creditors
whose debts are not backed by utility assets.
??The spokesman emphasized that ex-employees could be on the list because they
received a check from the company for something.
??Companies and individuals on the list, PG&E said, will be contacted and
given
an opportunity to state their claims, which the utility will file with the
court
May 11.
??Meanwhile, the effects of the bankruptcy filing continue to ripple beyond
the
utility.
??PG&E's action hit AA Safe & Lock Co. in Santa Cruz particularly hard. The
firm replaces keys and locks for PG&E offices and trucks.
??"We are a small business, and it is a big account," said owner Paul Bing,
who
declined to say what the utility owes. "We haven't been doing as much for them
since the whole crisis started."
??A Hayward firm that conducts environmental testing when PG&E remodels or
razes buildings is out money too. Ken Byk, president of Forensic Analytical,
would not provide a figure but said: "I am obviously concerned. . . . They
are a
good customer, but any time you run into these problems, it's disappointing."
??California Steam Inc. of Sacramento services PG&E pressure washers and water
recyclers at its truck-cleaning facilities. "I have just a couple of invoices
out," said service manager Bruce Amlin. The debt, he said, is less than $ 500.
??A similar amount is owed to California Turbo Inc. in Ontario. Sales manager
Cam Young said the utility has not paid for eight fans used to cool
electrical
transformers. "We're a small business," Young said, adding with a laugh: "We
might have to eat peanut butter and jelly for four or five months."
??Within days of the bankruptcy filing, PG&E sent about 12,000 creditors
letters that began: "Valued Goods and Services Provider: . . . Unfortunately,
the bankruptcy code precludes payment for goods and services received prior to
the date of filing. Payments on this pre-petition debt will be settled as part
of the plan of reorganization." The company assured vendors that they will be
paid for any future purchases.
??Some are not only forgiving, they are outspokenly loyal to PG&E.
??The relationship between the utility and AG Signs of Stockton spans two
decades. When Tony Guebara was starting his company, PG&E gave him business.
"They try to help the little guy," he said. "Just about everybody in town is a
vendor. They have people here who paint their trucks."
??AG Signs now has five employees and supplies PG&E with door lettering for
trucks, name plaques for office doors and signs and flags for construction
sites.
??Guebara said the utility's debt does not worry him: "PG&E has treated me
real
well. If I lose a couple of bucks because of this adversity, that is OK. . .
. I
don't think we've seen the last of PG&E."
??Many businesses and individuals said they had no idea why the company
believes it owes them money.
??Being included on the creditors list left the Vallejo Camp Fire Girls & Boys
and other charitable organizations somewhat confused. Officials of one
Berkeley
church could only speculate that it was listed because PG&E stock was
bequeathed
to the congregation decades ago.
??Twylah Lemargie, manager of the Cancer Aid Thrift Shop in Grass Valley, said
the utility is not even a customer. "PG&E did come in and replaced lots of our
ceiling lights with the long tubes," she said. "But it was done free as an
energy saver."
??A number of vendors said PG&E's account is paid up.
??The utility rented temporary housing units for workers on a hydroelectric
project about two years ago, but California RV Rentals in Rio Lindo is still
named as a creditor. "They don't owe me money," said Sandra Weaver, the
manager.
"If they want to give me some, it's OK."
??Many creditors are health clubs and health care providers: medical and
dental
offices, foot and joint specialists, pharmacies, chiropractors.
??When informed that the Castro Valley Chamber of Commerce was on the
creditors
list, the woman who answered the phone laughed uproariously. Then Executive
Director Bonnie Dettmer came to the line.
??"I'm going to guess it's membership dues," she said. "They are a member and
they have been very supportive. I would bet they belong to every chamber of
commerce."
??One creditor is the state agency that PG&E says drove the company into
insolvency by not allowing full recovery of its wholesale power costs.
??"They owe us $ 5.9 million . . . for environmental impact reports on PG&E
projects," said Paul Clanon, director of the Public Utilities Commission's
energy division. "It's a serious amount of money but currently is not having
an
impact."
??Top 10 Creditors
??The creditors owed the most money by Pacific Gas & Electric Co., according
to
the company's Chapter 11 filing:
???Creditor ???????????????????????????????????Money owed
???Bank of New York ????????????????????????$2.20 billion
???California Power Exchange ???????????????$1.96 billion
???Bankers Trust Co. ???????????????????????$1.30 billion
???California Independent System Operator ??$1.12 billion
???Bank of America* ?????????????????????????$938 million
???US Bank ??????????????????????????????????$310 million
???Calpine Gilroy Cogeneration LP ????????????$58 million
???Calpine Greenleaf Inc. ????????????????????$49 million
???Crocket Cogen ?????????????????????????????$48 million
???Calpine King City Cogen LLC ???????????????$45 million
??* Heading a group of banks
??Source: U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern DIstrict of California
GRAPHIC: GRAPHIC: Top 10 Creditors, Los Angeles Times PHOTO: Magdalene Reilly,
owner of A&J Electrical Cable Corp. of Hayward, says her company has supplied
Pacific Gas & Electric with utility cables since 1980, and that their unpaid
bills are now hitting the $100,000 mark. ?PHOTOGRAPHER: ROBERT DURELL / Los
Angeles Times PHOTO: "They try to help the little guy," says Tony Guebara,
owner
of AG Signs in Stockton, of PG&E. He has been doing business with utility for
two decades. ?PHOTOGRAPHER: ROBERT DURELL / Los Angeles Times
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????14 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, Home Edition
SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 3; Metro Desk
LENGTH: 1228 words
HEADLINE: CALIFORNIA AND THE WEST;
THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY CRISIS;
POWER WOES COMPLICATE DISCUSSIONS ON BUDGET;
FUNDING: GOV. DAVIS' PLAN FOR NEXT YEAR FACES DEMANDS FOR BILLIONS AS A
RESERVE
AND TO CUSHION ELECTRICITY RATE HIKES.
BYLINE: DAN MORAIN, TIMES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SACRAMENTO
BODY:
??Jockeying over the state's next spending plan, a tradition that usually
takes
place in the summer, already is turning intense as the energy crisis casts a
pall over what otherwise might have been relatively painless budget squabbles.
??A key state senator, worried about the slowing economy, is looking for
places
to pare as much as $ 4 billion from Gov. Gray Davis' proposed $ 104.7-billion
budget. And Republicans are beginning to demand that the state spend billions
in
general tax money to cushion electricity rate hikes of up to 40% being imposed
on consumers and businesses.
??Davis won't sign the budget for the 2001-02 fiscal year into law until late
June at the earliest. But with California mired in the energy crisis and the
economy slowing, the new budget is shaping up to be especially vexing.
??California's largest utility and a major private employer, Pacific Gas &
Electric, is in bankruptcy. The state has spent $ 5.2 billion in general tax
money to buy electricity, with no end in sight. Even before summer
temperatures
hit, Sacramento shelled out $ 90 million to buy electricity in a single day
last
week.
??And the Wall Street rating firm Standard & Poor's, unsure that the state
will
be reimbursed for the power purchases, lowered California's credit rating two
notches for the first time since the recession of the 1990s.
??Brightening an otherwise cloudy situation, income tax payments are meeting
or
exceeding predictions. More than $ 8 billion in checks from April income tax
returns have flooded into the Franchise Tax Board, said Department of Finance
economist Ted Gibson. On one day last week, the state's haul was $ 3.6
billion,
a record.
??"Receipts are very much on track, I'm relieved to tell you," Gibson said.
??But even as budget writers were exhaling, the payments merely offered proof
that the economy was strong last year, back when then-President Bill Clinton
was
heralding the longest period of economic growth in U.S. history, and
Californians' lexicon did not include the term "rolling blackout."
??State income and sales tax receipts softened in the first few months of
2001,
an indication that people will be earning less this year--and paying less in
taxes next year.
??Seeing trouble ahead, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Steve Peace (D-El
Cajon) wants to boost the state's emergency reserve, which was $ 1.9 billion
in
January. To do that, Peace last week called on budget committee members to
come
up with a list of cuts totaling $ 2 billion to $ 4 billion.
??Without a larger reserve heading into 2002, Peace said, the slowing economy
could force the state to make deep cuts or raise taxes next year, at a time
when
most legislators and Davis will be running for reelection.
??"The thing to be worried about is not the current year, but the trend line,"
Peace said.
??He adds a caveat for the spending plan that by law must be in place by July
1: There will be cuts if legislators fail to approve legislation that state
Treasurer Phil Angelides says he needs to obtain short-term loans and market
long-term bonds to finance electricity purchases.
??Davis and Angelides are preparing the largest bond sale--a way that
government borrows money--in U.S. history, as much as $ 12.4 billion. The
state
would use the proceeds to ease the shock to utility customers of record high
electricity prices this year. The bond debt would be paid off over a period of
perhaps 15 years.
??Given the size and complexity of the bond issue, many legislators say
Angelides may not be able to sell it for months.
??Davis, however, has an immediate need for money. The governor must release a
revised state budget within weeks. So, he is pushing for legislators to
approve
legislation that would allow Angelides to obtain a short-term loan of as much
as
$ 6 billion.
??At least some of the proceeds of the long-term bonds would be used to pay
off
the short-term loan--sort of like using one credit card to pay the balance on
a
second piece of plastic.
??Republican legislators are balking at the idea.
??Back in December, before the state entered the power buying business, GOP
legislators had called for $ 3.2 billion in tax cuts. With the energy crisis
complicating the financial situation, some Republicans are contending that
Davis
should use as much as $ 5 billion from the budget surplus to soften the impact
of electricity rate hikes.
??"That will be a de facto tax cut," said Senate Republican leader Jim Brulte
of Rancho Cucamonga. "Our Democratic friends want to do the bridge financing
so
they can increase the size of government."
??Republicans are in the minority. But they have a significant voice, because
state law requires that both houses of the Legislature approve spending
decisions by a two-thirds vote.
??The state Constitution says the budget must be in place by the July 1 start
of the new fiscal year. Davis signed his first two budgets on time. Given this
year's uncertainties, however, some legislators are thinking twice about
making
July vacation plans.
??The sudden turnaround may come as a shock to many legislators and lobbyists
who seek slices of the state budget pie.
??In recent years, legislators have grown used to the multibillion-dollar
windfalls of tax payments, which allowed them to deliver new swimming pools,
school programs, museums, parks, social and health care spending, and tax cuts
to their constituents. Indeed, the budget in Davis' first two years grew 37%,
even as the Democratic governor and legislators cut taxes by $ 3.9 billion.
??In a Legislature populated by term-limited newcomers, only a handful of
current legislators were in the Capitol in the early 1990s, when the worst
recession to hit California since the Great Depression caused the state budget
to actually shrink. Then-Gov. Pete Wilson and the Legislature reacted to a $
14-billion budget gap by raising taxes by more than $ 5 billion and slashing
spending.
??"It is not going to be the pie-in-the-sky budget some of us thought it would
be last year and even as late as January," said Sen. Jack O'Connell (D-San
Luis
Obispo).
??Veterans of the annual summer rite say there is no template for the coming
budget fights. Jean Ross of the California Budget Project, a private budget
watchdog and advocacy group, said Davis and legislators not only must pay
attention to the economy.
??They also must take into account many unknowns: Will the judge overseeing
PG&E's bankruptcy proceeding seek to raise rates further? Will federal energy
regulators be able to effectively limit wholesale electricity costs? What will
the economic impact be of summer blackouts?
??"It's a lot more complex and unpredictable than other years," Ross said.
??Legislators say they are lowering their sights. But letters from state
senators requesting money for their favored projects fill five large red
binders. "You wouldn't know there is a money shortage based on requests in
appropriations," said Assembly Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Carole
Migden
(D-San Francisco), preparing for what she calls her "hatchet role" of blocking
bills that require spending.
??For his part, Davis has not decided to significantly cut back on his
proposals, ranging from a sales tax "holiday" timed for back-to-school
shopping
to plans to clean sewage from beaches. He won't reveal those decisions until
he
releases his revised spending plan.
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????15 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, Home Edition
SECTION: Metro; Part B; Page 7; Op Ed Desk
LENGTH: 839 words
HEADLINE: COMMENTARY;
WILL THE FERC SEE THE LIGHT ON THE LAW?
BYLINE: FRANK A. WOLAK, Frank A. Wolak, an economics professor at Stanford
University, is, chairman of the Market Surveillance Committee of the
California,
Independent System Operator
BODY:
??Out-of-state firms selling into the California wholesale electricity market
at exorbitant prices have been blamed for the current electricity crisis. They
are, claim many observers, exercising their market power to raise wholesale
electricity prices.
??Although it is not illegal under California or U.S. antitrust law for a firm
to exercise its market power, it is illegal to do so under the Federal Power
Act. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, which regulates the
California wholesale electricity market, is the entity charged with enforcing
this law. Its refusal to take sufficient actions that would result in "just
and
reasonable" wholesale electricity rates is the fundamental cause of
California's
current energy crisis. It is highly unlikely that anything it has done in the
last week has changed things at all.
??In 1935, Congress passed the Federal Power Act and required the Federal
Power
Commission (the predecessor to FERC) to set "just and reasonable" wholesale
electricity prices. Just and reasonable prices are those that recover
production
costs, including a "fair" rate of return on the capital invested by the firm.
Moreover, if the FERC finds that wholesale electricity prices are unjust and
unreasonable, the Federal Power Act gives it wide-ranging discretion to take
actions that result in just and reasonable prices. The FERC can also order
refunds for any payments by consumers in excess of just and reasonable prices.
??Almost 10 years ago, the FERC began to allow generators to receive market
prices instead of prices set through a cost-of-service regulatory process.
However, there is no guarantee that market prices meet the just and reasonable
standard required by the Federal Power Act. Markets often set prices
substantially in excess of the production costs for significant periods of
time.
This occurs because one or more firms operating in the market have what
economists call market power--the ability of a firm to raise market prices and
profit from it.
??However, if no firm possesses market power, the market price should be very
close to a price that only recovers production costs. In such a circumstance,
the price set by the market satisfies the just and reasonable standard of the
Federal Power Act.
??Before it allows any market participant to receive a market price rather
than
a cost-based price set through a regulatory process, the FERC requires each
participant to demonstrate that it does not have market power. In other words,
each market participant must submit sworn testimony to the FERC demonstrating
it
does not have the ability to raise market prices and profit from this
behavior.
??Each of the out-of-state generators made these filings before they began
selling into the California market, which started in April 1998. Each firm had
its authority to receive market prices approved by the FERC for a three-year
period that ends before this summer for several of the firms. It is virtually
impossible to determine on a prospective basis whether a firm possesses market
power. Moreover, the methodology used by the FERC to make this determination
uses analytical techniques that have long been acknowledged by the economics
profession as grossly inadequate. The events of the past 10 months have
demonstrated that contrary to their filings stating otherwise, all of the
out-of-state generators possess significant market power.
??A number of independent studies have shown that the market power exercised
by
these firms has resulted in unjust and unreasonable rates from May 2000, until
now. Moreover, in its Dec. 15, 2000 report on the California electricity
market,
the FERC concluded that wholesale electricity prices during the summer and
autumn of 2000 were unjust and unreasonable and reflected the exercise of
significant market power.
??Despite its own conclusion, the FERC thus far has refused to set just and
reasonable prices for wholesale electricity in California. Instead, the FERC
implemented market rule changes that have enhanced the ability of these firms
to
set excessive wholesale electricity prices. In addition, it has refused to
order
refunds for any overpayment during the summer and autumn of 2000 for the
prices
that it deemed unjust and unreasonable.
??Fortunately for California consumers, the California Public Utilities
Commission and Gov. Gray Davis refused to be accomplices in the FERC's
decision
not to enforce the Federal Power Act. They refused to pass on to California
consumers prices that the FERC itself had determined were unjust and
unreasonable.
??Because these out-of-state firms must apply for renewal of their
market-based
pricing authority before this summer, the FERC has one more opportunity to set
just and reasonable prices for wholesale electricity in California. It has
before it several proposals that would enforce all provisions of the Federal
Power Act. The health of the California and national economies would be
severely
undermined if the FERC continues to ignore its legal obligations.
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????16 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company
??????????????????????????????The New York Times
?????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Section A; Page 1; Column 5; Business/Financial Desk
LENGTH: 1444 words
HEADLINE: While a Utility May Be Failing, Its Owner Is Not
BYLINE: ?By By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. and LAURA M. HOLSON
BODY:
??Pacific Gas and Electric, the giant California utility, may have just made
one of the largest bankruptcy filings in history, but it has been a banner
year
for the rest of its parent company, the PG& E Corporation.
??In Bethesda, Md., far from the energy crisis in California, another PG& E
subsidiary, National Energy Group, earned $162 million last year and ranked as
the nation's third-largest power trader. Compensation for the unit's
executives
soared. Many investors now believe that the subsidiary, just a decade in the
making, is by itself worth more than its 96-year-old utility sibling.
???How did National Energy get so big so fast? By using cash, partly generated
by its sister utility, to buy unregulated power plants in the Northeast,
expand
trading-floor operations and sell power across the country. The exact numbers
are in dispute, but much of Nationals Energy's profits last year came from
California.
??Most other large utilities have done the same thing over the past decade,
building national or even global power companies from roots in local
monopolies.
But nowhere is the success of these unregulated businesses more of an issue
than
in California, where PG& E's investments may be challenged in bankruptcy
court.
??Still, such transfers of assets were fundamental to deregulation plans in
two
dozen states, and they were encouraged by federal rules designed to build a
new
wholesale marketplace in electricity.
??And today, the offspring of the nation's utilities dominate that market,
after industry leader Enron. ?Eight of the nation's 10 largest power marketers
are affiliates or spinoffs of regulated utilities, controlling about 42
percent
of power trading.
??It is largely these unregulated power producers and traders whose sales of
power in California have prompted accusations by state leaders of price
gouging,
and demands for the price caps that federal regulators took their first,
halting
steps toward embracing last week.
??The profitability of the utilities' unregulated operations is becoming clear
as companies report earnings for the first three months of the year.
??For example, Reliant Energy reported that operating income at its
unregulated
wholesale energy business soared to $216 million in the first quarter, or 16
percent more than at its regulated utility, which serves Houston. This week,
Reliant expects to spin off its unregulated businesses through an initial
public
stock offering that would put a market value on the new company of as much as
$8.8 billion -- more than the rest of Reliant.
??A number of other major utility companies have spinoffs or trading and
generation units that now earn nearly as much as, or more than, their core
utility operations. These include Duke Energy in Charlotte, N.C.; Sempra
Energy
of San Diego; the Southern Company in Atlanta; the Constellation Energy Group
in
Baltimore; and Utilicorp United in Kansas City, Mo.
??In some places, the growth of the unregulated businesses continues to raise
questions of fairness -- particularly where utilities have been permitted to
transfer plants to the new units at deep discounts to their market value.
Critics say that ratepayers, whose bills paid for the plants' construction,
should benefit more when the plants are sold.
??In Florida, a commission on energy deregulation formed by Gov. Jeb Bush has
proposed permitting such transfers on the grounds that they are needed to
create
a new wholesale marketplace. Opponents, including the Florida Municipal
Electric
Association, which represents utilities owned by local governments, say the
plan
would produce a $9 billion windfall that should go to ratepayers.
??In California, some creditors of Pacific Gas and Electric have signaled that
they will want the bankruptcy court in San Francisco to review parent PG& E's
efforts to keep its unregulated businesses out of creditors' reach.
??And the California Public Utilities Commission is investigating whether PG&
E
and Edison International, whose Southern California Edison utility unit is
also
near insolvency, have improperly transferred cash to their parents and to
unregulated sister companies.
??A recent audit ordered by the commission showed that Pacific Gas and
Electric
transferred $4.1 billion to PG& E from 1997 to 1999. Most of that went to
dividends and stock repurchases, but $838 million was invested in other
subsidiaries, primarily its National Energy Group unit. Southern California
Edison transferred $4.8 billion to its parent company between 1996 and
November
2000, a separate audit showed; Edison International invested $2.5 billion in
its
unregulated Mission Group subsidiaries during the same period.
??Executives of the companies say the transfers were proper. Audits have shown
that "we followed the rules and didn't do anything wrong," said PG& E's chief
executive, Robert Glynn. "We did not ask consumers in California to support
any
of the losses that occurred in those businesses when we started them up," he
said. Now, forcing the unregulated units to support their ailing sister
utility,
he said, "would be no different than calling up shareholders and saying, 'The
California electric bills are pretty high; send some money in so we can give
it
back to them.' "
??Loretta Lynch, the president of the utilities commission, took a different
view. "Should we look backward," she asked, "and say, 'Hey, wait a minute --
that corporate structure profited by all of our power payments to them in the
past, and they should participate in helping us through to get to a solution
in
the future?' "
??The cornerstone deal of PG& E's unregulated energy business was struck four
years ago, when it acquired the hydroelectric and fossil-fueled generation
plants of New England Electric System for $1.6 billion. PG& E is now one of
the
largest generators in the Northeast, operating plants that can light up to
five
million average-sized homes.
??While California officials say Pacific Gas and Electric's woes have been
caused, at least in part, by market manipulation by out-of-state generators,
the
Justice Department has been investigating possible market abuses involving
PG& E
and two other companies in New England. Mr. Glynn said that PG& E had done
nothing wrong and that the company has responded to Justice Department
requests
for information.
??Overall, PG& E's National Energy Group has 30 power plants in 10 states, and
others under development or construction that include one in Athens, N.Y.,
that
is expected to begin supplying electricity to New York City in 2003. It also
operates an energy trading operation in Bethesda and controls a natural gas
pipeline into Northern California.
??To Wall Street, the utility companies' investments in unregulated businesses
were a necessary survival tactic, as investors demanded faster-growing
profits.
??"The stock market was going like gangbusters, and the utilities' returns of
11 percent weren't cutting it," said Richard Cortright, a utility analyst at
Standard and Poor's, the bond rating agency.
??Moreover, as deregulation loomed, industry executives saw no choice but to
make new investments. "It looked like the utility opportunity was going to
start
shrinking," Mr. Glynn said.
??Consumer groups question whether utilities would have invested more in
improving basic service if they had not had the option of putting money
elsewhere.
??Mike Florio, a lawyer with The Utility Reform Network, a consumer group in
San Francisco, cited findings last year by state regulators that from 1987 to
1995, Pacific Gas & Electric spent nearly $550 million less on maintaining
electric and gas facilities than had been factored into its rates. Separately,
in 1999, the utility agreed to pay about $29 million to settle charges that
consumers were endangered because it failed to trim trees near high-voltage
power lines.
??"Several hundred million dollars didn't get spent for maintenance, and that
ultimately falls to the bottom line as profit," Mr. Florio said.
??Mr. Glynn said the utility had always spent appropriate sums on maintenance,
coming within one-half of one percent of the amount built into rates over a
20-year period.
??In the big picture, he said, it was hard to see how PG& E had been a winner
in deregulation, even before its utility's humiliating bankruptcy. "If you
look
at what happened, the net of it was a loss," Mr. Glynn said, "because the
value
leaked out on the regulated utility side faster than we were able to build it
on
the nonregulated side."
About This Report
??This article is part of a joint reporting effort with the PBS series
"Frontline," which will broadcast a documentary about California's energy
crisis
on June 5.
??http://www.nytimes.com
GRAPHIC: Charts: "The Biggest Power Marketers"
Most of the biggest unregulated power marketers and traders are owned by the
the
country's biggest electric utilities or have been spun off by them. Here are
the
top 10, based on 2000 sales.
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Enron Power and affliliates
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 590.2
MARKET SHARE: 13.03%
CHANGE FROM 1999: + 97%
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: American Electric Power Service
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 401.3
MARKET SHARE: 8.86
CHANGE FROM 1999: +84
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: PG&E Energy and affiliates
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 282.6
MARKET SHARE: 6.24
CHANGE FROM 1999: +62
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Duke Energy and affiliates
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 276.2
MARKET SHARE: 6.10
CHANGE FROM 1999: +226
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Reliant Energy and affiliates
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 204.3
MARKET SHARE: 4.51
CHANGE FROM 1999: +166
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Mirant Americas Energy and
affiliates
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 202.6
MARKET SHARE: 4.47
CHANGE FROM 1999: +23
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Aquila Energy Marketing
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 186.7
MARKET SHARE: 4.12
CHANGE FROM 1999: +4
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Cinergy operating companies
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 166.4
MARKET SHARE: 3.67
CHANGE FROM 1999: +246
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Constellation Power Source
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 162.3
MARKET SHARE: 3.58
CHANGE FROM 1999: +222
Companies owned or spun off from utilities: Williams Energy and affiliates
MEGAWATTS SOLD IN 2000 (IN MILLIONS): 138.4
MARKET SHARE: 3.05
CHANGE FROM 1999: +127
(Source: Platt Power Markets Week)(pg. A17)
"Outdoing Their Parents"
Taking advantage of deregulation, many of the country's biggest power
utilities
have set up unregulated subsidiaries to trade and produce power. These
subsidiaries have become extremely profitable, often outperforming their
regulated corporate siblings.
UTILITY: Duke Energy
OPERATING INCOME (MILLIONS)
1Q '00: +$465
1Q '01: +460
UNREGULATED BUSINESS: North American Wholesale Energy
OPERATING INCOME (MILLIONS)
1Q '00: +82
1Q '01: +348
RELATIONSHIP OF UNREGULATED BUSINESS TO UTILITY
North American Wholesale Energy is a subsidiary of Duke Energy.
UTILITY: Reliant Energy
OPERATING INCOME (MILLIONS)
1Q '00: +$202
1Q '01: +186
UNREGULATED BUSINESS: Wholesale Energy
OPERATING INCOME (MILLIONS)
1Q '00: -22
1Q '01: +216
RELATIONSHIP OF UNREGULATED BUSINESS TO UTILITY
Reliant Energy plans to sell 18 percent of Reliant Resources -- mostly
Wholesale
Energy -- this week.
UTILITY: Southern
OPERATING INCOME (MILLIONS)
1Q '00: +$439
1Q '01: +483
UNREGULATED BUSINESS: Mirant
OPERATING INCOME (MILLIONS)
1Q '00: +169
1Q '01: +279
RELATIONSHIP OF UNREGULATED BUSINESS TO UTILITY
Southern completed the spinoff of Mirant on April 2.
(Source: S.E.C. filings)(pg. A17)
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????17 of 103 DOCUMENTS
?????????????????Copyright 2001 The Chronicle Publishing Co.
?????????????????????????The San Francisco Chronicle
????????????????????APRIL 30, 2001, MONDAY, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A3
LENGTH: 1108 words
HEADLINE: NEWSMAKER PROFILE;
Nettie Hoge;
Taking on power;
Consumer advocate revels in uphill battle
SOURCE: Chronicle Staff Writer
BYLINE: Chuck Squatriglia
BODY:
Given a choice, Nettie Hoge would rather be out in her garden right about now,
digging in the dirt.
???Instead, the head of The Utility Reform Network is digging into
California's
energy mess, making sure the average Joe doesn't take it in the kisser as
lawmakers, regulators and utility brass hats try to keep the lights on and
utilities afloat.
???It's grueling work, full of long hours that leave precious little time for
the gardening Hoge so adores. Not that she's complaining. Hoge, 50, honestly
loves her job and insists she wouldn't do anything else.
???"I've got a mutant gene," she said with a laugh as she relaxed, for just a
moment, in a spartan office littered with messy piles of paperwork. "I've
always
wanted to do this."
???TURN has been keeping tabs on companies like Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
and Pacific Bell for more than 25 years. Hoge and her crew lobby the Public
Utilities Commission, counsel lawmakers, analyze reports and file the
occasional
lawsuit. They are, in short, professional gadflies who represent the public
in a
system that some say favors big business.
???"The biggest protector of the consumer, by far, has been TURN," said Bob
Gnaizda, public policy director for the Greenlining Institute in San
Francisco.
"(Hoge) has made TURN into the leading consumer utility advocate in the
nation."
???It's not glamorous work, nor is it particularly lucrative. Hoge, a lawyer
by
training, took a pay cut when she accepted the $75,000-a-year job in 1995.
And,
truth be told, most folks have no idea Hoge is in their corner.
???"There are other rewards," she said. "You don't get the adoration of Joe
Citizen standing up and yelling, 'Yay TURN!' But there's an excitement about
being involved in the discussions where the big decisions are made."
???The youngest of four children, Hoge bounced around the middle of the
country
as she grew up, following her career Army officer father from Kansas to
Oklahoma
to Texas.
???"All the places where you can shoot big guns," she joked.
???Hoge graduated from high school in Pullman, Wash. After a stint at the
University of Southern California, she graduated Phi Beta Kappa from
Washington
State University and earned a law degree from the University of San Francisco.
???Hoge's entire career has been spent protecting the underdog. During a
two-year stint as a law school graduate at Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison in San
Francisco, "I got into trouble for doing too much pro bono work," Hoge
recalled.
"The partners would come around each month to check our billable hours. Mine
were always zero."
???Since taking the helm almost six years ago, Hoge has led TURN to some
impressive consumer victories. They include persuading the Public Utilities
Commission to create a $352 million fund to underwrite rural telephone service
and bringing an end to ratepayer subsidies of PG&E's Diablo Canyon nuclear
power
plant in 2002.
???Hoge, a stickler for detail, has a reputation for giving exhaustive answers
to even mundane questions.
???"Everybody agrees she knows what she's talking about," said Harvey
Rosenfield, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "In
many respects, TURN is the intellectual force in this debate. Those of us who
are deeply involved in this issue rely upon Nettie to lay out the facts for
us."
???Hoge is surprised people think her wonkish, but admits she is circumspect.
???"My big fear is being marginalized and having people think we (at TURN)
don't know what we're talking about," she said. "Maybe I overcompensate."
???Few doubt Hoge's smarts, but she has plenty of critics among the utilities,
lawmakers and lobbyists she has crossed swords with over the years. However,
none of them will say anything publicly.
???"We have no comment on her," said Shawn Cooper, a spokesman for Pacific Gas
and Electric Corp., the parent company of the foundering utility.
???It was the same story with Southern California Edison and many of the
legislators who have criticized Hoge and TURN in recent years.
???Hoge isn't surprised her adversaries are keeping mum.
???"There's nothing for them to gain by saying anything negative about us
because the public is on our side," she said.
???Still, TURN has drawn criticism from Carl Wood, generally considered the
most ardent consumer advocate on the PUC.
???"Frankly, I would have expected myself to be on the same page with (TURN)
more than I actually am," Wood said. "I'm not sure they wholeheartedly believe
in regulation, and I think it comes from a distrust of regulators. But maybe
I'm
taking it personally."
???Wood chastised TURN for supporting utility divestiture of generating plants
as California's deregulation effort got under way. And he said Hoge places too
much emphasis on the utilities' role in the energy mess instead of focusing on
the profiteering of power generators.
???"The utilities have some culpability, but they are not the main driver
behind the crisis," Wood said. "TURN's interventions do not reflect that
reality."
???Still, he gave TURN high marks and credited Hoge with making it a far more
effective advocate.
???Hoge admits she has had her hands full with the energy crisis, saying she
and her staff "are trying to keep our health and sanity."
???Asked if she would have joined TURN if she had known how crazy California's
energy market would become and how hard she would have to work, Hoge was
characteristically wary.
???"I don't think anyone would want to sign up for this," she said after a
moment's pause. "On the one hand, it's very serious, very rewarding work. But
on
the other hand, sometimes you're just beating your head against the wall."
???Still, Hoge doesn't plan to give up the fight anytime soon.
???"But at some point I'd like to retreat and spend some time contemplating
the
forest for the trees."
???Or the garden for the plants.
??-----------------------------------------------
??Nettie Hoge -- Age: 50.
???-- Residence: Oakland.
???-- Job: Executive director, The Utility Reform Network, October 1995 to
present. The utility and telecommunications industry watchdog group in San
Francisco represents consumers before the Public Utilities Commission, the
Legislature and elsewhere.
???-- Education: Bachelor's degree in communications, Phi Beta Kappa, from
Washington State University, 1976. Law degree, cum laude, from University of
San
Francisco, 1985.
???-- Background: Most of Hoge's 25-year career has been spent protecting the
little guy, first as a social worker and later as an attorney with Consumers
Union and the California Department of Insurance under Insurance Commissioner
John Garamendi.E-mail Chuck Squatriglia at [email protected].
GRAPHIC: PHOTO, (1) Nettie Hoge is respected for her encyclopedic knowledge of
regulatory issues., (2) Nettie Hoge has headed The Utility Reform Network for
six years. "I've always wanted to do this," she says. / John O'Hara/The
Chronicle
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????20 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 The Washington Post
?????????????????????????????The Washington Post
????????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, Final Edition
SECTION: A SECTION; Pg. A03
LENGTH: 1669 words
HEADLINE: Energy Forecast for Summer: No Blackouts but Price Spikes; Grid
Managers Promote Conservation, Await New Plants
BYLINE: William Claiborne, Washington Post Staff Writer
DATELINE: CHICAGO
BODY:
??The rest of the United States is virtually certain to escape rolling
blackouts this summer like the ones that have plagued California, but record
price hikes for electricity are likely in many places, energy experts agree.
???Despite their confidence that they can survive everything but an extremely
hot summer without power outages, managers of the nation's interconnecting
electrical power grids are anxiously awaiting new power plants that are
scheduled to come on-line. They are also promoting more frugal consumption by
power customers and seeking ways to avoid distribution logjams during peak
demand periods this summer.
???"We see a big distinction between California and the rest of the country,"
said David Costello, an economist in charge of short-term forecasting for the
Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the Department of
Energy. "We have no real reason to believe anyplace is unusually at risk."
???But record spikes in the price of electricity are a given for this summer,
some industry analysts say, because a growing proportion of power plants now
run
on natural gas, which has doubled in price over the past year.
???The DOE estimates that electricity demand will grow 2.3 percent nationally
this year, with much higher increases in the West and the South. At the same
time, the reserve capacity margin that utilities try to build into their
systems
to handle the hottest days -- when use of air conditioners and other
appliances
taxes supplies -- has been falling in some regions to well less than the
desired
15 percent above peak summer loads.
???That means utilities may have to import large volumes of electricity over
transmission systems that were not designed to handle them. What power
officials
are hoping to avoid are critical shortfalls in generating capacity in some
regions, followed by overwhelming strains on aging high-voltage transmission
lines as power is bought and sold across the country in increasingly
competitive
electricity markets.
???Even though scores of new power plants have been built in the Northeast,
South and Midwest in recent months and many more are on the drawing boards,
the
expected 15 percent increase in new generation will not be fully on-line for
another two years. That leaves parts of the nation vulnerable to outages if
there are prolonged heat waves this summer, or if utilities are unable to
start
up new or rebuilt gas-fired power plants as scheduled, according to energy
experts.
???Despite all those potential problems, there is no reason to believe that
California's power nightmares will spread to the rest of the country,
officials
said.
???This year, utilities have announced they are adding 40 to 50 gigawatts of
new generating capacity to gas-fired plants across the nation, compared with
only 22 gigawatts that were added last year, Costello said. He said that even
if
half of those announced plants never materialize, this year's new capacity is
certain to be as great or greater than last year's, meaning that the predicted
increased consumption can probably be met. A gigawatt is 1,000 megawatts, or
enough to power about 1 million homes.
???"We don't know that [transmission] infrastructure has really been fixed,
but
my sense is they're in better shape overall as far as capacity is concerned,"
Costello said.
???The nation's 203,600-mile high-voltage network has undergone relatively few
changes in 50 years, during which deregulation has prompted electricity
wholesalers to sell power at even greater distances to reach more lucrative
markets, adding to the pressure on the grid system.
???California, in a sense, has been serving as a stalking horse for other
states, some of which also deregulated their electricity systems and are
consciously avoiding doing anything that resembles the California model.
???Eugene Gorzelnik, spokesman for the North American Electric Reliability
Council (NERC), which oversees the interlocking power grids, said: "Obviously,
there will be problems in California and there's nothing that's going on that
will solve those problems. But a lot of [utilities] people are looking at
California and saying to themselves, 'Can I do this in a way they didn't?'
That's a positive development."
???Apart from California, the worst problems are expected in adjoining western
states, as Golden State electrical grid managers scramble to buy electricity
at
a time when power production at the region's hydroelectric dams is already
being
cut because of shrinking water levels in reservoirs.
???The Northwest Power Planning Council recently reported that the demand for
electricity has grown 24 percent in the past decade while new generation has
grown only 4 percent.
???NERC is not expected to issue its long-awaited pre-summer electricity
reliability assessment -- a document that forecasts peak generation and
consumption -- until next month. But in interviews, officials of many of the
10
regional reliability councils that comprise the national grid system appeared
fairly sanguine about the prospect of avoiding widespread brownouts this
summer.
???"Assuming normal weather and assuming our generating units come off
maintenance on schedule, we don't anticipate any particular problems meeting
our
loads," said Bill Reinke, executive director of the Southeastern Electricity
Reliability Council.
???Reinke said the region was adding 300 miles of new transmission lines, has
5,600 megawatts of new generating capacity -- enough to power 5.6 million
homes
-- and is seeking to identify potential transmission bottlenecks so it can
take
preemptive corrective measures against distribution failures.
???Outside the West, the greatest potential for blackouts may be in New York,
where the near certainty of transmission logjams in an antiquated
infrastructure
prompted Consolidated Edison Co. to request approval for 11 combustion turbine
mini-generators in case of a power shortage. Residents and conservationists
are
appealing court approval of the generators on environmental grounds.
???Stephen Allen, spokesman for the Northeast Power Coordinating Council said,
"If the 400 megawatts the generators provide go on-line, it'll still be tight,
but New York should be okay." He said Upstate New York should have surplus
electricity to sell to New York City, although some experts say transmission
bottlenecks could make it difficult for New York City to import power on
abnormally hot days.
???New York City customers, who have already had their electricity rates
increased 40 percent in the last two years, could see prices rise an
additional
50 percent because of the deregulated power industry's dependence on gas-fired
generation, according to some analysts.
???Allen said that since last June, New England has added mostly gas-fired
plants that generate more than 1,000 megawatts and should have an additional
2,000 megawatts on-line before the end of the summer. He said the region
should
have a 15 percent to 18 percent capacity margin.
???The Mid-Atlantic Area Council, made up of Maryland, Virginia, the District
of Columbia, Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, is expecting a reserve
margin of more than 16 percent and an increase of 2,100 megawatts in
generating
capacity over last year, to about 60,000 megawatts, according to the council's
president, Phillip G. Harris. Harris said the council met last year's peak of
49,288 megawatts with no problems, though the summer of 2000 was relatively
cool.
???Harris cited several reasons "why we are not like California," including a
decision to centralize all planning, which California did not; the creation
of a
regional market instead of a state-based marketplace like California's, and a
policy of only slow, incremental changes in the grid.
???"A single misstep can have huge consequences," Harris said. "We're
tinkering
with something that has worked for 100 years, so you better do it right."
???In the Midwest, utilities expect a peak demand this summer of 55,221
megawatts, compared with 52,214 megawatts last summer, according to Richard
Bulley, executive director of the six-state Mid-America Interconnected
Network.
But keeping pace with the nearly 6 percent increase in demand is the addition
of
5,470 megawatts of capacity, Bulley said.
???"We do not anticipate any major limitations on the region's bulk
transmission system, and we project a healthy reserve margin of more than 18
percent," he said.
???Since 1998, 33 companies have proposed projects in Illinois totaling 25,000
megawatts of gas-fired power. Although no one expects all of that to come
on-line, the state's total generating capacity is just under 34,000 megawatts,
meaning that even if only a modest amount of the anticipated power was added,
the region would have a cushion, even in a hot summer.
???Officials of Commonwealth Edison Co., the biggest utility in Illinois, say
that new or rebuilt electrical distribution facilities should prevent a repeat
of the kind of disastrous power outages that crippled offices in Chicago's
Loop
last summer, when lines broke and transformers burst into flames.
???Few power grids are in as good shape as Texas's. The state anticipates a 23
percent power margin this summer and the addition of 9,188 megawatts of new
generating capacity this year, according to Heather Tindall, spokeswoman for
the
Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). Texas utilities have 27 new
power
plants under construction and 31 more in the planning stages, she said.
???As a result, ERCOT is forecasting almost 70,000 megawatts of generating
capacity this summer, compared with a peak demand of 57,600 megawatts on one
111-degree day last summer.
???Tindall said that after studying California's system, the Texas grid made a
"concerted effort" to operate theirs differently. For example, she said, Texas
supports utilities entering into long-term contracts for power, while in
California, power companies did not enter into such contracts and were forced
to
pay exorbitant prices at peak times.
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????21 of 103 DOCUMENTS
???????????????????The Associated Press State & Local Wire
The materials in the AP file were compiled by The Associated Press. ?These
materials may not be republished without the express written consent of The
Associated Press.
???????????????????????April 30, 2001, Monday, BC cycle
?????????????????????????????9:49 AM Eastern Time
SECTION: State and Regional
LENGTH: 594 words
HEADLINE: Developments in California's energy crisis
BYLINE: By The Associated Press
BODY:
??Developments in California's energy crisis:
??MONDAY:
??- Members of the Assembly Subcommittee on Natural Gas Costs and Availability
unveil legislation to cut natural gas prices.
??- The state remains free of power alerts as electricity reserves stay above
7
percent.
??FRIDAY:
??-Gov. Gray Davis calls a federal regulatory order "a Trojan horse" that will
profit power generators at California ratepayers' expense. The Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission is considering requiring the state's electric grid
operator to add a surcharge on power sales to pay generators the money they
are
owed by the state's two large financially strapped utilities.
??- State power buyers have asked for another $500 million to buy electricity
for the customers of three cash-strapped utilities. That brings the total
amount
authorized for power purchases to $6.2 billion since mid-January, when the
state
began purchases power for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., Southern California
Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric.
??- Gov. Gray Davis says state office buildings cut energy use by an average
of
20 percent in January and February, saving taxpayers $286,000 in utility
bills.
??- State officials negotiating long-term power contracts for customers of
three cash-strapped utilities have secured five more contracts. Four of the
contracts signed in March by the Department of Water Resources will provide
466
megawatts of electricity during times of peak demand this summer, according to
DWR documents. One megawatt is roughly enough power for 750 homes.
??- California Public Utilities Commission attorneys are advising state
agencies to avoid submitting monetary claims against Pacific Gas and Electric
Co. despite the company's bankruptcy. The PUC is trying to retain their
electric
rate-setting authority over the utility and says submitting claims could bring
the state under the court's jurisdiction as a creditor, which could allow the
judge to set electric rates.
??- Shares of Edison International closed at $9.90, up 15 cents. PG&E Corp.
closed at $8.94, up 20 cents.
??-The state remains free of power alerts as reserves stay above 7 percent.
??WHAT'S NEXT:
??- Davis' representatives continue negotiating with Sempra, the parent
company
of San Diego Gas and Electric Co., to buy the utility's transmission lines.
Davis says he expects to have an agreement within two weeks.
??THE PROBLEM:
??High demand, high wholesale energy costs, transmission glitches and a tight
supply worsened by scarce hydroelectric power in the Northwest and maintenance
at aging California power plants are all factors in California's electricity
crisis.
??Edison and PG&E say they've lost nearly $14 billion since June to high
wholesale prices the state's electricity deregulation law bars them from
passing
on to consumers. PG&E, saying it hasn't received the help it needs from
regulators or state lawmakers, filed for federal bankruptcy protection April
6.
??Electricity and natural gas suppliers, scared off by the two companies' poor
credit ratings, are refusing to sell to them, leading the state in January to
start buying power for the utilities' nearly 9 million residential and
business
customers. The state is also buying power for a third investor-owned utility,
San Diego Gas & Electric, which is in better financial shape than much larger
Edison and PG&E but also struggling with high wholesale power costs.
??The Public Utilities Commission has raised rates as much as 46 percent to
help finance the state's multibillion-dollar power buys.
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????22 of 103 DOCUMENTS
???????????????????????Copyright 2001 Associated Press
??????????????????????????????????AP Online
????????????????????????????April 29, 2001; Sunday
SECTION: Domestic, non-Washington, general news item
LENGTH: 1313 words
HEADLINE: ?Geothermal Plants Need More Steam
BYLINE: JENNIFER COLEMAN
DATELINE: MIDDLETOWN, Calif.
BODY:
???Geothermal plants in The Geysers area north of the Napa Valley have tapped
steam fields to produce electricity since the 1960s. The 350-degree steam
rushes
more than 1,500 feet up from the earth, spinning turbines that create a
constant
flow of electricity.
??But mismanagement of the steam fields beneath the hilly northwestern
California region that straddles the Sonoma and Lake county lines has led to a
large decline of pressure and a drop of more than 50 percent in the amount of
power the plants produce.
??The geothermal decline comes as California already faces short supplies of
hydroelectricity from the drought-ridden Pacific Northwest and growing
competition for megawatts from other power-starved states.
??State power grid managers estimate they're losing about 900 megawatts of
geothermal electricity due to the gradual depletion of the steam fields.
That's
enough power for roughly 675,000 homes.
??''They just overproduced. It is a renewable source of power, but it's
renewable over geologic time,'' says Katherine Potter, a spokeswoman for
Calpine
Energy, which owns 19 of the 21 geothermal power plants in The Geysers region,
which incidentally has no geysers.
??The first electricity produced by tapping into pockets of steam trapped in
the earth made its debut in 1904 in Larderello, Italy. That plant, rebuilt due
to World War II damage, is still operating. The first U.S. geothermal plant
was
a small operation at The Geysers built in 1962.
??Steam fields are created when water flows through fissures in the rock deep
in the earth and is heated by hot magma. Geothermal plants tap into that
pressure and use it to spin turbines. The plants' cooling towers release
plumes
of white steam, which can be seen for miles on a clear day.
??While The Geysers is a unique geologic formation called a dry steam field,
there is the potential for thousands of megawatts of geothermal power from
other
regions that could use the more common ''wet steam'' process, said Karl
Gawell,
executive director of the Geothermal Energy Association in Washington D.C.
??Wet steam plants tap into superheated water in the earth, separate the steam
and use it to power generators. The water and the condensed steam is pumped
back
into the earth.
??CalEnergy Corp. owns 10 power plants in Imperial County that produce about
330 megawatts of power, enough for about 247,500 homes. Those plants and
others
like them haven't seen a decline in pressure like Calpine's plants.
??Geothermal energy is second only to hydroelectricity as a continuous, cheap
source of power, said Jan Stewart, Calpine's public relations manager.
??The plants in The Geysers reached their peak power production in the 1980s,
producing about 2,000 megawatts of electricity enough to power about 1.5
million
homes.
??At that time, about 30 companies were involved in various geothermal
ventures
in the area and didn't work together, Stewart said.
??''The resource wasn't being managed properly. As a result, it was a very
fractured environment,'' she said. ''If one plant shut down, the steam would
be
vented to the atmosphere, instead of being rerouted to another plant where it
could be used.''
??In the 1960s and '70s when The Geysers got started, there was ''a real
wildcatter's mentality'' among power generators, said Rich Ferguson, energy
chairman for Sierra Club California.
??''Basically, they took out the water in the form of steam faster than Mother
Nature was putting it back in,'' he said.
??The available steam declined, and the area now puts out about 850 megawatts,
sufficient power for roughly 637,500 homes.
??Since then, geothermal engineers have learned more about managing the
resource, Ferguson said.
??The superheated, self-contained system at The Geysers has no
??ater running through it. ?''The Geysers is unique worldwide. There really
aren't other dry steam fields,'' Gawell said. ''In effect, there was never a
sustainable level of production, you always would have depleted it eventually.
It's like a giant pressure cooker. As soon as you put the first straw in, you
began to deplete the resource.''
??Calpine is experimenting with replenishing the steam fields by pumping
treated waste water back into the earth. It began three years ago, when Lake
County stopped pumping its treated waste water into Clear Lake.
??Now, more than 8 million gallons of treated waste water is returned daily to
the earth. The experiment appears to be working _ power output is up 68
megawatts.
??''People like the stewardship that Calpine provides now,'' Ferguson said. ''
Calpine has taken on as a long-term goal to make that sustainable.''
??Calpine is building a 50-mile pipeline to Santa Rosa and plans to pump
another 11 million of treated waste water daily from that city. The company
expects that will boost production another 85 megawatts.
??Even with the new project, power grid managers say they're planning for
diminishing geothermal electricity.
??''We've lost a considerable portion of their output due to the decline in
the
output of the steam,'' said Jim McIntosh, director of grid operations for the
Independent System Operator. ''All supplies are very important to us at this
point.''
??The plants are relatively low-maintenance once they're running _ only one
engineer staffs each of the 19 Calpine plants in The Geysers.
??But geothermal plants are more expensive to build than natural gas-fired
power plants, Gaywell said.
??''It's like choosing between two identical cars one is $10,000 and the other
is $30,000, but the $30,000 car comes with a lifetime supply of fuel,'' he
said.
''People are shortsighted on investments and it takes more money upfront to
build geothermal.''
??Most geothermal resources are on public land, lengthening the building
process because more permits are needed, Gawell said.
??Two new plants are in the application process in California.
??Researchers estimate there are 2,500 megawatts of untapped geothermal
resources in Nevada, Gawell said. Idaho, New Mexico and Oregon also have sites
that could be tapped, he said.
??''Many of these sites were looked at in the '80s, but then nothing happened
because in the '90s natural gas was too cheap to meter,'' he said.
??Ferguson said the state spent $540 million over the last four years on
incentives for renewable energy projects, including geothermal, solar, wind
and
biomass, and he expects the plan will be renewed when it expires in December.
??''We think there will be an equivalent amount of money,'' he said. ''All the
technologies have to compete against each other, but geothermal should do
pretty
good.''
??___
??There are three types of geothermal power plants. Here's a look at how they
work:
???Dry steam: Such plants are rare, producing steam and not hot water. The
Geysers region is the world's largest dry steam field. Steam from the earth is
piped to the power plant, where it spins turbines to create electricity. After
the remaining steam condenses back to liquid, it is returned to the earth.
???Wet steam: This type of geothermal plant is more common. There are several
such plants in Southern California. Hot water and steam are brought to the
surface, separated and the steam is used to power turbines. The water is
returned to the earth as is the condensed steam.
???Binary: These plants use hot water and steam from the earth to heat another
liquid, such as isobutane, which has a lower boiling point than water. That
liquid's steam is used to power turbines to make electricity. When the steam
cools and becomes liquid it's returned to the tank and reused. This type of
system is self-contained and has no emissions.
??___
??On the Net:
??Geothermal Education Office: http://geothermal.marin.org
??California ISO: http://www.caiso.com
??Calpine Corp.: http://www.calpine.com
?????(PROFILE
?????(CO:Calpine Corp; TS:CPN; IG:ELC;)
?????)
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????24 of 103 DOCUMENTS
???????????????????The Associated Press State & Local Wire
The materials in the AP file were compiled by The Associated Press. ?These
materials may not be republished without the express written consent of The
Associated Press.
???????????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday, BC cycle
SECTION: State and Regional
LENGTH: 413 words
HEADLINE: Guns in schools, deregulation delay on lawmakers' agenda
BYLINE: By BRAD CAIN, Associated Press Writer
DATELINE: SALEM, Ore.
BODY:
??Backers of a bill to prevent holders of concealed handgun licenses from
bringing their weapons onto school property will spend the coming week trying
to
force a Senate vote on the issue.
??Also this week, House Speaker Mark Simmons is planning to schedule a hearing
on his bill to pull the plug - at least for now - on a key part of an electric
deregulation law that's due to take effect this fall for large businesses.
??The guns-in-schools bill has been on life support for weeks, with a key
Senate committee chairman refusing to schedule a hearing on the bill on
grounds
that it is overly contentious and wouldn't pass anyway.
??The sponsor of the bill, Sen. Ryan Deckert, D-Beaverton, and other
supporters
aren't giving up, however.
??They are hoping to use a parliamentary maneuver that would enable them to
move the school guns issue to the full Senate for debate by attaching it to
another education-related bill.
??Gun owner groups say SB508 is unnecessary because there have been no
documented cases of law-abiding carriers of concealed handguns causing any
problems at schools.
??But a key supporter of the bill, Sen. Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, says she is
convinced the measure would pass in both the House and Senate - if it can be
brought up for vote.
??"I don't think we should wait to have dead children before we ban guns in
schools," said Burdick, who was a chief sponsor of a measure passed by voters
last fall expanding background checks at gun shows.
??California's power woes that were precipitated by that state's move to
deregulation are giving Oregon lawmakers second thoughts about their decision
to
approve a phased-in deregulation of the electricity market in Oregon.
??A bill passed by the 1999 Legislature is supposed to open Oregon's electric
markets to industrial and large commercial customers, beginning this October.
??The 1999 law is supposed to free large businesses to buy power on the open
market, and does not deregulate electric rates for residential customers.
??Still, Simmons says that drought conditions and the power market turmoil
caused by California's energy crisis require reconsideration of the law.
??For that reason, the House speaker is planning hearings this week on his
proposal to enact a 15-month delay in Oregon's electricity restructuring
efforts.
??"This just gives the opportunity for the energy markets to settle for a
while," the Elgin Republican said.
??Similar legislation is pending in the Senate.
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????25 of 103 DOCUMENTS
???????????????????????Copyright 2001 The Post Register
??????????????????????????Idaho Falls Post Register
????????????????????????????April 29, 2001 Sunday
SECTION: News; Pg. a1
LENGTH: 530 words
HEADLINE: Plenty of blame to go around for West's power woes
BYLINE: PAUL MENSER
BODY:
??When it comes to power, the West is a mess.
??Because of its botched deregulation attempts, California bears a lot of the
blame - but not all of it, said Susan F. Tierney, a former assistant secretary
in the Energy Department, now a consultant for Lexecon, a Cambridge, Mass.,
consulting firm.
??Like planets lining up to usher in an age of hysteria, a combination of
unforeseen circumstances have put the Northwest behind the eight ball. In
addition to California's self-created tangle, oil and natural gas prices are
rising and a drought is stymieing the region's hydropower production.
??The situation is less volatile in other parts of the country. In the
Northeast, South and Midwest, where growth has been modest and generating
capacity has been more stable, there's less discrepancy between supply and
demand.
??Undergirding the West's situation was some serious lack of foresight,
Tierney
said.
??When it looked like California power customers would be able to get
electricity from whoever offered it at the cheapest price, utilities worried
about recovering the money they'd spent building plants and transmission lines
in the '70s and early '80s. So they sold off their power plants and bought
power
on the wholesale market, where it was cheap and plentiful.
??Not trusting the marketplace, California legislators capped the rates
utilities could charge residential customers. When wholesale power prices went
up, they couldn't pass those increases on to consumers.
??"At the time, they did not realize that in a couple of years there would not
be an adequate power supply," Tierney said.
??California's economic explosion of the late '90s, coupled with a failure to
build any new plants, brought the crisis to a head. Computers are not by
themselves big energy consumers, but the factories that make them are. The
Internet, with all its server farms and data hotels, also became a heavy power
user.
??When demand in California finally caught up with supply, "all of a sudden,
utilities had to buy power, and it became a seller's market," Tierney said.
??But most of the Northwest's power comes from hydroelectric dams, and there
has to be water in the rivers to power the turbines at the dams. In a drought
year like this, the power has to come from somewhere else, most likely oil-
and
natural gas-fired plants, which fire up when demand is high.
??Because demand is so high this year, generators can charge exorbitant
prices,
knowing that California and the Northwest have nowhere else to buy power.
??Also, natural gas prices have gone through the roof in the last 18 months
and
aren't likely to come down until next year at the earliest. Until 18 months
ago,
the price of natural gas had been at a prolonged low, so companies weren't
interested in expensive drilling projects.
??The problem is not likely to be permanent. As exploration and extraction
pick
up, prices will come down. The public has already begun to hear a conservation
message, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is being deluged with
applications for new power plant construction.
??Staff writer Paul Menser can be reached at 542-6752, or via e-mail at
[email protected].
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????26 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday, Home Edition
SECTION: Opinion; Part M; Page 6; Opinion Desk
LENGTH: 1312 words
HEADLINE: THE STATE;
HOW KILOWATT SOCIALISM SAVED L.A. FROM THE ENERGY CRISIS
BYLINE: JEFF STANSBURY, Jeff Stansbury is a PhD candidate in American history
at
UCLA. His, dissertation is on the role of the labor movement in the building
of,
L.A.'s infrastructure
BODY:
??Why is Los Angeles an island of tranquillity in the electric-power crisis
that has rocked California and threatens to spread across the nation?
??News stories have repeatedly told us that the city's ownership and operation
of its own generating stations is the principal reason. By staying clear of
the
state's 1996 deregulation scheme for private utilities, the Department of
Water
and Power was able to hold onto its power plants.
??So far, so good. But when we ask how Los Angeles came to enjoy public power
in the first place, the answer commonly given makes a hash of history.
??Most historians and political scientists credit the city's progressive
reform
movement of 1890-1915 for having wisely settled on a municipal utility. True,
some of the entrepreneurs, lawyers and reform-minded professionals who called
themselves "the best men" during that era agitated for the city-built Owens
Valley aqueduct and its generating stations. But many reformers opposed the
city's effort to distribute its own power. Because they had allied themselves
with railway magnate Henry Huntington, who owned an electric company, or
because
they favored regulation over municipal ownership, they wanted L.A.'s three
private electric companies to sell and profit from aqueduct power. Meyer
Lissner, a reform attorney often portrayed as a champion of public power,
opposed the holding of a decisive 1911 citywide straw poll on the subject
because he knew most Angelenos would cast their ballots for municipal
ownership.
That, he said, would be "unfair" to the three utilities.
??The most steadfast partisans of public power were not progressive reformers
like Lissner but the city's much-maligned labor unions, and for a simple
reason.
While mistrust of oligopoly ran through nearly all sectors of society, it
burned
hottest in working-class wards. Without organized labor's dogged campaign for
"gas and water socialism," as well as its willingness to hand control of these
resources to the anti-union regimes of Mayors George Alexander and Henry Rose,
there would be no DWP today.
??Organized labor played a key role in the city's original decision to
municipalize its water distribution system. On Oct. 24, 1892, 700 union
members
met to demand that the city build a small neighborhood waterworks as a step
toward public control of the entire water supply. From that day on, L.A.'s
unions never wavered in their call for a public water supply publicly managed.
They mobilized the rank and file for the water-company buyouts of 1901-04,
and,
in 1906, the Public Ownership Party's citywide campaign primed voters to pour
$
23 million into construction of the Owens River aqueduct a year later. The
aqueduct was the sine qua non of public power. At a time when most progressive
reformers were mute on the subject, organized labor insisted that the aqueduct
be used to generate electricity for the city's streets, homes and businesses.
??A broad consensus backed the city's construction of hydroelectric plants
while the aqueduct was being built, but most of the city's politicians and
corporate lobbyists were committed to public subsidies, not public ownership,
of
aqueduct power. The 1911 straw poll, in which city voters declared their
support
for municipal ownership and distribution of Owens River power, upset their
plans.
??The most consistent fighters for public power during the decades after the
straw poll were the Central Labor Council, International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers, other unions and city employees who stuffed campaign
envelopes, canvassed precincts and got out the vote. Voters who favored
municipally owned power and initiatives bolstering the DWP tended to be
working
class and Democratic; those opposed were mainly middle and upper class and
Republican.
??In this polarized political climate, Mayor Alexander called for a $
6.5-million bond issue to complete the aqueduct-power distribution network; he
left open the question of who would sell the power to consumers. Unions and
socialists tied their support for the bonds to a city charter reform that
would
guarantee them a long-sought role in city government through proportional
representation. When the reform failed at the polls, they withheld support
from
the power bonds, and these, too, went down to defeat in 1913. Much of the
rancor
workers felt was aimed at progressives like Lissner, head of the Good
Government
Organization, who fought labor's charter plank because it would bring
socialists
onto the City Council.
??The labor movement's dedication to public ownership soon reasserted itself,
however. With a citywide election coming up that June, five unionists seeking
council seats on the Socialist Party ticket revived labor's long-standing
demand
for city operation of all public utilities at cost. They urged the City
Council
to hold a new power-bond election with a clear public ownership mandate. They
attacked the power companies' efforts to buy aqueduct power from the city and
sell it to Angelenos at a profit. Soon, the great majority of unions in the
Central Labor Council were locked in what turned out to be a decisive struggle
against the power oligopoly made up of Southern California Edison, Pacific
Light
& Power and Los Angeles Gas & Electric.
??An unprecedented event brightened the bonds' chances. A machinist, Fred C.
Wheeler, won a seat on the City Council, the first unionist to do so in the
20th
century. Wheeler led a successful fight against an attempt to split the
power-bond issue into two separate ballot propositions, one to complete the
aqueduct's generating stations, the other to create a city-owned distribution
system. Such a division would probably have doomed public power.
??The large majority of unionists who favored public power had little time to
savor Wheeler's victory. While pressing the attack on the three electric
companies, they faced a small but angry split in their own ranks. Dissenters
in
the Building Trades Council and a few of its unions argued that labor's
grievances against the progressive regimes of 1909-14 had turned the argument
for municipal ownership on its head. What good was municipal ownership in the
hands of a council and mayor who had caused the arrest of hundreds of peaceful
picketers during the citywide strikes of 1910, had underpaid aqueduct workers
and fed them bad food and had denied unionists influential city jobs? The
final
blow was the council's rebuff of a petition signed by thousands of workers
for a
"living wage" law. Was it not folly to reward labor's foes with control of the
aqueduct's power?
??Union activists who favored the bonds conceded that the dissenters were
correct in their assessment of "progressive" city government. But the
progressive star was fading. What counted in the long run was whether Los
Angeles could wrest the city's electric power system from the grasp of private
utilities. The Central Labor Council's unions took this challenge to heart and
voted, 60-4, for a resolution favoring the bonds.
??On its own, as well as in coalition with other groups, the labor movement
marshaled its rank and file on behalf of public power. It turned out hundreds
of
poll-watchers and canvassers on election day. The pro-bond unions never did
win
over the dissenting faction; rather, they overwhelmed it at the polls. On May
8,
1914, L.A.'s voters emphatically endorsed the power bonds by a hefty 71%-29%,
with the city's working-class wards providing by far the largest margin of
victory.
??Within a year, Los Angeles sold its bonds and began buying out the three
investor-owned utilities. The first public power flowed into local homes and
businesses in 1916. Two decades later, the DWP eliminated the last of its
private competition and consolidated the working-class legacy of kilowatt and
water socialism that has served the city so well in the current energy crisis.
GRAPHIC: GRAPHIC-DRAWING: (no caption), JENNIFER HEWITSON / For The Times
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????27 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday, Home Edition
SECTION: Opinion; Part M; Page 4; Editorial Writers Desk
LENGTH: 558 words
HEADLINE: CONSERVATION SANDBAGS;
THE DAVIS ADMINISTRATION NEEDS TO LAUNCH A CRASH EDUCATION COURSE TO CONVINCE
CALIFORNIANS OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE ELECTRICITY CRISIS AND THE NEED FOR
FAR-REACHING ENERGY-SAVING MEASURES.
BODY:
??Natural disasters and crises can be devastating but are relatively simple
and
easy to grasp. A brush fire you fight with shovels. An earthquake, you clean
up
the rubble afterward and strengthen buildings in anticipation of the next. But
California's energy crisis is far different and more complex. It's a quiet
disaster on scattered, invisible fronts. Most people see it only when their
own
lights go out.
??There also is no precedent for this crisis in California and no accurate way
to forecast how bad it can get, either the blackouts or the financial
consequences. But as May approaches, it's certain that most Californians are
not
adequately informed about the severity of the problem or what they can do to
limit its impact.
??Gov. Gray Davis, the utilities and others need to engage in a crash
education
program that will convince Californians of the seriousness of the problem and
motivate them to undertake their own conservation programs in homes and
businesses. California has been a pioneer in power conservation, and its
citizens will listen to persuasive reasoning.
??As the chairwoman of the state Senate's Energy Committee, Sen. Debra Bowen
(D-Marina del Rey) deals with problems ranging from utility company insolvency
to rate "gaming" by energy producers. "But I'm really worried about this
summer," she said last week, referring to the potential for day after day of
rolling blackouts. She told of one businessman in her district who reported he
will lose an estimated $ 30,000 every time his power is cut. Why not at least
schedule blackouts so people can plan for them? she asked. Why not?
??In San Francisco, the Bay Area Economic Forum released a study indicating
that power woes could deliver a $ 17-billion blow to the state's economy in
lost
production, the cost of rate increases and increased product prices. That may
be
conservative. The study did not include the $ 5.1 billion the state has spent
so
far to buy power for the insolvent private utilities.
??Republicans in the Legislature are stalling bills that would float a $
10-billion revenue bond issue to finance power purchases and keep the state
fiscally above water. They have latched onto a powerful issue, Davis'
unwillingness to detail how he's spending the taxpayers' billions. Davis says
he
needs secrecy for competitive reasons as he bargains with power companies,
though he is letting out a slightly wider trickle of figures.
??Wall Street, already wary about the credit-worthiness of the state, thinks
poorly of the delay in issuing the bonds. Republicans should put a temporary
hold on their battle with Davis and get the measure to the governor's desk
this
week.
??Lawmakers were slow in passing an $ 850-million conservation program, Bowen
acknowledges. But Davis put the new program on a fast track Friday and made a
smart choice in S. David Freeman, former chief of the Los Angeles Department
of
Water and Power, to run the conservation effort.
??Freeman, 75, is a canny veteran of electric power politics. Davis may abhor
giving out bad news, but Freeman need not shrink from it. Freeman should be on
radio and television every day telling California just how bad the problem is
and what they can do about it. If this were a flood, we'd be stacking
sandbags.
Our sandbags are conservation programs. We need to start stacking them now.
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????28 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday, Home Edition
SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 27; National Desk
LENGTH: 1316 words
HEADLINE: BUSH: THE FIRST 100 DAYS;
BUSH IS OFF TO A ROCKY START IN HIS HANDLING OF ALL THINGS CALIFORNIAN;
POLITICS: BUT WHY WOO THE GOLDEN STATE WHEN HE CAN'T CARRY IT IN AN ELECTION
'NO MATTER HOW HARD HE TRIES,' ONE ANALYST POINTS OUT.
BYLINE: RICHARD SIMON, TIMES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
BODY:
??So what if President Bush has opposed electricity price controls sought by
California officials? Or that he has proposed cutting aid to states for
incarcerating illegal immigrants convicted of crimes? Or that he has visited
26
states in his first 100 days in office--but not the most populous?
??Bush really does care about California, the White House insists, even if the
state preferred Al Gore on election day. Administration officials said they
have
done a lot and plan to do more to lessen the electricity turmoil expected this
summer.
??"I don't think he's treated California any differently than any other
state,"
said Rep. George P. Radanovich (R-Mariposa).
??Some Californians feel otherwise.
??"The Bush administration's treatment of California started at indifference,
moved to neglect and has now reached actual harm," complained Phil Schiliro,
chief of staff for Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles).
??Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has asked three times for a meeting with
Bush to discuss the energy crisis. Her response from the White House: a form
letter with her name misspelled.
??Bush has called for requiring public agencies to buy costly earthquake
insurance, a measure opposed by California lawmakers of both parties. He has
proposed cutting an earthquake preparedness program. And he provided no money
in
his proposed budget to clean up a pile of uranium processing waste in Utah
leaking into the Colorado River.
??"That's our water supply," political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe said.
"What
kind of message is that?"
??John J. Pitney Jr., associate professor of government at Claremont McKenna
College, said Bush's apparent indifference makes political sense.
??"It's hard to argue that Bush should spend any political capital in
California," he said. "The 2000 election suggested that he cannot carry the
state no matter how hard he tries. The Republicans have already lost several
House seats and have probably hit rock bottom. . . . From a purely political
angle, there's little point in giving California any money or attention that
could otherwise go to more competitive states, such as Florida."
??But Jeffe, senior scholar at USC's School of Policy, Planning and
Development, said Bush's failure to visit the state is hurting GOP efforts to
rebuild itself in California. "We are ground zero for the kind of Latino
outreach that he said he wanted to do."
??And veteran California Republican political strategist Kenneth L. Khachigian
said Bush at least needs to prepare for the electricity problems predicted for
summer.
??"If you get three or four days of successive blackouts, air conditioners
going out, traffic lights going out, a second bankruptcy--whether he wants it
or
not--it's his problem," Khachigian said. "It would be wise for him to have a
proactive stance, not just reactive."
??Tough Act to Follow
??Some political analysts have suggested that if Bush becomes too involved in
California's troubles, what is now Democratic Gov. Gray Davis' problem could
become Bush's. But, Khachigian said, "there's a fine line between taking
responsibility for a problem and claiming that California isn't part of the
United States."
??In dealing with heavily Democratic California, Bush has made this much
clear:
He is no Bill Clinton.
??Bush has a hard act to follow. When Clinton was president, he visited
California often and rewarded it with federal largess. And California in
return
showered him with buckets of campaign dollars and electoral votes.
??But Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) said California will benefit from Bush's
presidency too. "As Californians bear a disproportionately higher tax burden,
they stand to benefit greatly from the president's tax relief plan."
??While House spokeswoman Claire Buchan assured that Bush will visit
California
soon. His wife already has done so.
??As proof that California is on their mind, administration officials point to
the three Californians in the Cabinet--Ann M. Veneman of Agriculture, Norman
Y.
Mineta of Transportation and Anthony J. Principi of Veterans Affairs--and
others
in top White House jobs.
??Bush also has appointed California Latinos to high-level posts: Huntington
Park Councilwoman Rosario Marin as treasurer, Los Angeles entrepreneur Hector
V.
Barreto Jr. as head of the Small Business Administration and former San Mateo
County Supervisor Ruben Barrales as deputy assistant for
intergovernmental affairs.
??Critics said that a Californian at the top does not guarantee that the
Cabinet departments will develop California-friendly policies. The proposed
Agriculture budget, for example, provides only $ 5 million--not the $ 15
million
that California lawmakers said they need--to fight the glassy winged
sharpshooter, an agricultural pest that threatens the state's wine industry.
??A spokesman for Veneman assured that additional funding will be considered,
if requested by California lawmakers. And Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena),
who
assailed Bush for missing opportunities to help California, nonetheless
expressed confidence in Veneman. "She's going to keep pounding away to make
sure
that the California wine industry gets what it needs."
??Some Good News
??Though he has proposed cuts in some programs that are important to
California, Bush has taken some actions that please state officials. He has
proposed a permanent research and development tax credit--an action that would
particularly benefit Silicon Valley.
??His proposed budget includes additional money to crack down on illegal
immigration and drug smuggling and unsafe trucks crossing into California from
Mexico. And he has proposed increased funding to reduce backlogs at
immigration
offices.
??In one area, Bush even bested Clinton. He proposed $ 14 million to clean
Lake
Tahoe, more than the $ 3 million recommended by Clinton last year.
??And although he has drawn flak for proposing cuts in programs to promote
energy efficiency and alternative fuels, his proposal to boost assistance to
low-income families for insulating their homes and reducing their utility
bills
would nearly double California's allocation, to $ 8 million next year.
??No Bush policy has been more criticized in California than his approach to
the state's energy woes--particularly his adamant opposition to price
controls.
Steve Maviglio, a spokesman for Davis, said Bush and his aides "got off to a
strong start" by extending federal orders sought by the state to keep power
flowing into California.
??"Since then . . . they've been AWOL," Maviglio said. In a reference to price
controls, he added: "They're skirting around the edges of the problem without
taking the bold action they need to take."
??"The feds are the only ones who can step in and bring some sanity to the
cost
of electricity in California," Thompson said.
??Administration officials said they have taken steps "from our first hours in
office" to address the energy crisis. They said they have responded favorably
to
all the state's requests except price controls, which Bush contends would
discourage the building of power plants.
??While some seek to portray Bush's opposition to price controls as
unsympathetic to California's plight, a number of California's House
Republicans
also oppose price controls. And even those who support them argue that the
issue
misses the larger point.
??Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-San Diego), an advocate of price controls,
nevertheless said: "I agree with the administration that the state alone
remains
responsible for solving this crisis."
??Added Rep. Mary Bono (R-Palm Springs): "I don't believe Bush should bear the
brunt of responsibility that the Clinton administration left over."
??Tim Ransdell, executive director of the California Institute for Federal
Policy Research, doubted that Bush would ignore California. "California
represents one-eighth of the nation. One in eight Americans can't be ignored."
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????29 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
?????????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday, Home Edition
SECTION: Business; Part C; Page 2; Financial Desk
LENGTH: 1290 words
HEADLINE: WEEK IN REVIEW;
TOP 10 STORIES / APRIL 23-27
BYLINE: Lisa Girion and Terril Yue Jones and Sallie Hofmeister and James Bates
and Peter Pae and Jeff Leeds and Nancy Rivera Brooks and Peter Gosselin
BODY:
??1. Economic Growth a Welcome Surprise: The U.S. economy grew at an
unexpectedly strong 2% annual rate in the first three months of the year,
thanks
largely to buoyant shopping by American consumers. The gross domestic
product--the country's total output of goods and services--expanded at twice
the
pace it did in the final three months of 2000 and at twice what analysts had
expected, the government said Friday. Although many analysts said the economy
remains balanced between strong growth and recession, economic optimists
exulted
over the report. Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan added to the celebratory mood by
saying that a key trend behind the economy's strong performance of the last
decade--its ability to improve productivity--is likely to resume despite the
current slowdown.
??(Peter Gosselin)
??*
??2. Stocks Rise on Good News: The GDP report boosted stock prices, which
already had gotten a lift from better-than-expected home sales figures earlier
in the week. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 117.70 to close at
10,810.05
on Friday, up 2.2% for the week, while the S&P 500 index climbed 18.53 to
1,253.05. The Nasdaq, which had fallen Thursday on concerns over weak
technology
profits, rose 40.80 to 2,075.68, finishing the week down 4.1%. Meanwhile, the
yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 5.33% from 5.19%.
??(Times Staff Writer)
??*
??3. Power Crisis Zaps State Bond Rating; Price Controls OKd: The mounting
cost
to the state general fund of buying electricity for California consumers
prompted Standard & Poor's Corp. to downgrade $ 25 billion of California's
general obligation bonds. S&P lowered California's bond rating by two notches,
to A-plus from AA. The move could add hundreds of millions of dollars to the
state's borrowing costs, bond experts said. Separately, federal regulators
approved a plan to control electricity prices in California during times of
supply shortages. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission tied prices during
power emergencies to the cost of natural gas and emission controls, among
other
things, with the least efficient generator setting the market price. Critics
said the order contains loopholes that will allow market manipulation.
??(Nancy Rivera Brooks)
??*
??4. FTC Pans Music Industry Marketing: A much-anticipated sequel to last
year's Federal Trade Commission report on the marketing of violent
entertainment
to children slammed the record industry for failing to heed regulators'
recommendations. Though it gave some credit to the film and video-game
industries for revising the way they marketed to young audiences, the FTC
found
the five major record conglomerates continued to advertise "explicit-content"
albums on popular teen shows such as MTV's "Total Request Live" and BET's "Top
10 Live." Just before the release of the first report, the Recording Industry
Assn. of America had blunted some of the criticism by introducing a policy
against ads for such albums on TV shows or in publications whose audience is
mostly 16 years old or younger. But the RIAA said it rescinded the policy in
September.
??(Jeff Leeds)
??*
??5. Gas Prices Continue Upward Spiral: The average price of self-serve
regular
gasoline spurted higher again in California and around the nation on an
increase
in demand and a switch by refiners to the more costly summer gasoline blend
required in parts of the country by air-quality regulations. Prices in
California got an extra boost from a fire at a Los Angeles-area refinery owned
by Tosco Corp. and by a change in Tosco's pricing strategy. In late March,
Tosco
increased wholesale prices to its dealers in Southern California and Arizona
and
tied prices to the cost of gasoline in the spot market. Some other major
suppliers have begun matching the Tosco increase, market experts said. Some
market watchers foresee gas at $ 3 a gallon or more.
??(Nancy Rivera Brooks)
??*
??6. General Dynamics Renews Newport News Bid: General Dynamics Corp. agreed
to
acquire Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. in a $ 2.1-billion deal that would
create
the nation's largest military shipbuilder and leave only one maker of U.S.
aircraft carriers and submarines. The proposed merger, which the Pentagon had
rejected two years ago, marks the latest in a renewed wave of consolidations
in
the defense industry and would again make General Dynamics one of the largest
private employers in San Diego. General Dynamics executives said they are
confident of receiving the necessary approvals because this time they will be
dealing with the Bush administration, which may view the takeover differently.
??(Peter Pae)
??*
??7. Disney Earnings Beat Estimates: Walt Disney Co.'s second-quarter
operating
results exceeded Wall Street's expectations as the company's studio and
consumer
products units improved, although Disney did post a net loss stemming largely
from a one-time charge related to the restructuring of its Internet portal.
Disney also confirmed that it will shrink its venerable animation unit, with a
union official estimating as many as 300 jobs of about 1,000 in Burbank could
be
cut. Separately, President Robert Iger confirmed that layoffs will be needed
to
reach Disney's previously announced goal of cutting 4,000 jobs companywide.
Disney's studio and consumer products groups showed improved results in the
quarter, while earnings were flat in its theme parks and softer in
broadcasting.
??(James Bates)
??*
??8. New FCC Chief Vows Deregulation: Repudiating decades-old media ownership
rules, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael K. Powell said he
envisions a broad rollback of restrictions, which could bring about a tidal
wave
of consolidation. In his most candid remarks about the role of the FCC since
taking office, Powell said he would move in early May to eliminate regulations
that prevent one company from owning a newspaper and a television station in
the
same city. Powell also told broadcasters meeting in Las Vegas that Viacom Inc.
was likely to prevail in its challenge of federal rules that prevent any
broadcaster from owning stations that reach more than 35% of the nation's
television viewers.
??(Sallie Hofmeister)
??*
??9. Ford Takes More Heat Over Explorer Tires: Ford Motor Co. came under the
most direct criticism leveled against it yet regarding last year's massive
Firestone tire recall. Two prominent consumer safety groups issued a report
saying that the auto maker was largely to blame for accidents in which Ford
Explorer sport-utility vehicles, equipped with Firestone tires, spun out of
control after the tires lost their treads. Though they blamed
Bridgestone/Firestone for producing tires prone to failure, Public Citizen and
Safetyforum.com said Ford bore the bulk of the responsibility for dictating an
insufficiently robust tire design and designing the Explorer so it would
overly
stress the tires and tip over too easily once a tire blew.
??(Terril Yue Jones)
??*
??10. American Airlines Sued Over Health Coverage: A flight attendant filed a
complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Los Angeles,
charging that American Airlines discriminated against some employees by
refusing
to offer insurance coverage for birth control, Pap tests and infertility
treatments. The case could test the position the EEOC took in December that
the
federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act forbids employers from excluding
contraceptives from prescription drug plans.
??(Lisa Girion)
??*
??These and additional stories from last week are available at
http://www.latimes.com/business, divided by category. Click on "Money and
Investing," "Entertainment Business" and other topics.
??* Please see Monday's Business section for a preview of the week's events.
GRAPHIC: PHOTO: Though Disney's second-quarter profit beat Wall Street
predictions, its theme-park earnings were flat. ?PHOTOGRAPHER: Associated
Press
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????30 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company
??????????????????????????????The New York Times
?????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday, Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Section 4; Page 17; Column 1; Editorial Desk
LENGTH: 756 words
HEADLINE: Reckonings;
The Real Wolf
BYLINE: ?By PAUL KRUGMAN
BODY:
??Recently I received a letter from an economist I respect, chiding me for my
"Naderite" columns on the California energy crisis. He just didn't believe
that
market manipulation by power companies could possibly be an important issue;
it
sounded too much to him like the sort of thing one hears from knee-jerk
leftists, who blame greedy capitalists for every problem, be it third-world
poverty or high apartment rents. The left has cried "Wolf!" so many times that
sensible people have learned to discount such claims.
??But now a bona fide wolf has arrived, whose predatory behavior is doing
terrible damage to our most populous state -- and nobody will believe it.
???True, California would be heading for a summer of power shortages even if
it
had never deregulated. And even if there was workable competition in the
wholesale electricity market, prices in that market would spike during periods
of peak demand, transferring billions of dollars from either taxpayers or
consumers to the generators.
??But the evidence is now overwhelming that there isn't workable competition
in
California's power market, and that the actions of generators "gaming the
system" have greatly magnified the crisis. The key fact is that California has
somehow remained in a state of more or less continuous power shortage and very
high wholesale prices regardless of the level of demand. A rash of outages has
kept the electricity market conveniently -- and very profitably -- short of
supply even during periods of low demand, when there ought to be lots of
excess
capacity.
??As Frank Wolak, the Stanford economist who also advises the state's power
grid, has pointed out, an outage at a power plant is a lot like an employee
calling in sick. You can't tell directly whether he is really sick or has
chosen
to take the day off for other reasons, but you can look for circumstantial
evidence. And such evidence has convinced Mr. Wolak that "generators use
forced
outages strategically to withhold capacity from the market" -- a view shared
by
a growing number of other researchers.
??Which brings us to the latest move by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission. On Wednesday, the commission apparently decided to offer
California
some relief, and put new price caps in place on the California electricity
market. I say "apparently" because the more you look at the plan the less
likely
it seems to be any help at all. Indeed, the measure was passed on a 2-to-1
vote,
with William Massey -- the one commissioner who has been sympathetic to calls
for price controls -- voting against it on the grounds that it would be
ineffectual.
??What's wrong with FERC's plan? First, it caps prices only in emergency
conditions -- ignoring the fact that electricity prices have stayed at
hard-to-explain levels even when there is no emergency. In effect, the plan is
laid out as if the electricity market were really competitive, in spite of all
the evidence that it is not.
??Second, even those emergency price caps are full of loopholes, offering
extensive opportunities for what Mr. Wolak calls "megawatt laundering" --
selling power to affiliated companies that for one reason or another are
exempted from the price controls (for example, the controls do not apply to
"imports" from neighboring states), then selling it back into the California
market. Severin Borenstein of the University of California Energy Institute
adds
that because the allowed price depends on the cost of generation at the least
efficient plant, generators will have a clear incentive to produce
inefficiently: "I predict we will find some plants we never heard of before
that
are suddenly operating again, and they will be pretty inefficient."
??The general verdict seems to be that this is not a serious plan. There are
serious proposals to mitigate the crisis out there -- indeed, last fall Mr.
Wolak submitted a proposal that was well received by other experts -- but FERC
has ignored all of them.
??The charitable interpretation is that FERC still doesn't get it, that it
just
can't bring itself to believe that this time the wolf is real. The
uncharitable
interpretation is that last week's action was meant to fail. The Medley
Report,
an online newsletter, calls the FERC plan "a grand exercise in posturing
without
substance . . . a very clever temporary move by the Bush administration to
deflect any political fallout" from the looming disaster.
??Whatever the explanation, the plain fact is that FERC and the administration
have yet to offer California any significant relief.
??http://www.nytimes.com
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????35 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????Copyright 2001 McClatchy Newspapers, Inc.
????????????????????????????????Sacramento Bee
??????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday METRO FINAL EDITION
SECTION: MAIN NEWS; Pg. A1; POWER CRUNCH
LENGTH: 1323 words
HEADLINE: Diesel plants spark concern They're expected to generate big
air-quality problems when predicted summer blackouts hit.
BYLINE: Chris Bowman and Stuart Leavenworth Bee Staff Writers
BODY:
??When blackouts roll across California in the coming months - as captains of
the crippled electricity grid say they surely will - tens of thousands of
miniature powerhouses will whine, cough and rumble to the rescue.
??These backup plants will ignite the same fuel that powers locomotives, ships
and 18-wheel trucks. And they'll be spewing the same pollution - only more so,
because most are old, with little or no emissions controls.
??They are diesel-powered generators, the dirtiest of internal combustion
engines. And unlike trucks and other vehicles, they've largely escaped 30
years
of air pollution restrictions because they were intended only for emergencies,
as when a storm or earthquake knocks out power.
??But, now, as a season of multiple planned blackouts appears imminent, many
California businesses are expected to fire up the old stogies more often than
was ever imagined.
??And the generators will kick in when their expelled gases can do the most
harm. The hot weather that taxes air conditioners and drains electricity
supplies also accelerates the conversion of engine exhaust to ozone gas, the
ingredient in smog that inflames airways and impairs breathing.
??"That is why we think this is going to be the most challenging summer ever
for air quality," said Luna Salaver, spokeswoman for the Bay Area Air Quality
Management District, a nine-county region with thousands of unregulated
standby
generators.
??"On those hot days when we want people to stop driving and doing things that
pollute the air, the generators will kick in, and air quality will worsen,"
Salaver said.
??No one knows how many diesel generators are scattered around the state at
hospitals, universities, factories and businesses. But air districts report
there are at least 641 in Sacramento; up to 5,000 in the Bay Area; 1,200 in
the
San Joaquin Valley; and thousands more in the smog-plagued valleys of Southern
California.
??Some are relatively clean, particularly if they have been built or
retrofitted in the last few years. But most are tiny pollution factories, and
were intended only to be run for short periods following natural disasters.
??According to the state Air Resources Board, a typical diesel generator emits
about 50 to 100 times more smog-forming compounds per unit of energy than a
typical gas-fired power plant. When the plants run for hours, people downwind
can get a heavy dose of the tiny, toxic particles contained in diesel exhaust.
??"Go down to the Greyhound bus station and have them turn on their engines
and
hang around there - that's what it's like," said Michael Scheible, deputy
executive officer of the state Air Resources Board, which regulates engines
and
fuels.
??Environmentalists say generators should be cranked up only during power
outages. But in recent months, farmers and manufacturers have pressured
regulators to redefine an emergency and allow generators to be used well
before
a blackout is ordered.
??Business groups say regulators need to be sensitive to data centers, chip
makers and other manufacturers that can't afford even a one-second
interruption
in power.
??"We would like some kind of statewide policy on when and where we can use
the
diesel generators," said Gino DiCaro, a spokesman for the California
Manufacturers and Technology Association. "Obviously, we would like to use
them
more than we can now."
??"We need to basically let go of this air-quality issue," said Mike Jennings,
a Fresno energy consultant whose clients include members of the
food-processing
and dairy industries.
??State air and energy regulators are pushing energy conservation as the best
way to avoid power outages. Nonetheless, the California Energy Commission has
been compiling a list of generators statewide to see how their use could be
coordinated, a move that stirs hope from business groups.
??"Six months ago, nobody wanted to talk about this because diesel was a big,
bad word," DiCaro said. "Now, at least we have agencies like the Energy
Commission and the Public Utilities Commission talking about how diesel
generators can fit into our electrically unreliable world."
??Environmentalists worry that, as the summer drags on, Gov. Gray Davis will
allow unrestricted use of the diesels.
??So far, the governor's staff has "held firm," said Gail Ruderman Feuer, an
attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, a national environmental
group. "But if blackouts start happening in a big way, they could change their
tune."
??Along with other forecasters, officials with the California Independent
System Operator, manager of the state's electricity grid, expect a flurry of
blackouts in coming months. The next two months could be critical, because
most
new power plants under construction won't go on line before July. In addition,
California will be losing one of its largest generators of electricity today
when one of two units at the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant is taken
off-line
for 35 days of scheduled refueling.
??"You should be ready for the worst-case scenario," said Del Evans, Pacific
Gas and Electric Co.'s head of power load management, at a media briefing last
week.
??For sellers and makers of diesel generators, the gloomy predictions are a
gold mine. Small businesses, farmers, manufacturers - all are rushing to buy
generators before the blackouts hit.
??"We are busier than we have ever been," said Rob Bly, president of Tuban
Industrial Products Co., which assembles about 300 generators a year at its
plant in Sacramento. "We are twice as busy as we were in the height of the Y2K
madness."
??Bly says the generators he makes are "10 times cleaner" than ones of a
decade
ago. Still, he acknowledges, diesel is diesel.
??"If you are a hospital and you want standby power, you can't use propane.
The
fire marshall won't let you," said Bly. "That leaves you with just one thing,
and that is diesel."
??Responding to such concerns, state Sen. Rico Oller, R-Andreas, introduced a
bill this year to exempt thousands of backup generators from pollution
controls
whenever any power alert is called. The bill, however, was blocked by a Senate
committee, and environmentalists say air districts have already relaxed their
rules enough.
??"One of the big concerns is the cancer risk," Ruderman Feuer said. Air board
studies, she noted, have found that a person's lifetime cancer risk increases
50
percent if he or she lives near a big diesel generator that runs 250 hours a
year.
??In January, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency allowed air districts
to
loosen their restrictions on generators. In turn, the South Coast Air Quality
Management District extended the number of hours that diesel generators could
be
operated each year. The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District went
even further, allowing businesses to run generators when state power reserves
drop to 1.5 percent or when the ISO predicts blackouts anywhere in the Valley.
??The Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District still requires
businesses and public agencies to wait for blackouts before generators are
fired
up. Altogether, the district has permits for 641 generators, including major
clusters at data centers and companies such as Intel.
??In the Bay Area, regulators are even more uncertain of what could happen
this
summer. Unlike other regions of the state, the Bay Area never required permits
for diesel generators smaller than 250 horsepower. (In Sacramento, the
threshold
is 50 horsepower.)
??As a result, only 12 of the region's estimated 5,000 generators are subject
to pollution controls.
??Salaver, the district's spokeswoman, said officials assumed the generators
would be used only during earthquakes, and therefore didn't need any
regulation.
??"Now, we find people are operating generators even if we are in a Stage Two
alert," Salaver said. "That is not what emergency generators are for."
??* * *
??The Bee's Chris Bowman can be reached at (916) 321-1069 or
[email protected].
GRAPHIC: Sacramento Bee / Jay Mather Mark Karakas checks a newly assembled
diesel generator at Tuban Industrial Products in Sacramento.
Sacramento Bee / Sheldon Carpenter Lights out, generators on Diesel-powered
generators can save lives during emergencies, but they spew far more pollution
per unit of energy than other power sources and could significantly degrade
air
quality during the blackouts expected in the next six months.
Smog-forming compounds Power source / Pounds of nitrogen oxides per
megawatt-hour of electricity Existing diesel generator / 25 to 30 Diesel
generator wiht latest pollution controls / 7 Uncontrolled gas-fired power
plant
/ 2 to 4 Controlled older gas-fired power plant / 0.1-0.15 New "combined
cycle"
gas-fired power plant / 0.05
Cancer causing particulates (PM) Power source / Pounds of PM per megawatt-hour
of electricity Existing diesel generator / 1 to 3 Diesel generator wiht latest
pollution controls / 0.1 to 0.5 Gas-fired power plant / 0.03 to 0.07
Snapshot of generators Number of emergency diesel generators in selected air
districst: Bay Area Air quality Management District Generators: 3,000 to 5,000
Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District Generators: 641
San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Generators: 1,200
South Coast Air Quality Management District Generators: 5,000
Sources: California Air Resources Board, regional air quality districts
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????36 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????Copyright 2001 McClatchy Newspapers, Inc.
????????????????????????????????Sacramento Bee
??????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday METRO FINAL EDITION
SECTION: MAIN NEWS; Pg. A1
LENGTH: 1544 words
HEADLINE: Why Edison, PG&E split on strategy
BYLINE: Dale Kasler Bee Staff Writer
BODY:
??One utility was more entrepreneurial, accustomed to the rough-and-tumble of
free markets - and apparently believed only a radical remedy would cure its
ills.
??The other was a more political animal, conversant with the language of
Sacramento - and confident that negotiations and compromise with state
officials
could fix its problems.
??Different cultures and different circumstances sent Southern California
Edison and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. on separate paths this month. Edison,
run by a former president of the Public Utilities Commission, negotiated a
rescue package with Gov. Gray Davis. PG&E, with fewer ties to government and
possessed of an independent streak, walked away from Davis and straight into
U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
??As California's energy crisis hurtles toward a summer of blackouts and
higher
rates, experts are debating which company found the best solution for digging
its way out of billions in debt.
??"We now have two models; it'll be interesting to see who recovers the
quickest," said Mitch Wilk, a former PUC president who is now an energy
consultant in San Francisco.
??At first blush, Edison and PG&E had plenty in common. Both utilities were
afflicted with the same problem: runaway wholesale electricity costs they
weren't able to recover from customers because of a state-mandated rate
freeze.
Both had been teetering on the edge of bankruptcy since January, when their
losses depleted their cash reserves and credit.
??But PG&E was far sicker financially than Edison. Its debts from the state's
flawed deregulation scheme reached $6.6 billion vs. $3.5 billion for Edison.
That's because Edison serves a smaller territory and has more long-term supply
contracts, so it was buying far less electricity than PG&E on the horrendously
expensive spot market.
??Faced with a comparatively manageable loss, Edison was receptive to selling
its share of California's transmission grid to the state, a deal that would
generate $2.76 billion. The proceeds, along with funds from a proposed
long-term
bond sale, would pay off Edison's debts, according to the terms of the deal.
??Although PG&E says it was willing to sell its transmission lines, too, there
was a crucial difference in the two companies' backgrounds that ultimately
would
influence their approach to the financial crisis.
??Unlike Edison, PG&E is a natural gas company as well as an electric company.
PG&E, a subsidiary of PG&E Corp., had survived the bruising wars of natural
gas
deregulation in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The experience took PG&E out
of
the cozy world of the regulated monopoly - in which the utility had exclusive
rights to its service territory but was subject to state price controls - and
into the world of competition.
??The experience gave PG&E more of a free-market bent, said a former PUC
staffer who requested anonymity.
??So even though Davis' aides say the governor offered PG&E a plan that would
have paid off its debts - including $3 billion to $4 billion for its share of
the grid - the utility balked at a key provision. While the original
deregulation called for the cap on customer prices to end in 2002, Davis was
insisting the utility remain regulated for a decade.
??PG&E wanted an immediate end to Public Utilities Commission regulation, and
would agree only to a cursory review of rates through "a jury-rigged
arbitration," Davis said last week.
??"I believe PG&E was in denial," Davis said in an interview with Bee editors
and reporters.
??PG&E says it wasn't demanding an end to regulation. Rather, what it wanted -
and what Davis' negotiator Michael Peevey agreed to in principle - was to let
the utility charge ratepayers for all its costs of buying wholesale
electricity,
said PG&E spokesman Ron Low.
??In that same deal, reached Feb. 25 in Los Angeles, PG&E made a "handshake
agreement" to sell its transmission grid, Low said. He wouldn't reveal the
price.
??In the weeks that followed, the governor's team reneged, Low said. "The
discussions and negotiations broke down because they would not agree to the
basic principles that were reached by (PG&E Chairman) Bob Glynn and Michael
Peevey," Low said.
??PG&E also became disgusted with a series of PUC rulings in late March and
early April that it believed would seriously hinder its ability to recover its
debts.
??Things came to a head April 5 when Davis proposed a rate increase and
outlined his rescue plan in a televised address. A few minutes later, Joseph
Fichera, a Wall Street financier advising Davis, and other Davis advisers
held a
conference call in which they fleshed out the details for investors. Edison
officials and directors listened in, but PG&E didn't, Fichera said.
??"They had made up their minds," Fichera said, referring to PG&E officials.
??The next morning, with Glynn dismissing Davis' speech as "a lot of words,"
the utility filed for bankruptcy protection.
??That afternoon, Davis called PG&E "selfish" and pointedly went into a
negotiating session with John Bryson, the chairman and chief executive of
Edison's parent Edison International.
??For Davis, the meeting was crucial. Although Edison had tentatively agreed
in
February to sell its transmission lines, the deal wasn't sewn up and Davis was
nervous the PG&E bankruptcy would prompt Edison's creditors to "jerk Edison
into
bankruptcy," Davis said last week.
??That afternoon, "conceptually we reached an agreement," Davis said. The deal
was announced the following Monday.
??Consumer advocates and some legislative leaders blasted the agreement as a
giveaway, and said Davis hastily sweetened the terms for Edison because he
needed to show progress on the energy crisis in the wake of the PG&E
imbroglio.
??Not true, Davis said; the basic terms were already on the table before PG&E
filed for bankruptcy. Either way, Edison was receptive to negotiating with
Davis.
??Edison's background is different from PG&E's. Because it isn't in the
natural
gas business, it doesn't have the track record PG&E does with free markets. It
is more comfortable in the regulatory and political realm, experts say.
??Notably, Bryson was president of the PUC in the 1970s - when Davis was Gov.
Jerry Brown's chief of staff.
??"He knows Gray Davis," said ex-PUC President Wilk. "He may feel a higher
level of comfort in dealing with a very adversarial process. He felt he could
rely on the governor."
??Politically savvy, Edison is one of the utility industry's biggest
contributors to national political campaigns, and it usually spends more than
PG&E on California campaigns. Edison International's board of directors
includes
Los Angeles attorney Warren Christopher, the former U.S. secretary of state
and
an elder statesman of the Democratic Party.
??Though it's open to negotiations, Edison isn't a pussycat. To the contrary,
experts say.
??"It was usually Edison that was more combative than PG&E," said Tom
Willoughby, a retired PG&E lobbyist.
??Wilk agreed, adding: "I find it curious that PG&E's being painted as the
confrontational, aggressive company and Edison as the get-along,
let's-work-with-the-regulators company."
??Edison hasn't been shy about going to Sacramento for favors; last year, for
example, Edison wanted some changes made in the operation of the state's power
grid. Instead of talking to the grid manager, the Independent System Operator,
Edison went to the Legislature, a source said. Lawmakers then pressured the
ISO
to make the changes.
??One more factor may have played into Edison's willingness to deal with the
governor.
??Last year it became involved in a protracted dispute with the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, which oversees the transmission grid, over how much
profit Edison could earn from the grid.
??Edison eventually won its point, but the case influenced the utility's
thinking when Davis offered to buy the grid. According to industry consultant
Barbara Barkovich, Edison figured, why wrestle with the federal government
over
profits when it simply could raise billions through a cash sale?
??Besides, Edison has a back-up plan if the Legislature scraps the grid
purchase, as many lawmakers have threatened. The company has said it would
follow PG&E's lead and file for bankruptcy.
??But its willingness to negotiate with the governor will have served it well,
even if it goes into bankruptcy, said Nancy Day, a utility industry veteran
consulting for the Legislature.
??Day said she believes the governor's appointees on the PUC will "punish"
PG&E
for its behavior. If Edison winds up in bankruptcy court, it "won't be
punished
for it," Day said.
??PUC President Loretta Lynch couldn't be reached for comment.
??Energy companies at a glance Edison Main subsidiary: Southern California
Edison Headquarters: Rosemead, Los Angeles County Customers: 4.2 million in
Southern California Chairman: John Bryson Performance: Lost $1.94 billion in
2000 on revenue of $11.72 billion Stock ticker symbol: EIX
??PG&E Main subsidiary: Pacific Gas and Electric Co. Headquarters: San
Francisco Customers: 13 million in Northern, Central California Chairman:
Robert
Glynn Jr. Performance: Lost $3.36 billion in 2000 on revenue of $26.23
billion.
Stock ticker symbol: PCG
??* * *
??The Bee's Dale Kasler can be reached at (916) 321-1066 or
[email protected].
GRAPHIC: Bryson
Glynn
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????37 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????Copyright 2001 McClatchy Newspapers, Inc.
????????????????????????????????Sacramento Bee
??????????????????April 29, 2001, Sunday METRO FINAL EDITION
SECTION: MAIN NEWS; Pg. A3
LENGTH: 679 words
HEADLINE: What will be fallout from California's energy meltdown?
BYLINE: Dan Walters
BODY:
??No one knows for certain how - or when - California's energy crisis will
conclude. It is an inordinately complicated four-dimensional chess game that
has
so far defied politicians' simplistic - perhaps simple-minded - efforts at
resolution.
??That said, one may speculate reasonably on the financial, social and
political consequences for California in the months and years ahead.
??Financially, Californians - especially the 70 percent who are served by
private electric utilities - will feel the pinch for years, if not decades, to
come. Before the crisis hit, California's power rates were already among the
highest in the nation. Given the nearly $20 billion in power purchase debts
that
the utilities and the state have accumulated so far, the stubbornly high
wholesale prices and other data, it's not unreasonable to project that
Californians in private utility areas will see their rates double, or rise
even
higher.
??Politicians have been laying the rhetorical groundwork for big increases,
although they've been disingenuous about the outer parameters. The burden will
fall most heavily on business customers and, coupled with doubts about power
reliability and rising natural gas prices, will damage the state's ability to
attract job-creating investment. States with low and stable energy prices
already are using the crisis as a recruiting tool. In February, Intel
President
Craig Barrett told the Wall Street Journal: "As long as California is a Third
World country, we won't build $2 billion manufacturing plants here."
??The inevitable escalation of utility rates will create distortions within
the
state as well, since utility rates for the 30 percent of Californians served
by
publicly owned utilities are not likely to rise by more than token amounts.
The
municipal utilities' rates were roughly a third lower than private utilities'
rates prior to the crisis. By the time the dust settles, they may be just half
as much. It will contribute to the balkanization of California that was
already
being defined by such factors as housing prices, ethnicity and income levels.
Low-cost regions will become magnets for people and jobs while high-price
regions will be shunned.
??The energy crisis will certainly be the defining issue of the 2002
elections,
and perhaps for others to follow. Gov. Gray Davis' popularity has plummeted
since he took charge of the crisis, laying waste to his intentions to seek an
easy re-election next year as a middle-of-the-road, business-friendly,
tough-on-crime education reformer.
??With his popularity waning, Davis may be compelled to turn left, shoring up
his base by catering to demands of labor unions, environmentalists, trial
lawyers and other liberal elements of the Democratic Party. That, in turn,
would
undermine the triangulating strategy he has pursued, in which he took
Democratic
voters for granted and cultivated business executives and social
conservatives.
Business interests are worried, for example, that Davis may now feel compelled
to sign union-friendly legislation, such as boosts in workers' compensation
and
unemployment benefits, that he vetoed in the past.
??Davis' relations with fellow Democrats in the Legislature have turned from
cool to poisonous, with lawmakers openly trashing his leadership and
management
of the energy crisis and worrying that he'll try to shift the blame to them if
the crisis turns to disaster. If Democratic leaders fear that voters will be
in
a throw-the-bums-out mood next year, they may throttle back on intentions to
maximize their party strength in drawing new legislative districts. Such
maximization would require spreading Democratic voters out among many
districts,
and such margin-thinning could make Democrats vulnerable in an energy
crisis-spawned voter rebellion. Democrats may well strive for fewer but safer
seats.
??These are but a few of the potential effects that California will experience
long after the immediate crisis has faded, whenever that may be.
??* * *
??The Bee's Dan Walters can be reached at (916) 321-1195 or
[email protected].
LOAD-DATE: April 30, 2001
?????????????????????????????38 of 103 DOCUMENTS
?????????????????Copyright 2001 The Chronicle Publishing Co.
?????????????????????????The San Francisco Chronicle
????????????????????APRIL 29, 2001, SUNDAY, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: INSIGHT; Pg. D1
LENGTH: 1419 words
HEADLINE: The energy crisis is good for you
SOURCE: Insight Senior Writer
BYLINE: Louis Freedberg
BODY:
Here's a message for pampered and overindulged citizens of the Golden State
who
complain unceasingly about high energy bills and the day-to-day prospect of
rolling blackouts: Stop whining.
???It's not a crisis -- it's an opportunity. The energy "crisis" is good for
us.
???For decades, we burned lights whenever we wanted, bought more and more
energy-guzzling appliances, bigger and bigger television sets. Today, as
citizens of the richest state in the world's only superpower, who is going to
tell us when to stop?
???"We talk about having to hit mules over the head with a 2 by 4 to get their
attention, but I don't think human beings are much more responsive or
foresighted. I hate to see people suffering, but on the other hand, if that is
the way we learn, so be it," says Ernest Callenbach, the Berkeley author of
the
futuristic 1975 novel, "Ecotopia." Callenbach's work was a major influence on
the alternative energy policies of former Gov. Jerry Brown.
???Nowhere has the ethic of unlimited consumption been more out of control
than
in the Bay Area, where the energy demands of high tech outstripped what the
electricity grid could supply. Aside from the energy needs of the industry
itself, the wealth it generated encouraged avaricious lifestyles that include
power-swilling mansions and freeways clogged with monster sport utility
vehicles.
???Perhaps the 34 days of blackouts some experts predict for this summer will
bring the discipline that eludes us. Except for the hardships the crisis has
inflicted on the poor, Californians still enjoy a sybaritic lifestyle that, in
ways, would put to shame the pharaohs of Egypt or the court of Louis XIV.
Lights
still burn when they're not needed. Except for very occasional blackouts,
electricity still flows 24 hours a day. Our daily routines have barely been
affected. A visitor from another state or country would have a hard time
finding
signs of our highly publicized "crisis."
???As we brace for deregulated electric bills courtesy of the state Public
Utilities Commission, imagine what life was like for Native Americans who
lived
for millennia in a bounteous Bay Area without microwaves, waffle irons, air
conditioning or 24-cubic-foot refrigerators. No one is suggesting that we
revert
to those days. But let's consider the thought that we may actually be better
off
without the piles of appliances whose tangle of cords clogs our homes and
offices.
???Smug Californians love to point to the state's ranking as a miserly
consumer
of energy -- only three other states consume less per capita -- to rebut
accusations that we have become greedy energy hogs. Tougher efficiency
standards
have helped, but so has our great weather. "California has a uniquely good
climate to be efficient," says Dan Kammen, director of the Renewable and
Appropriate Energy Laboratory at the University of California at Berkeley.
"Compared to countries with much harsher climates, we have not done enough."
???There's no denying the sudden, sharp pain caused by the crisis -- from
threats of sky-high electric bills to fears that California's economic engine
is
near collapse. But if we handle it right, all kinds of positive energy will
result. Potential benefits extend from the spiritual (a revival of the
conservation ethic) to the curative (making the state immune to power-problem
overloads) to the liberating (throwing off for good our dependence on the
Texas
energy overlords).
???Consumers, shocked into action by tripled or quadrupled energy bills, are
already rushing to Bay Area hardware stores, snapping up setback thermostats,
hot water heater blankets, insulating window film and outdoor clotheslines.
Alan
Ginsberg of Satco Products in Hayward, who imports from China container-loads
of
squiggly shaped energy-saving fluorescent bulbs, says, "They're flying out the
door."
???More significantly, the crisis impels the state to move ahead with the
construction of badly needed power plants. It puts on the agenda of public
debate the fundamental question of whether our energy system should be in the
hands of giant utilities or run by municipalities or by the state. It
certainly
unveiled the greed of out-of-state energy producers who have sucked billions
of
dollars from California.
???The crisis has also made us focus on fundamental flaws in our energy grid,
such as the 4,500-megawatt electricity shortage that emerged in the 1990s
while
we were all reveling in California's boom times.
???By exposing those who got us into this predicament -- producers, utilities,
regulators and politicians -- there's a chance we'll get out of it with a more
rational and efficient energy grid and be better prepared to deal with
challenges down the road. If that happens, Gov. Gray Davis might yet confound
critics who say his political prospects are sinking faster than you can say
"megawatt."
???The ease and convenience of modern life fools us into thinking that power,
water and food are infinite. Flip a switch and the lights magically go on.
Turn
a faucet and water flows. These days, the biggest challenge in gathering our
daily bread is the hunt for a space in the supermarket parking lot.
???And we want it all, leading us straight into denial. We want instant,
abundant power -- but we don't want any new power plants, especially in our
backyards. Coal is dirty. Natural gas is expensive. Dams kill salmon. Nuclear
power? Forget about it. The contradictions haven't mattered -- so long as an
endless supply of electrons flowed from our wall outlets. But that mindless
ease, the crisis taught us, is history.
???The energy crisis warns us that we must become more self-sufficient or risk
slipping toward oblivion if we continue to spend billions of dollars on
shrinking non-renewable energy sources such as coal and natural gas.
???The Roman Empire fell because of the decadence of its ruling elites. And
the
British empire, dependent on raw materials from the colonies, began to
collapse
when it became too expensive to import goods across oceans.
???A new consciousness about where electricity comes from is the first step
toward using less of it. It could also translate into a greater awareness of
other environmental causes.
???If we get the message, "the net outcome (of the energy crisis) will be a
quite profound shift in consciousness in energy conservation," predicts
Michael
Lerner, executive director of Commonweal, a health and environmental institute
in Bolinas.
???Such a turnaround is no snap.
???During the last energy crisis in the 1970s, there was a similar rush toward
conservation. President Jimmy Carter installed solar panels on the White House
roof. President Ronald Reagan took them down. He also phased out tax credits
and
other inducements to encourage development of renewable energy sources.
???Closer to home, one of former Gov. George Deukmejian's first acts was to
abolish the Office of Appropriate Technology established by Gov. Jerry Brown
to
move us away from our dependence on non-renewable fossil fuels.
???Since then, we have regressed further. Even record high gasoline prices
have
done nothing to depress the sales of SUVs, which now account for the largest
share of automobile and light truck sales (20 percent at last count).
???But today's crisis could lead to permanent changes in behavior, if only
because the technology needed to harness sun, wind and other renewable energy
sources has become far more cost effective than a generation ago. California
already gets 12 percent of its energy from these "alternative" sources, and
the
market incentives to develop them further has never been higher.
???Stratospherically high electricity bills could finally force on us the
technological changes and the discipline that Europeans -- who use two-thirds
as
much energy per capita as we do -- and the Japanese -- who use only half as
much
-- have had to embrace.
???This difficult moment in California's history has already yielded some
ecological epiphanies, like those experienced by Ernest Callenbach's
neighbors.
They installed solar photovoltaic cells on their roof. The installation now
puts
surplus electricity back into the energy grid, instead of sucking more out of
it.
???"The magical moment is the idea that by having a photovoltaic cell on your
roof, you can make your electric meter run backward," said Callenbach.
"Instead
of it going to the right, you actually see it going in the other direction.
You
say to yourself, 'Oh Lord, Oh Lord, I have seen the future.' "
??Email Louis Freedberg at [email protected]
GRAPHIC: GRAPHIC, Don McCartney/The Chronicle
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????44 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 Ventura County Star
?????????????????????????????Ventura County Star
????????????????????????????April 29, 2001 Sunday
SECTION: Editorials; Pg. B09
LENGTH: 704 words
HEADLINE: Reality is what's needed for real policy
GOVERNOR: Consumers deserve to get real facts from Davis.
BYLINE: Dan Walters
BODY:
??Gov. Gray Davis is continuing to tell Californians that he's on top of the
state's energy crisis and, as he said at one gathering last week, "in three
years this problem will be a distant memory." Fat chance. All major aspects of
the situation are growing worse, not better, minute-by-minute.
??Politicians took over the crisis in January as the state's major utilities
exhausted their cash reserves and lines of credit. Davis began what he said
then
would be a short-term, emergency program of power purchases to keep electrons
flowing into homes and businesses.
??From that moment forward, the situation has steadily deteriorated, moving
toward a three-pronged disaster: severe summer blackouts, the bankruptcy of
the
utilities and sharply escalating power bills. With the bankruptcy filing by
Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and decisions by Davis and the Public Utilities
Commission to begin ratcheting up utility rates, two of the three negative
scenarios are now in place. And everyone involved in the crisis expects
blackouts this summer as demands for power soar and supplies dwindle.
??The Davis strategy, if there is one, is to continue the state's massive
power
purchases while negotiating longer-term and presumably cheaper supply
contracts,
encourage conservation, help utilities pay off their debts by selling their
intercity transmission system to the state and tapping ratepayers, and build
more power plants to ease the supply crunch.
??Currently, the governor is touting his deal with Edison International,
parent
company of Southern California Edison, to sell its portion of the grid and is
working on a similar deal with Sempra, the parent of San Diego Gas and
Electric.
But PG&E's bankruptcy casts doubt on the viability of the cash-for-grid
concept
and legislators, particularly Davis' fellow Democrats, are very skeptical of
the
Edison deal.
??Clearly, Davis rushed into the Edison deal just three days after PG&E filed
bankruptcy, in hopes of erasing the political stain of the latter action, but
its provisions are being labeled a "bailout" by critics. It places only a
token
financial burden on Edison International while guaranteeing the profitability
of
its utility subsidiary by charging its customers whatever is required to cover
its costs and past debts.
??Meanwhile, the state is spending -- by Davis' own account -- about $70
million a day or $2-plus billion a month on spot power purchases, paying
roughly
five times what consumers are being charged at the retail level. And the
current
futures market for power indicates that wholesale power prices will jump by
another 50 percent by mid-summer; higher prices and greater purchases could
increase the drain on the state treasury to as much as $5 billion a month.
??State Treasurer Phil Angelides is desperately trying to arrange a "bridge
loan" to relieve pressure on the state's rapidly vanishing reserves, but Wall
Street is reluctant to lend without a fuller explanation of what's happening
and
a specific authorization from a suspicious Legislature.
??He said Tuesday that Davis, who has maintained secrecy on power purchases,
must offer a comprehensive and public plan for dealing with the financial
squeeze.
??Meanwhile, bankers are sending strong signals that the state government is
becoming as poor a lending risk as the utilities.
??Davis, for some reason, is unwilling to declare this situation the emergency
that it is truly becoming -- one that could take a toll of human life if major
blackouts shut down air conditioners, respirators and traffic lights. He
insists
on issuing his periodic -- and wholly unrealistic -- assurances that things
will
turn out all right, even declaring to reporters this past Tuesday that "we
think
we'll have this thing licked by the end of fall."
??It's time for someone -- the governor, preferably, but someone -- to lay out
for Californians exactly what's happening, the downside financial and power
supply risks, and what's being done to deal with the looming disaster facing
this state.
??It's time for politicians to treat us as adults who can face reality, not as
children to be fed sugarcoated sound bites and slogans.
??-- Dan Walters writes for the Sacramento Bee.
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001
?????????????????????????????49 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
????????????????????April 28, 2001, Saturday, Home Edition
SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 19; Metro Desk
LENGTH: 679 words
HEADLINE: OFFICIALS CALL PRICE STABILITY PLAN ILLEGAL;
UTILITIES: AGENCY CHIEFS SAY THE FEDERAL PROPOSAL COULD ALSO CAUSE MORE
BLACKOUTS THIS SUMMER.
BYLINE: NANCY VOGEL and MIGUEL BUSTILLO, TIMES STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: SACRAMENTO
BODY:
??Two top state energy officials said Friday that a federal plan to stabilize
electricity prices in California could increase the odds of blackouts this
summer and most likely is illegal.
??In a barrage of complaints attacking the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, the state's top power regulator and the head of the board
overseeing
California's transmission grid said they might challenge the federal order in
court.
??The order was approved on a 2-1 vote Wednesday and released to the public
late Thursday.
??"We're going to take whatever actions we can to oppose this to the extent
our
lawyers tell us it's illegal," said Michael Kahn, an attorney named by Gov.
Gray
Davis to head the board overseeing the California Independent System Operator.
Cal-ISO manages the transmission grid reaching three-quarters of the state.
??In a conference call with reporters, Kahn and Loretta Lynch, president of
the
California Public Utilities Commission, said the order also seems to indicate
that FERC is unwilling to force power sellers to rebate any of the
extraordinary
profits earned before last October in California's market, where wholesale
electricity prices began soaring last May.
??And, according to Kahn, the federal order illegally ties limits on power
prices to a requirement that California link its transmission grid with those
of
other states.
??"It's not within their authority to have this kind of linkage," he said.
??The federal order is scheduled to take effect May 29. Though it is not clear
how the order will play out in the state's electricity market, Lynch and Kahn
said they do not believe it will bring down power costs or help the state
avoid
blackouts, as intended.
??"They're creating a whole new, wholesale blackout system," said Lynch,
referring to a section of the order that allows large customers, such as steel
mills and food processors, to get paid to shut down when grid operators are
struggling to find enough electricity to meet demand.
??Though a somewhat similar program has helped California avoid blackouts, the
federal order requires state power buyers to name the price to which
electricity
must rise before they shut down customers.
??The requirement of naming a price could lead to more blackouts, said
Stanford
University economist Frank Wolak, because it prevents power buyers from paying
more if that's what it takes to keep electricity flowing.
??"Stating your price and sticking to it means that somebody could call your
bluff," Wolak said. "The generators just say, look, we can't supply all you
want
at the price you want to pay.
??"So they supply everything they can at the price we're willing to pay--and
no
more--and we have rotating blackouts," he said.
??Lynch said that no matter how this aspect of the FERC order unfolds, "it
ain't for Washington bureaucrats to decide when the lights go out in
California.
"
??Grid operators at Cal-ISO must quickly buy batches of electricity to
constantly match supply and demand on the transmission system serving most of
the state, excluding the city of Los Angeles. When Cal-ISO cannot find enough
power, it must order Southern California Edison, Pacific Gas & Electric and
San
Diego Gas & Electric to trigger rotating blackouts.
??The state suffered such controlled outages on four days in January and
March,
and many such days are predicted for this summer as air conditioning drives up
demand for power.
??In other energy news Friday, Gov. Gray Davis announced in Los Angeles that
electricity use in California state office buildings dropped by an average of
20% in the first two months of this year, compared to the same months of 2000.
State workers have been under orders since late last year to turn off
nonessential lights, computers, printers and other electrical appliances. Some
agencies have even changed workers' schedules, eliminating "flextime" so that
everyone works the same hours and the offices can open later and close
earlier,
shortening the energy-using day.
??*
??Times staff writer Mitchell Landsberg in Los Angeles contributed to this
story.
LOAD-DATE: April 28, 2001
?????????????????????????????50 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
????????????????????April 28, 2001, Saturday, Home Edition
SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 19; Metro Desk
LENGTH: 688 words
HEADLINE: BILL COULD FOIL DAVIS' ELECTRICITY OFFENSIVE;
POWER: CONGRESSMAN WANTS TO LET SMALL PRODUCERS SELL ON WHOLESALE MARKET.
BACKERS SAY PLAN WOULD BOOST SUPPLY, BUT FOES SEE IT COSTING CALIFORNIA
DEARLY.
BYLINE: JULIE TAMAKI and MIGUEL BUSTILLO, TIMES STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: SACRAMENTO
BODY:
??A Texas congressman plans to introduce legislation next week that would
allow
California's small power producers to sell their supplies on the wholesale
market--a move that could threaten Gov. Gray Davis' plan to end the state's
energy crisis.
??The proposal by Republican Rep. Joe Barton, the influential chairman of the
House energy and air quality subcommittee, would permit producers of
alternative
and renewable energy to suspend their contracts with the state's two biggest
investor-owned utilities and sell their supplies to a third party.
??Proponents say the bill could dramatically bolster the state's electricity
supplies by luring producers whose plants have been shut down by payment
disputes to restart them in time for summer, when supplies are expected to be
tight and blackouts are feared.
??But allowing producers to sell to a third party would essentially devastate
Davis' plan to rescue the utilities and get the state out of the business of
making emergency electricity purchases.
??The governor's plan is based on California locking down the costs of
electricity from the utilities and small power producers for several years,
at a
reduced cost.
??During that time, the state would buy the remaining portion of the
electricity the utilities need to serve their customers. Meanwhile, the
utilities would regain their financial footing by selling assets to the state
in
exchange for being allowed to recover a portion of their back debt through a
surcharge on electricity bills.
??If the alternative producers were allowed to sell their power on the
wholesale market, the state could be forced to purchase much more electricity
on
the expensive open market.
??That would dramatically increase California's already massive power costs,
forcing the state to further raise electricity rates and borrow even more than
the record $ 12 billion in bonds it is planning to finance the plan. The state
has spent more than $ 5 billion buying electricity that the utilities cannot
afford, and Davis expects to spend $ 15 billion by year's end.
??"It is a way of busting the budget for the state of California," said Joseph
Fichera, a Wall Street energy consultant hired by the Davis administration. He
called the potential release of the small producers a "disaster scenario" for
the state.
??Added Stephen E. Frank, chairman, president and chief executive of Southern
California Edison: "Releasing them from their contractual obligations will
simply exacerbate the problem, because they would then be selling into the
market at additionally higher rates and just compound the state's problems."
??But Eugene Peters of the Electric Power Supply Assn. disputed that
contention. The state, he said, is already buying replacement supplies on the
open market because of reduced output by small producers.
??"If 3,000 megawatts are made available again, it will have a potentially
profound effect on what people pay for power by bolstering overall
electricity
supplies," Peters said.
??Utility executives contend that only 1,200 megawatts are offline because of
payment problems.
??California is home to nearly 700 small energy producers, which generate more
than a quarter of the electricity consumed in the state. They differ from
their
big out-of-state counterparts, which have been getting paid by the state.
??The Barton proposal will be the subject of public hearings Tuesday and
Thursday, and could move to the full House Energy and Commerce Committee for a
vote the next week. Barton could not be reached for comment Friday.
??The alternative-energy provision is one of several in his emergency energy
bill. Others designed to help the West through a difficult summer of price
spikes and energy shortages range from offering federal aid to relieving a
bottleneck in the transmission system to permitting governors to secure
waivers
from environmental rules to boost power supplies.
??The provisions dealing with waivers of environmental rules have been among
the most controversial, drawing opposition from environmentalists.
??*
??Times staff writer Richard Simon in Washington contributed to this story.
LOAD-DATE: April 28, 2001
?????????????????????????????51 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times
??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times
????????????????????April 28, 2001, Saturday, Home Edition
SECTION: Business; Part C; Page 2; Financial Desk
LENGTH: 137 words
HEADLINE: BRIEFLY / ENERGY;
PUC ORDERS UTILITIES TO POST BLACKOUT DATA
BYLINE: Nancy Rivera Brooks
BODY:
??Responding to customer complaints, the California Public Utilities
Commission
ordered Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric to tell
customers more about when they will be blacked out during times of extreme
power
shortages. The PUC told Edison and SDG&E to begin listing on electricity bills
by June 1 the "outage block" into which each customer falls. ?The utilities
then
must use their Web sites to tell customers which blocks are slated for
blackouts
should more rotating outages be required. Pacific Gas & Electric Co. already
lists outage block numbers on its customer bills. A pop-up box on PG&E's Web
site shows which blocks are next in line for blackouts. Edison and SDG&E said
they have been working on implementing such notification on their own and will
comply with the PUC ruling.
LOAD-DATE: April 28, 2001
?????????????????????????????53 of 103 DOCUMENTS
??????????????????Copyright 2001 McClatchy Newspapers, Inc.
????????????????????????????????Sacramento Bee
?????????????????April 28, 2001, Saturday METRO FINAL EDITION
SECTION: MAIN NEWS; Pg. A3; POWER CRUNCH
LENGTH: 1109 words
HEADLINE: Cities take new look at public power The state's uncertain
electricity
picture has local officials deciding it's time to revisit the idea of
municipal
utilities.
BYLINE: Carrie Peyton Bee Staff Writer
BODY:
??From the shipwreck of California's electric industry, Albert Vera sees a
chance to build a life raft.
??"This is an opportunity that shall never come again," the former Culver City
mayor told city and county officials gathered this week in Sacramento.
??Every rate hike, every blackout, every corporate bonus is more evidence for
believers that it's time for local government to get into the power business.
They pin their hopes on municipal utility drives in San Francisco, Corona, San
Diego County and beyond.
??Over the past few years, however, only a handful of cities have set up their
own electric departments, and they are mostly limited entities that fall short
of full-fledged utilities. More commonly, cities - including Davis, Lincoln
and
Culver City - have studied the idea and rejected it, at least temporarily.
??They all face the same question, said Santa Rosa City Manager Jeffrey Kolin:
??"Is the investment worth the risk? Most of us would say we don't know yet."
??Kolin's city, like scores of others across the state, has decided it is time
to study the issue anew, motivated by the prospect of soaring electric bills,
repeated blackouts, and Pacific Gas and Electric Co.'s bankruptcy filing.
??"All their citizens are screaming," said Yvonne Hunter, a lobbyist for the
League of California Cities.
??The highest visibility fight will likely come in November, when San
Franciscans go to the polls to decided whether to create their own utility in
a
city that houses PG&E's corporate headquarters.
??"We will take it very seriously," PG&E spokesman John Nelson said.
??Shortly after deregulation in 1996, several drives for ratepayer-owned
utilities stumbled or stalled. An effort in the far north state to create a
multicounty public power agency was rejected by state regulators because some
local governments objected.
??Now, with a bill to create a state power authority moving through the
Legislature, some believe the climate may be changing.
??"One of the things this crisis has proved is the value of local control,"
said Jerry Jordan, head of the California Municipal Utilities Association.
??Since January, the cities of Hercules in the Bay Area and Corona in Southern
California have formed utilities to deliver electric service to new
neighborhoods - a strategy that sidesteps potential condemnation fights with
the
existing utility. The county of San Diego is trying to get special legislative
authority to create a regional power agency without a popular vote.
??"We could produce power better, cheaper and faster than the private sector,"
county Supervisor Dianne Jacob said.
??Not so, say PG&E and Southern California Edison.
??"There's been much more talk of it, but as soon as most folks sit down and
take a look at the realities ... they realize that they would have to buy on
the
same market, at the same outrageous prices that we and the state have been
paying," Nelson said. "The talk quickly evaporates."
??For-profit utilities have long argued that government shouldn't usurp the
role of private industry in delivering electricity. PG&E contends that the
factors that once made public power attractive - such as access to low-cost
electricity from federal dams - have evaporated.
??In addition, cities that try to withdraw from PG&E or Edison now probably
would still have to funnel money their way for years to come, to pay off
still-unsold state bonds that will stretch out a single year's power costs for
up to 15 years.
??With so many unknowns, the next few years are likelier to produce more
studies than new utilities, said a number of city officials who attended a
seminar in Sacramento this week, sponsored in part by the American Public
Power
Association.
??Former New York state Sen. Al Coppola told the group the session should have
been titled: "Independence from the greedy robber baron utilities."
??Public power backers share three key beliefs:
??* They can charge customers less because they don't have to pay dividends to
investors or pay taxes on their sales; they can respond to local preferences
on
issues like which customers pay the lowest rates and how blackouts are staged;
and existing utilities will do everything in their power to oppose them.
??"Edison did the right thing - (use) fear," to discourage Culver City from
creating an electric arm in 1995, Vera, the city's former mayor, told the
group.
??And Glenn Prentice, head of the newly created Corona electric utility, said
in an interview that a half-dozen other cities have contacted him for more
information, but he declined to name them.
??"If I do, Edison will start the attack on them. We're talking about a lot of
money," he said. "We're here to serve the public. They're here to make money."
??PG&E sees new utilities as "competition for our business," and it has a
policy of lobbying hard against them, Nelson said.
??Less than 18 months ago, it warned residents of the Placer County town of
Lincoln that a city power enterprise would be costlier and less dependable
than
PG&E, and its officials labeled the effort a "tax dodge."
??But by January of this year, PG&E barely blinked when Hercules set up a
utility to deliver power and telecommunications service in new neighborhoods.
??"We got more resistance from AT&T and PacBell," said Raj Pankhania,
assistant
to the city manager of Hercules.
??Pankhania has been researching utility drives across the state and has seen
no groundswell for public power, although he believes it can bring cities
added
revenue and more local control.
??That could change this summer, Prentice said.
??"It really depends on how bad the blackouts are."
??A blackout that left one city councilmember's daughter at a darkened school
was part of what led the Riverside County city of Corona to vote April 4 to
form
its own electric arm, he said. Heavy industry became anxious, too.
??"They said to the city council, 'Do something!' " Prentice said.
??Skipping detailed studies, Corona quickly decided to create a utility that
will build small power plants, under 50 megawatts, to serve city operations
and
new neighborhoods in the city of 127,000 east of Disneyland.
??In time, said Hercules' Pankhania, cities like his could become the living
laboratory for whichever system can deliver better service and lower rates.
??Hercules' plans calls for the older two-thirds of its homes and businesses
to
retain their PG&E service and the newest third to be served by the city
utility.
??"The existing homeowner will definitely compare five to 10 years down the
road," he said. "Then let the people decide which way they want to go."
??* * *
??The Bee's Carrie Peyton can be reached at (916) 321-1086 or
[email protected].
LOAD-DATE: April 29, 2001 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Carol St. Clair
EB 3892
713-853-3989 (Phone)
713-646-3393 (Fax)
[email protected]
----- Forwarded by Carol St Clair/HOU/ECT on 07/10/2000 10:53 AM -----
[email protected]
07/10/2000 10:47 AM
To: [email protected]
cc: [email protected], [email protected]
Subject: Amendments to ISDA Master Enron/Engage Energy US, L.P.
Attached is the standard Coastal guaranty form we use for ISDAs.? I
understand this ISDA is just for these financial instruments and not for the
physical side of the business.? Please give me your comments, if any.
We will split the guaranty with a Coastal guaranty for Engage US and
Westcoast for Engage Canada.?? Since the new threshold is $10 million, the
Coastal guaranty cap is $10 million.?
??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? Regards,
??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? Luke
<<Guaranty form ISDA-Engage.doc>>
- Guaranty form ISDA-Engage.doc | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Mike is checking with broker.
Evelyn Metoyer@ENRON
04/11/2001 08:36 AM
To: Kate Symes/PDX/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Re: deal 577823
What's the status?
Kate Symes @ ECT 04/10/2001 06:29 PM
To: Evelyn Metoyer/Corp/Enron@ENRON
cc:
Subject: Re: deal 577823
This is the price Prebon quoted to Mike tonight - he'll be checking in the
morning to see what the spread should have been.
Thanks,
Kate
Evelyn Metoyer@ENRON
04/10/2001 03:23 PM
To: Kate Symes/PDX/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: deal 577823
Mike Driscoll
deal 577823
Prebon shows price as $97.95 ....enpower has $79.95 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Please read this message from Cynthia and get back to her if you can help.
Thank you.
Cynthia Gonter@EES
03/22/2000 10:25 AM
MS150 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED !!!
CONTACT CYNTHIA GONTER
(713) 345-7404
If you are unable to ride or if you now someone that just wants to be a part
of this GREAT EVENT "MS150" please contact Cynthia Gonter at the above phone#
so we may add you to the list. We need people for the lunch break on Sat
April 15 in Bellville, that afternoon in Fayette County Fairgrounds in La
Grange were we will all camp out at night and have a great dinner and
entertainment. This year we will also like to have some of our volunteers
follow the riders to their end of VICTORY FINISH LINE. We need people for
lunch at Bastrop High School and at the finish line were there will be
another party given by MS to celebrate the great challange our rides have
just accomplished. This will be in Austin at the Applied Materials site.
WE ARE LOOKING FOR SERIOUS VOLUNTEERS THAT ARE WILLING TO SHARE THE FUN AND
EXCITING EVENT OF THE YEAR WITH THIS GREAT ENRON TEAM !!!!
We look forward to hearing from you soon so we may have a group meeting and
schedule you for your times. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Just wanted to let you know that I received an e-mail from Dr. Carl Harris,
who at this point is in charge of my application. He wants me to answer a
few questions, making sure I will be able to handle the MBA coursework. That
was one of my main reasons for meeting with you and the Professors' Ronn and
Brown, is to talk to you about the course work and inform you of my strengths
and weaknesses, to make sure I could do the work. I know that with my
financial modeling and accounting skills, energy-finance background and the
Business School's team-oriented approach to learning, that I will excel in
this learning environment. I will convey this message and others to him by
tomorrow. I hope things workout and thanks again for your help.
Ben | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Reservation status has changed to CONFIRMED. See attachment.
ASSIGNMENT_REF = 30795
SELLER_CODE = AZPS
SELLER_DUNS = 958982563
CUSTOMER_CODE = EPMI
CUSTOMER_DUNS = 848921276
AFFILIATE_FLAG = 0
PATH_NAME = W/AZPS/AZPS-AZPS/FOURCORNE345 - PNPKAPS230//
POINT_OF_RECEIPT = FOURCORNE345
POINT_OF_DELIVERY = PNPKAPS230
SOURCE = FOURCORNERS
SINK = PNPK
CAPACITY = 25
CAPACITY_REQUESTED = 25
SERVICE_INCREMENT = HOURLY
TS_CLASS = FIRM
TS_TYPE = POINT_TO_POINT
TS_PERIOD = OFF_PEAK
TS_WINDOW = FIXED
TS_SUBCLASS = WHEEL
NERC_CURTAILMENT_PRIORITY = Nerc Priority 1
OTHER_CURTAILMENT_PRIORITY = Default
START_TIME = 06/12/2002
STOP_TIME = 06/12/2002
CEILING_PRICE = 3.13
OFFER_PRICE = 3.13
BID_PRICE = 3.13
PRICE_UNITS = $/mW
PRECONFIRMED = YES
ANC_SVC_LINK = N/A
ANC_SVC_REQ = N/A
POSTING_REF = 0
SALE_REF =
REQUEST_REF =
DEAL_REF =
NEGOTIATED_PRICE_FLAG =
STATUS = CONFIRMED
STATUS_NOTIFICATION = [email protected]
STATUS_COMMENTS =
TIME_QUEUED = 06/11/2002
RESPONSE_TIME_LIMIT =
TIME_OF_LAST_UPDATE = 06/11/2002
PRIMARY_PROVIDER_COMMENTS =
SELLER_COMMENTS =
CUSTOMER_COMMENTS = for info call (503)464-5070.
SELLER_NAME = AZPS
SELLER_PHONE = 602.250.1128
SELLER_FAX = 602.250.1155
SELLER_EMAIL = [email protected]
CUSTOMER_NAME = Enron Power Marketing, Inc.
CUSTOMER_PHONE = (713)853-3801
CUSTOMER_FAX = (713)646-8272
CUSTOMER_EMAIL = [email protected]
REASSIGNED_REF = 0
REASSIGNED_CAPACITY = 0
REASSIGNED_START_TIME =
REASSIGNED_STOP_TIME = | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Please see attached files. Shouan
-----Original Message-----
From: Griffith, John
Sent: Wednesday, May 09, 2001 12:00 PM
To: Tang, Shouan
Cc: Wong, Jeremy; McLaughlin, Errol
Subject: Re: break down of vega by deal_num for 1131737
I really need to see it by month. Can you pull this info by month? Thanks.
John | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Would this be something we would consider or do we need to suggest TW host in Houston.
ds
-----Original Message-----
From: "Mathis, Charles R." <[email protected]>@ENRON
Sent: Wednesday, January 09, 2002 4:36 PM
To: Charles Goodding; Chuck Thompson - PNM; Corina Veloz; Darrell Schoolcraft; David Campbell; Frank Gallegos; Greg Kardos; Graves, Jerry; Johnny Hunt; Lane Ayers; Ron Matthews; Stahl, Danny - Williams; Steve Flaim; Terry Hardman
Subject: San Juan Area Shutdown Planning
It's time to start thinking about when and where we can get together to
review the maintenance that will affect the San Juan area this year. The
EPNG planners will have their information from the field, and we will review
it internally by the middle of February. Can we look at late Feb or early
March?
We did not decide who would host this year's meeting when we departed last
year. If anyone wants to volunteer, please say so. We could consider
meeting at a neutral location (Las Vegas has been suggested).
I will coordinate our communications until someone volunteers to take the
ball. Please e-mail your thoughts.
Thanks,
Charles R. Mathis
Consultant, Western Pipelines
El Paso Corporation
(719) 667-7712
******************************************************************
This email and any files transmitted with it from the ElPaso
Corporation are confidential and intended solely for the
use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed.
If you have received this email in error please notify the
sender.
****************************************************************** | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
National Fuel Gas Supply is having a Customer Information and Procedures
Meeting on Thursday, Dec 7th, at the Marriott West Loop by the Galleria. The
meeting starts at 9:00 am and will probably last to mid-afternoon.
I'm going. I don't know if anyone else needs to go - Algonso maybe. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
The Payment status has changed on the following report:
Status last changed by: System
Expense Report Name: emclaughlin42401
Report Total: $78.00
Amount Due Employee: $78.00
Amount Approved: $78.00
Amount Paid: $0.00
Approval Status: Approved
Payment Status: In Progress
To review this expense report, click on the following link for Concur Expense.
http://xms.enron.com | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Not much...I'll call
-----Original Message-----
From: Whitt, Mark
Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2001 5:10 PM
To: Bump, Dan J.
Subject: RE: Enserco / Black Hills
Either time is good. How long do you need.
-----Original Message-----
From: Bump, Dan J.
Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2001 4:49 PM
To: Whitt, Mark; Lucci, Paul T.
Cc: Norton, Pierce
Subject: Enserco / Black Hills
Would you guys have time to discuss the referenced deal either tomorrow afternoon (we have an Employment Law Essentials presentation tomorrow morning...stay away, Lucci) or Friday?
Thx.
D | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
----- Forwarded by Tana Jones/HOU/ECT on 04/11/2001 01:55 PM -----
Aparna Rajaram/ENRON@enronXgate
04/11/2001 01:52 PM
To: Kelly Lombardi/NA/Enron@Enron, Samuel Schott/HOU/ECT@ECT, Bernice
Rodriguez/HOU/ECT@ECT, Bill D Hare/HOU/ECT@ect, Steve Venturatos/HOU/ECT@ECT,
Camille Gerard/Corp/Enron@ENRON, Samuel Schott/HOU/ECT@ECT, Tanya
Rohauer/ENRON@enronXgate, Tom Moran/ENRON@enronXgate, Tana Jones/HOU/ECT@ECT,
Frank L Davis/HOU/ECT@ECT, Ken Curry/ENRON@enronXgate, Nicole
Hunter/NA/Enron@Enron, Lesli Campbell/ENRON@enronXgate
cc:
Subject: Click Paper Approvals, 04-11-01
Please see attached.
Aparna Rajaram
Ph: (713) 345-4563
Fax: (713) 853-9476
[email protected] | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
The dial in number for this conference call is:
Time: 2:00 p.m. CDT
Date: TODAY, October 29, 2001
Dial in#: 1-877-232-4392
Host Code: 101971 (JIM STEFFES)
Participant Code: 603371
Conference Room EB4746 has been reserved for this conference call.
-----Original Message-----
From: Steffes, James D.
Sent: Monday, October 29, 2001 8:12 AM
To: Dasovich, Jeff; Mara, Susan; Tribolet, Michael; Mellencamp, Lisa; Curry, Wanda; Williams, Robert C.; Mike Day (E-mail); Swain, Steve
Cc: Noske, Linda J.; Shapiro, Richard; Sanders, Richard B.; Sharp, Vicki
Subject: FW: Proposed SCE Negotiation Strategy - MEETING TODAY AT 2pm Houston Time
To discuss this outline and our issues list, can people attend a 2pm Houston Time call. The meet and confer may be on-going, but maybe either Jeff or Sue can jump off.
Linda Noske will be sending out a call-in number.
Thanks,
Jim
-----Original Message-----
From: Steffes, James D.
Sent: Monday, October 29, 2001 8:04 AM
To: Dasovich, Jeff; Mara, Susan; Tribolet, Michael; Mellencamp, Lisa; Curry, Wanda; Williams, Robert C.; Mike Day (E-mail)
Cc: Shapiro, Richard; Sanders, Richard B.; Sharp, Vicki
Subject: Proposed SCE Negotiation Strategy
Following last week's meeting, here is my recommendation on how to proceed with SCE.
1. Form Enron Negotiation Team
My recommendation is to use the same team we used with PG&E + Jeff Dasovich. My understanding was that Lisa M. was the lead negotiator - I would not change this. Jeff should only be there to make introductions.
2. Meet & Confer (10/29)
Sue Mara and Jeff Dasovich will listen and report back to everyone on what happens.
3. Reformed Stipulation
I would propose that we take a wait and see approach to this document. Based on Dasovich's idea to get together with SCE on Thursday, maybe let this ride.
4. Meeting
My understanding is that (Jeff D. please correct) SCE can meet with us this Thursday. Can everyone make it that needs to be there? Probably meet in California. We should put the laundry list on the table.
Please let me know what else we need to discuss or if anyone disagrees.
Thanks,
Jim | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
---------------------- Forwarded by Randall L Gay/HOU/ECT on 07/05/2000 08:03
AM ---------------------------
Randall L Gay
07/05/2000 08:08 AM
To: Toni Graham/Corp/Enron@Enron, Robert Superty/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Offer
Toni: I would like to extend an offer to Cynthia Lara. I interviewed her
last week. The offer should be $58,000/year. If you have any questions just
let me know or contact Patti Sullivan @ x30494 or Bob Superty. Thanks for
your help. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Here is the revised draft of the document outlining the issues to be covered
in order to provide a picture of how Ontario's market might operate from a
pricing perspective - who can/will influence it, and how.
John, this is what I extrapolated from Jim Fallon's comments - if you think
some of it is "irrelevent" please let Jan and I know this weekend so that we
don't waste time. Thanks. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
It will all be public someday.
--------------------------
Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld (www.BlackBerry.net) | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
I hope we can do more than meet, if possible, let me buy you dinner!
Matthew Dawson
03/22/2001 01:24 PM
To: Tana Jones/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Re: BNP Paribas Guaranty
Thanks Tana- Im coming to Houston in may- hope we can meet!!!!!!!!! | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
As most of you know, the annual faculty alumni colloquium will be held
tomorrow.
This is a great networking event, that is always well attended and features
great speakers.
This year, Ken Rosen, Severin Borenstein, Homa Bahrami, Michael Katz are
all speaking. Pattie Dunn of
Barclay's Global Investors will be presenting her comments on "Investment
Management in an Era of Individual Retirement Planning."
For a full description, see:
http://www.haas.berkeley.edu/alumni/colloquium/index.html
Registration is FREE to all students, but please if you haven't done so,
send a message to Andrea Hilkowitz at:
[email protected]
See you tomorrow!!!
Alessandro Ratti
EvMBAA Alumni Liaision (outgoing) | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Okay, I think the tds tab in newcurrentday was wrong. It is showing a jan
pos of 269.55 lots, but TDS is showing 539.1. False alarm. We will fix
newcurrentday.
Mike
---------------------- Forwarded by Mike Grigsby/HOU/ECT on 11/29/2000 10:19
PM ---------------------------
Mike Grigsby
11/29/2000 10:21 PM
To: Anne Bike/Corp/Enron@Enron, Jennifer Bagwell/NA/Enron@ENRON, Monique
Sanchez/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: PG&E Citygate Basis position for January
The PG&E basis position in TDS does not match the FEB/MAR position. The Baja
spread was executed as a NOV-MAR position months ago. The only real changes
were to Socal basis over time. There is no telling when this might have
changed in error. Will you please research the position to see when this
position was reduced. I am guessing that a park and loan was executed by
Frank Ermis at some point and the basis risk was allocated to GD New by
mistake.
Thanks,
Mike | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
I had an extremely rude conversation with a manager at southwestern bell and they once again said we weren't owed anything at which time I told the woman she didn't know what the fuck she was talking about. After several other uses of fuck she hung up. I switched our service to att (never thought i would be happy to be an att customer again) and called back and got another manager who claims she is taking care of it. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
What is she talking about?
Stacey
-----Original Message-----
From: Chang, Fran
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2002 1:49 PM
To: Gossett, Jeffrey C.; White, Stacey W.
Subject: FW: Need book codes for new West TAGG books
Hi Stacey and Jeff:
We were advised by Shona, Susan, and Chris that we should get the netco book codes from you. If you can help us on this, please refer to the attached book request.
Thanks for your help,
Fran
-----Original Message-----
From: Wilson, Shona
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2002 11:37 AM
To: Chang, Fran; Abel, Chris
Subject: RE: Need book codes for new West TAGG books
talk to jeff/stacey about this. they are responsible for netco stuff
-----Original Message-----
From: Chang, Fran
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2002 11:37 AM
To: Wilson, Shona; Abel, Chris
Subject: Need book codes for new West TAGG books
Shona and Chris:
From Susan's voice mail I learned she is out of office today. Would you please help us get the book codes we need for west netco TAGG books (* please see attachment for book request)? IT is requesting the codes so they can set the books up.
Thanks and please call me if you have any questions.
Regards,
Fran
503.464.7973
-----Original Message-----
From: Chang, Fran
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2002 9:29 AM
To: Trevino, Susan
Cc: Cheung, Cecilia
Subject: FW: New Books for West?
Susan:
Would you please provide Cecilia the codes for the netco TAGG books?
Thank you.
<< File: new BOOK REQUEST TAGG.xls >>
Cecilia:
I have filled in the commodity/UOM/Curr in the form; sorry we missed that. Also, yes NYMEX should be all our TAGG books.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Fran Chang
503.464.7973
-----Original Message-----
From: Cheung, Cecilia
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2002 8:58 AM
To: Chang, Fran
Cc: Lim, Francis S.; Wong, Jeremy; White, Stacey W.; Postlethwaite, John; Evans, Casey
Subject: RE: New Books for West?
Fran,
For the new Tagg book request, please provide the book codes (you can check with Susan Trevino) and the commodity/UOM/Curr (NG/MMBTU/USD?). Also please confirm whether the same region code (NYMEX) should be used for all books or not.
Thanks,
Cecilia
-----Original Message-----
From: Chang, Fran
Sent: Monday, January 14, 2002 3:41 PM
To: Cheung, Cecilia
Cc: Lim, Francis S.; Wong, Jeremy; White, Stacey W.; Postlethwaite, John; Evans, Casey
Subject: New Books for West?
Cecilia:
I believe John has sent out the associated book requests for west desk on 1/10 or 1/11. Are west netco books also set up and ready to go as well?
For your convenient reference, I am attaching the west book requests again.
<< File: New Book Request EnPower.xls >> << File: new BOOK REQUEST TAGG.xls >>
Please let me know if I can provide anything else.
Thanks,
Fran Chang
503.464.7973
-----Original Message-----
From: Cheung, Cecilia
Sent: Monday, January 14, 2002 1:30 PM
To: White, Stacey W.; Chang, Fran; Law, Samantha
Cc: Lim, Francis S.; Wong, Jeremy
Subject: FW: New Books
FYI - The following new PowerGas books have been set up (see attached for details...)
PWR-GAS-MGMT
PWR-GAS-OPTION
PWR-GAS-NE
PWR-GAS-MW
PWR-GAS-SE
PWR-GAS-ERCOT
Cecilia
x53362
-----Original Message-----
From: Lim, Francis S.
Sent: Monday, January 14, 2002 3:18 PM
To: Cheung, Cecilia
Subject: FW: book requests
Cecilia,
according to Jeremy we also need to inform Portland
and Stacy White for the power risk book request.
-----Original Message-----
From: Wong, Jeremy
Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2002 10:03 AM
To: Lim, Francis S.
Cc: Wei, Zhiyong
Subject: FW: book requests
Please check with the Power Risk group as to their book requests for NetCo. - Houston (Stacy White) and Portland - thanks.
-----Original Message-----
From: Evans, Casey
Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2002 6:07 PM
To: Cheung, Cecilia
Subject: FW: New Books
Cecilia,
Attached are the book requests associated with Netco East Power. Just wanted to keep you in the loop!
Thanks!
Casey
-----Original Message-----
From: Valdes, John
Sent: Thursday, January 10, 2002 5:05 PM
To: Hare, Bill D.; Johnson, Cheryl; Otegbola, Remi; Rodriguez, Bernice
Cc: Keiser, Kam; Evans, Casey
Subject: New Books
Please see attached book requests and send back the global ID's once completed. Thank you.
<< File: New Book Request TAGG PowerGas.xls >> << File: New Book Request EnPower.xls >>
John | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Vince, Zimin,
I participated in a telephone conference on this company this morning. There
was a possibility Enron would invest in it.
Their product appears to be a GUI interface over the top of ILOG Solver (and
possibly ILOG CPLEX) which allows problems to be expressed in high level
terms. I do not see any immediate application at Enron, but I am interested
in the concepts used so expressed an interest in a demo. Maybe it would be
useful for general modelling projects here.
They do not even have a user manual for their software, so it will be
difficult to figure out what it does unless a demo is arranged. The
possibility for growth in the company seems small as the ILOG software is a
modest size market and their product is aimed at only a small part of that
market. I think the scheduling tools in SAP, i2, etc are more likely to
succeed than this one as they are already integrated into an information
system.
Because of the small market for this software, the many competitors, the
absence of any clear use for it at Enron and the early stage of development,
there is very little prospect of us funding this company.
Tom | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Steve Smith called this afternoon. He was anxious to know where we stood on
the issue of the third arbitrator.
He advised me that they have withdrawn Bill Paul as a proposed arbitrator.
I disclosed Judge Webster's relationship with me and my wife, and his firm's
relationship with Enron, whereupon Smith advised that they would not be
willing to have him as the neutral.
He asked me where we stood re Morris, Roberts and Sessions. "Sessions?"
said I. Apparently they considered putting former judge Bill Sessions on
their list but must have decided not to do so. (the third proposal was
Layne Phillips)
I told him that we were considering them, that Beatty was going to call
Renfrew to get more info about his relationships with them, and that we
probably were going to propose some names of our own next week.
Smith advised me that the deadline for selecting the neutral was January 15
(Monday), and that they did not intend to let the schedule slip. I told him
that we were aware of the deadline, but as a practical matter did not see
what significance it really had since going to AAA (the remedy in the letter
agreement) would only slow the process down, not speed it up. It reiterated
about five times that they expected us to stick to the deadline and did not
want the schedule for the arbitration to slip (has this man been speaking to
Brian Redmond secretly?).
I told Smith five times that we were not going to send them names this week,
and were unlikely to agree to one of theirs this week. I told him that if
he insisted on an answer re his remaining three prior to Monday, that would
be easy: the answer would be no. I told him I preferred to take the time
to actually consider whether one of them was acceptable, and assumed that's
what he would want once he thought about it.
We should try to get back to him sometime next week with a response re his
remaining three and, unless we are agreeing to one of those, some proposals
of our own.
Richard, have you gotten any feedback from JVD?
Neal S. Manne
(713) 653-7827
[email protected] | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Brenda, for future transactions wherein swaps are involved, please see that
extra copies of executed swaps are made at closing so that copies may be
immediately distributed to the applicable confirmation desks. Since this
aspect of the structured finance transactions include "trading" transactions,
the confirmation desks need the paperwork immediately for their reference and
audit trails and to avoid confusion with deal tickets etc. Please forward
this memo to the other paralegals and attorneys in your group. For your
reference, at this time the distribution of executed copies should be
provided as follows depending upon the nature of the swaps:
Laurel Adams: Interest Rate Swaps
Larry Joe Hunter and Bob Bowen: Gas Commodity Swaps
Derek Bailey: Crude Oil Swaps
Melissa Murphy: Power Swaps
Dianne Seib: Canada Swaps
Swap Trading Attorney: as applicable to the attorney who assisted
Cordially,
Mary Cook
Enron North America Corp.
1400 Smith, 38th Floor, Legal
Houston, Texas 77002-7361
(713) 345-7732 (phone)
(713) 646-3490 (fax)
[email protected]
Brenda L Funk
01/16/2001 07:58 AM
To: Mary Cook/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Laurel Adams/HOU/ECT@ECT
Subject: Re: Brazos
Mary,
We do not yet have execution copies of the documents. I am expecting them
this week. I will send copies of the swaps as soon as I receive them.
Thanks,
Brenda Funk
(713) 853-6950
(713) 853-9252 (fax)
Mary Cook
01/11/2001 01:43 PM
To: Laurel Adams/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Brenda L Funk/HOU/ECT@ECT
Subject: Re: Brazos
As to the initial closing into the Brazos partnership of Preston 1 and
Crescendo, legal drafted the interest rate swaps.
Brenda, may Laurel and I get executed copies of the interest rate swaps, and
I need the rest of the swap docs too, as well as copies to Larry Joe Hunter,
all as previously requested. Mary
Laurel, I do not have executed versions. I did draft the swaps and they were
signed at closing, but Global Finance Legal is in charge of distribution of
executed docs. To the extent it is helpful here are the final versions that
I sent to closing. If I can be of further help, please call.
Cordially,
Mary Cook
Enron North America Corp.
1400 Smith, 38th Floor, Legal
Houston, Texas 77002-7361
(713) 345-7732 (phone)
(713) 646-3490 (fax)
[email protected]
Laurel Adams
01/11/2001 12:12 PM
To: Mary Cook/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Brazos
Mary,
It was my understanding (from Tim Proffitt) that the legal department drafted
all of the documents related to Brazos. Does this include the interest rate
swaps? Originally you had sent me to Brenda Funk to get copies of the
confirms for my records, but I have not heard anything from her at all.
Could you please forward to me a copy of the documents, even if it has only
been signed off on by one party? I would like to review them and send them
on to our file room.
IF LEGAL HAS NOT DRAFTED THE INTEREST RATE SWAP CONFIRMS, PLEASE LET ME KNOW
RIGHT AWAY, SO THAT I CAN PREPARE THESE DOCUMENTS!!
Thank you. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Another addressee -
Sara Shackleton
Enron North America Corp.
1400 Smith Street, EB 3801a
Houston, Texas 77002
713-853-5620 (phone)
713-646-3490 (fax)
[email protected]
----- Forwarded by Sara Shackleton/HOU/ECT on 01/24/2001 06:04 PM -----
[email protected]
01/24/2001 05:50 PM
To: [email protected]
cc:
Subject: CSA, Etc.
When you are sending around your Annex B-1, etc., please also forward to Eric
Sanford here directly ([email protected]).
Thanks very much.
Eric Moser
-----Original Message-----
From:?? [email protected] [SMTP:[email protected]]
Sent:?? Wednesday, January 24, 2001 5:25 PM
To:???? [email protected]
Subject:??????? Re: FW: A new fax has arrived from 212 677 5850 (Part 1 of 1)
Eric:
I spoke too fast.? I don't have a "sample" Annex B-1 (Collateral and
Exposure Provisions) but will send the customized version this evening.
Sara
Sara Shackleton
Enron North America Corp.
1400 Smith Street, EB 3801a
Houston, Texas? 77002
713-853-5620 (phone)
713-646-3490 (fax)
[email protected]
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????????????
???????????????????
EMoser@milban?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????
??????????????????? k.com??????????????? To:????
[email protected]????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????????????????
cc:??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????? 01/24/2001?????????? Subject:???? FW: A new fax has
arrived from 212 677 5850 (Part 1 of 1)???
??????????????????? 03:59
PM????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????????????
-----Original Message-----
From:??? RightFAX E-mail Gateway
Sent:??? Wednesday, January 24, 2001 10:41 AM
To:????? Moser, Eric K.
Subject:???????? A new fax has arrived from 212 677 5850 (Part 1 of 1)
Time: 1/24/01 10:36:22 AM
Received from remote ID: 212 677 5850
Inbound user ID EMOSER, routing code 5388
Page record: 1 - 8
Elapsed time: 03:32 on channel 13
Fax Images: [double-click on image to view page(s)] <<OCR Text>>
This e-mail message may contain legally privileged and/or confidential
information. If you are not the intended recipient(s), or the employee
or agent responsible for delivery of this message to the intended
recipient(s), you are hereby notified that any dissemination,
distribution or copying of this e-mail message is strictly prohibited.
If you have received this message in error, please immediately notify
the sender and delete this e-mail message from your computer.
(See attached file: AFAXNY004592E.PDF)
?<< File: AFAXNY004592E.PDF >>
This e-mail message may contain legally privileged and/or confidential
information. If you are not the intended recipient(s), or the employee
or agent responsible for delivery of this message to the intended
recipient(s), you are hereby notified that any dissemination,
distribution or copying of this e-mail message is strictly prohibited.
If you have received this message in error, please immediately notify
the sender and delete this e-mail message from your computer. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Larry,
I am going on vacation for two weeks - my last day will be Oct. 31,
which is a little before the end of the comment period. I am doing
everything I can to make sure the permits are ready to issue when the
comment period ends. You have asked about using a sulfur analyzer.
Since that is not typical practice for facilities subject to NSPS GG, I
would have to research that. Frankly, if you want your permits ASAP,
there really isn't time for that. Does one of the test methods in
Appendix D of Part 75, which I've pasted below, work for you? (I know
some don't.) Please advise so we can keep the process moving. Thanks.
2.3.3.1.2 Use one of the following methods when using manual
sampling (as applicable to the type of gas combusted) to determine the
sulfur
content of the fuel: ASTM D1072-90, "Standard Test Method for Total
Sulfur in Fuel Gases", ASTM D4468-85 (Reapproved 1989) "Standard
Test Method for Total Sulfur in Gaseous Fuels by Hydrogenolysis and
Radiometric Colorimetry," ASTM D5504-94 "Standard Test Method for
Determination of Sulfur Compounds in Natural Gas and Gaseous Fuels by
Gas Chromatography and Chemiluminescence," or ASTM D3246-81
(Reapproved 1987) "Standard Test Method for Sulfur in Petroleum Gas By
Oxidative Microcoulometry" (incorporated by reference under
o 75.6).
Roger Kohn
U.S. EPA Region 9
75 Hawthorne St., Mail Code AIR-3
San Francisco, CA 94105
phone: (415) 744-1238
fax: (415) 744-1076 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Need to think about it a bit. Here's some of what we know based on the settlement:
Total debt = 6.35 B
After they contribute all cash on their books and agree to eat a little, the PUC is allowing them to collect somewhere between $3.0-3.3B--depends on who you talk to.
The total owed to ESPs is $243 MM.
-----Original Message-----
From: Curry, Wanda
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2001 5:56 PM
To: Dasovich, Jeff
Cc: Steffes, James D.; Tribolet, Michael
Subject: RE: Conversation with Edison re: Getting Negative CTC Paid
Jeff,
Do we know how much Edison's total under collection is? Would it be as simple as to determine their total (around $3 billion?) and gross receivable (before any payments - 145 million) and calculate the % (around 5%)? This would result in a pretty small percentage. Another way to look at it would be on a % of load basis. If you use the DA load information Sue forwarded to us on October 1st, this % (5.7%) would also be very small. How do you think they will look at it? I think we would all agree to a 5% haircut, if they would JUST PAY US!
Wanda
-----Original Message-----
From: Dasovich, Jeff
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2001 5:19 PM
To: Steffes, James D.; Curry, Wanda; Tribolet, Michael
Subject: RE: Conversation with Edison re: Getting Negative CTC Paid
Wanda: I faxed the examples that Edison faxed us and that you and Michael and I talked about some time back. I'm sure that's how Edison would calculate it. Does it make sense to run the numbers and see what our "contribution" to Edison's undercollection would be under Edison's view? If you need another copy, let me know. Question: I don't know what our book looks like on this issue, but if we were to take the "netting" through a reduction in the PX credit going forward, how much of a hit would that be, particularly if we were to get the $120 MM up front?
Best,
Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: Steffes, James D.
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2001 5:05 PM
To: Dasovich, Jeff
Subject: FW: Conversation with Edison re: Getting Negative CTC Paid
Jeff --
How would we calculate EES' "contribution" to SCE undercollection?
Jim
-----Original Message-----
From: Dasovich, Jeff
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2001 5:02 PM
To: Shapiro, Richard; Steffes, James D.; Mellencamp, Lisa; Tribolet, Michael; Sanders, Richard B.; Kean, Steven J.; Sharp, Vicki; Smith, Mike; Williams, Robert C.; Curry, Wanda; Swain, Steve; Huddleson, Diann; Calger, Christopher F.; Belden, Tim; Dietrich, Janet
Subject: Conversation with Edison re: Getting Negative CTC Paid
I talked to John Fielder (SVP Edison) about setting up a meeting for Barry Tycholiz with Edison's CFO about hedging Edison's QF price risk. Fielder wanted to talk about the negative CTC issue. Here's what he said:
They plan to "settle" with the ESPs and pay them when they pay everyone else, which he re-iterated would be sometime in Q1'02.
Edison is holding firm to the notion that the negative CTC contributed to the utility's undercollection and that the ESP's share of the undercollection has to be netted against the payables attributable to the negative CTC and owed the ESP.
He said that they will propose to net it out in one of two ways: 1) lump sum netting (i.e., if they owe $50MM and the share of the undercollection is $30 MM, then they pay the ESP $20 MM; or 2) future reductions in PX Credit (i.e., they pay the ESP $50 MM, and then reduce the PX going forward until the $30 MM is paid down). The numbers are illustrative only.
In addition, he said that they have the view that a decision is going to have to be made about 1) whether DA customers pay for stranded costs tied to the DWR L-T contracts, and 2) whether DA customers pay going forward for stranded costs tied to the QF contracts. (Edison is clearly lobbying the PUC to get DA customers to pay for these costs.)
I recommended strongly that he de-link issues 1 and 2 above from the issue of paying us ASAP what they owe us for negative CTC. He agreed.
He said that the PUC judge's recently issued pre-hearing conference order requires that Edison "meet and confer" with ESPs prior to the Nov. 7th hearing, and that Edison intends to set something up with ESPs prior to that hearing.
Fielder is also the point person on "getting ESPs paid" and intends to initiate settlement discussions with ESPs week after next.
It was very clear from the conversation that Edison is going to do everything possible (at the expense of creditors) to maximize headroom under the settlement it struck with the PUC a few weeks ago. Edison's stalemate with the QFs is evidence of it. We shouldn't assume anything different with the Negative CTC issue.
If you have any questions, let us know.
Best,
Jeff | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Can you do find the same info for SAPPI as you did for Weyerhaeuser yesterday?
thanks,
Monika
-----Original Message-----
From: Juvane, Danilo
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2001 9:34 AM
To: Causholli, Monika
Subject: RE: do you need smth to do?
please, I am dying here
-----Original Message-----
From: Causholli, Monika
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2001 9:33 AM
To: Juvane, Danilo
Subject: do you need smth to do? | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Here's the link to the ERCOT page.
-----Original Message-----
From: Imai, Rika
Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2001 3:55 PM
To: Hull, Bryan
Subject: RE: Ercot
For the interm, please use the following link
http://wnahou-0001452/Rocks/frameset_test.htm
There is a limit of 10 connections so not all of the people will necessarily be able to attach to it at once
-----Original Message-----
From: Hull, Bryan
Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2001 10:23 AM
To: Imai, Rika
Subject: Ercot
Rika,
Any word on access to the ERCOT website?
Thanks,
Bryan | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
-----Original Message-----
From: Rangel, Ina
Sent: Friday, November 02, 2001 10:37 AM
To: Rybarski, Amanda; Moore, Kevin G.; Hogan, Irena D.; Bates, Kimberly; Villarreal, Alexandra; Presas, Jessica; Young, Becky; Vuittonet, Laura; Quezada, Daniel
Cc: Hardy, Kimberly; Panos, Jason; Hernandez, Jesus A
Subject:
Please forward to your groups
There is only 1 week left before moving into the new building. There are two shredco containers located at EB3206E and in the freight elevator for documents that need shredding. Also there will be a couple of large trash containers located on the 32nd floor today 11/2/01 and next Friday 11/9/01. Please start the cleanup process.
Remember:
1. You can only move 6 boxes per person plus equipment
2. Take home all IPAQ'S, Blackberry's, Palm Pilots and Laptops Friday 11/9/01 so that nothing is misplaced
3. If you have a cellular phone charger on your desk....don't forget to pack
4. Clean out all Voicemails by 5:00 PM on Friday 11/9/01
5. The new Enron Building will be closed to all until 5:00 AM on Monday Morning. If you try to come up here, you will not be allowed in the building.
6. Please give your User ID and Password to your assistant so she/he can make sure that everything is up and running for you on Monday morning.
7. If you have a headset, please pack it. They will not be installed until Monday morning.
8. Since there are no amtels moving, please be sure you have MSN messenger installed in your computer because this is what your assistant will use to give you your
messages. If you do not have it, your assistant can help you install it.
9. Please label your PC, Boxes (on the ends), and cradles, scanners, etc. You will have a new mouse and keyboard in the new building and your monitors will have speakers on them so you don't have
If you have any other questions or concerns, please let me know.
Many thanks!
Ina Rangel
Administrative Coordinator
Enron North America
713-853-7257 Voice
713-646-3604 Fax | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Stacey,
Let me know if this is what you are looking for.
Approximately every one to two weeks or as requested by the options traders an option sensitivity report is run using PortCalc. Three parameters are tested: Price (increments from -5 to +5), monthly Volatility (increments from -25% to +25%), and Time (increments up to 90 days. The data is imported from PortCalc into an Excel pivot table. The pivot table is then used to show how the various Greeks (delta, gamma, theta and Vega) change for each trader's book, generally with a 3 month look ahead. The data can also be sorted by and grouped by other criteria, if requested, such as by region and delivery date.
Michael Mattox
x34317 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
This looks like a pretty good list. My suggestions would be to substitute
Elizabeth Sager for Leslie Hansen who is on maternity leave and to add Denis
O'Connell in London for credit derivatives.
Vanessa Schulte@ENRON
02/05/2001 05:21 PM
To: Mark Taylor/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Mary Solmonson/HOU/ECT@ECT
Subject: Legal Task Force
Mark,
I am working with Mary Solmonson on the effort to eliminate confirmations on
electronic deals, and have put together a task force of legal
representatives. I will be using these names as a point of contact for
questions regarding confirmations in their respective areas. Please review
the list and let me know if you agree with the names chosen.
Confirmations Task Force
Mark Taylor - Financial Trading, General Issues
Jeff Hodge - US Physical Gas
Leslie Hansen - US Physical Power
Alan Aronowitz - Global Markets
Julia Murray - Industrial Markets
Robbi Rossi - Broadband
David Minns - Australia
Jane McBride - Japan
Tony Pryor - Northern Natural Gas Pipeline
Paul Simons - Credit Derivatives
Justin Boyd - European/London Based Product Approvals
Mark Greenberg - ClickPaper
Thanks,
Vanessa
x35565 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Grab me when you get a minute. I have your bonus and merit info. You're
going to like it.
D | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
MARK YOUR LUNCH CALENDARS NOW !
You are invited to attend the EWS Brown Bag Lunch Series
Featuring: MICHAEL L. MILLER
Topic: Principal Investments
Thursday, May 17, 2001
11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
EB 5 C2
You bring your lunch, Limited Seating
We provide drinks and dessert. RSVP e-mail Kathie Grabstald
or call x 3-9610 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
---------------------- Forwarded by Chris Abel/HOU/ECT on 01/28/2000 08:43 AM
---------------------------
Chris Abel <[email protected]> on 01/19/2000 11:46:57 AM
To: Chris Abel/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: FW: [Fwd: Things I'm Glad I Didn't Say]
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [SMTP:[email protected]]
Sent: Saturday, January 22, 2000 6:19 PM
To: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]
Subject: Fwd: [Fwd: Things I'm Glad I Didn't Say]
In a message dated 01/21/2000 5:46:48 PM Central Standard Time,
[email protected] writes:
<< :
Subject: [Fwd: Things I'm Glad I Didn't Say]
1. Question: If you could live forever, would you and why?
Answer: "I would not live forever, because we should not live
forever, because if we were supposed to live forever, then we would live
forever, but we cannot live forever, which is why I would not live
forever."
---Miss Alabama in the 1994 Miss USA contest
2. "Whenever I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the
world, I can't help but cry. I mean I'd love to be skinny like that but
not
with all those flies and death and stuff."
---Mariah Carey
3. "Researchers have discovered that chocolate produces some of the
same
reactions in the brain as marijuana. The researchers also discovered
other
similarities between the two, but can't remember what they are."
---Matt Lauer on NBC's Today Show, August 22
4. "I haven't committed a crime. What I did was fail to comply with the
law."
---David Dinkins, New York City Mayor,
answering accusations that he failed to pay his taxes.
5. "Smoking kills. If you're killed, you've lost a very important part of
your
life."
---Brooke Shields, during an interview to become spokesperson for a
federal antismoking campaign.
6. "I've never had major knee surgery on any other part of my body."
---Winston Bennett, Univ. of KY basketball forward
7. "Outside of the killings, Washington has one of the lowest crime rates in
the country."
---Mayor Marion Barry, Washington, DC
8. "We're going to turn this team around 360 degrees."
---Jason Kidd, upon his drafting to the Dallas Mavericks
9. "I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers.
We
are the president."
---Hillary Clinton commenting on the release of subpoenaed documents.
10. "China is a big country, inhabited by many Chinese."
---Former French President Charles De Gaulle
11. "That lowdown scoundrel deserves to be kicked to death by a jackass, and
I'm just the one to do it."
---A Congressional Candidate in Texas
12. "It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the
impurities in our air and water that are doing it."
---Former U. S. Vice-president Dan Quayle
13. "Without censorship, things can get terribly confused in the public
mind."
---General William Westmoreland
And last but not least-a parting word from Dan Quayle:
14. "I love California. I practically grew up in Phoenix."
>>
From: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>, "[email protected]"
<[email protected]>, "[email protected]"
<[email protected]>,
"[email protected]" <[email protected]>, "[email protected]"
<[email protected]>, "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>, "[email protected]"
<[email protected]>, "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Subject: [Fwd: Things I'm Glad I Didn't Say]
Date: Fri, 21 Jan 2000 17:45:55 -0600
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
---------------------- Forwarded by on 01/21/2000 05:44 PM
---------------------------
Doug Sihvonen
01/21/2000 07:37 AM
To:
cc:
Subject: [Fwd: Things I'm Glad I Didn't Say]
1. Question: If you could live forever, would you and why?
Answer: "I would not live forever, because we should not live
forever, because if we were supposed to live forever, then we would live
forever, but we cannot live forever, which is why I would not live
forever."
---Miss Alabama in the 1994 Miss USA contest
2. "Whenever I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the
world, I can't help but cry. I mean I'd love to be skinny like that but
not
with all those flies and death and stuff."
---Mariah Carey
3. "Researchers have discovered that chocolate produces some of the
same
reactions in the brain as marijuana. The researchers also discovered
other
similarities between the two, but can't remember what they are."
---Matt Lauer on NBC's Today Show, August 22
4. "I haven't committed a crime. What I did was fail to comply with
the
law."
---David Dinkins, New York City Mayor,
answering accusations that he failed to pay his taxes.
5. "Smoking kills. If you're killed, you've lost a very important part
of
your life."
---Brooke Shields, during an interview to become spokesperson
for
a federal anti-smoking campaign.
6. "I've never had major knee surgery on any other part of my body."
---Winston Bennett, Univ. of KY basketball forward
7. "Outside of the killings, Washington has one of the lowest crime
rates
in the country."
---Mayor Marion Barry, Washington, DC
8. "We're going to turn this team around 360 degrees."
---Jason Kidd, upon his drafting to the Dallas Mavericks
9. "I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers.
We
are the president."
---Hillary Clinton commenting on the release of subpoenaed
documents.
10. "China is a big country, inhabited by many Chinese."
---Former French President Charles De Gaulle
11. "That lowdown scoundrel deserves to be kicked to death by a
jackass,
and I'm just the one to do it."
---A Congressional Candidate in Texas
12. "It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the
impurities in our air and water that are doing it."
---Former U. S. Vice-President Dan Quayle
13. "Without censorship, things can get terribly confused in the public
mind."
---General William Westmoreland
And last but not least -- a parting word from
Dan Quayle:
14. "I love California. I practically grew up in Phoenix." | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Mark: I would like to request a flat panel monitor to replace my current
monitor. Thank you. Sara | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Dear Mr. Brannvoll,
I just spoke with our Legal contact and he advised me that your Enron North
America ISDA will cover any
derivative product trading conducted with ENA. The long description for the
product will identify which
entity you are transacting with. At which time the European office sponsors
a product, the trade would be
considered with a new counterparty and it would be necessary to obtain an
ISDA with this entity. The ENA
ISDA would then be re-excecuted using the new counterparty name.
One contact I have made during the course of our discussion is Mr. Mark
Taylor in our Legal Department. He has
offered his name as a contact available for calls on this matter. His number
is 713-853-1459.
I hope that this answers your question. Please feel free to contact myself
or Mark in any other
questions you may have.
Regards,
Camille
Clickpaper Customer Support
"Brannvoll, Frank" <[email protected]> on 08/24/2000 05:02:07 AM
To: "'[email protected]'" <[email protected]>
cc: "'[email protected]'" <[email protected]>
Subject: RE: Stora Enso Financial Services S.A.: Request for Information
Dear Camille
Thank You very much for your fast answer, I appreciate this a lot.
I have today spoken with Mr. Martin Holmes in your London office, and I have
now ( I hope) understood, that by dealing with Clickpaper.Com, I eventually
will have a trade with Enron North America, and as StoraEnso Financial
services is having a ISDA documentation in place these trades will then be
covered through this ISDA.
Please let me know if this is wrong.....................
Regards
Frank O. Brannvoll
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2000 1:59 AM
To: [email protected]
Cc: [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]
Subject: Stora Enso Financial Services S.A.: Request
for Information
Dear Mr. Brannvoll,
We received your question today regarding the principal in
transactions on
Clickpaper.com.
In anwswer to your question, the principal in transactions
conducted on
Clickpaper.com is the particular Enron entity that is making
the market in
the particular commodity that is being traded. Currently,
all products
traded on Clickpaper .com are purchased or sold by Enron
North America
Corp., a Delaware corporation that is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Enron
Corp. As Clickpaper.com adds products to the trading
selection and
expands its trading operations to additional European
countries, and as
Enron expands its pulp and paper trading operations, we
anticipate that
other Enron entities will be the principal in certain
transactions,
depending upon the product and transaction. However, we
currently
anticipate that the principal win every transaction
conducted on
Clickpaper.com will be a direct or indirect subsidiary of
Enron Corp.
Please note that potential customers of Clickpaper.com are
required to be a
party to a Master Agreement with an Enron entity, or to
agree to on-line
General Terms and Conditions, for a particular product
before transacting
in that product. Those Master Agreements and General Terms
and Conditions
identify the entity that will the principal to that
transaction. You can
always contact Clickpaper.com's Customer Service if you have
any particular
question about those agreements or the entity that is
transacting in a
particular product.
Thank you very much for your inquiry.
Camille Gerard
Clickpaper.com Customer Support | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Hello? | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Hi, Sheila!
Can you verify for us the account numbers at both Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley that we need to assign back into?
Thanks!
Marie | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
After our recent Re-start meeting and the associated planning, there has been significant e-mail activity about what appears to be different points of contact into the different Pools and Transmission Providers.
I would recommend that Netco anoint a Primary Point of Contact with each Pool and Transmission Provider and that person have the resources of Legal, Govt Affairs, Commercial, Credit, etc. The Primary Point of Contact would initiate and lead all discussions with the counterparty to expedite the agreement.
For the Pools, I think that Govt Affairs should be the Primary Point of Contact.
ISO-NE = Christi Nicolay
NY-ISO = Christi Nicolay
PJM = Jim Steffes
ERCOT = Charles Yeung
MISO = Sarah Novosel
SPP = Christi Nicolay
CAISO = Alan Comnes (although Steve Hall is already working on this and should not be displaced).
For the individual Transmission Providers, I think that the Real-Time Desk/Logistics should be the Primary Point of Contact.
Does anyone see any issues with this proposal? I am concerned that Netco may be taking multiple positions with the same provider and that could lead to delay.
Thanks. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Thank you for your helpful comments. Good points.
On the timing issue, we still have the time sensitivity, but I hate to give
it a precise day. Maybe the way to address that is within 10 BD's, as
mutually agreed.
I don't have the doc in front of me (I'm in Florida), but I thought it said
ENA was taking responsibility for increases in the Purchase Amount as it
exists the date of closing. I'll check.
I agree with deleting CO definition. It doesn't add anything.
Again, thanks.
Kay
"Campbell, Carolyn" <[email protected]> on 03/01/2001 02:07:06 PM
To: "'[email protected]'" <[email protected]>
cc: "Keffer, John" <[email protected]>
Subject: FW: Form for Blue Dog
Kay:
I have a few minor comments to the new draft of the LLC Letter Agreement:
1. Section 2 - The new draft provides for closing "no later than 10
business days" after funding the escrow, while the old draft provided for
closing "on the 7th business day" after funding the escrow. I have a
recollection that ENA actually needed the 7 business days and no less (thus
the requirement of ON the 7th business day) in order to prepare for closing,
and was trying to avoid the possibility of the counterparty wanting to close
before ENA could complete the matters required of it to properly effect a
transfer. If the timing on this is not sensitive, the new draft is fine.
2. Section 5(a) - The new draft provides that ENA is responsible for any
"increase in the Purchase Amount," if the increase is caused by ENA's acts
or omissions. The new draft does not mention the base amount or point of
reference, any increase over which would thus be ENA's responsibility. (The
old draft provided that ENA was responsible for the Purchase Amount, as
determined on the basis of facts and circumstances existing prior to
closing).
3. Section 9(a)(xiv) - It appears that a verb is missing from this
sentence.
4. Section 19(c) - I think the definition of "Commercial Operation" can be
deleted, since the only place it appears is in Section 19(g), where it is
used with the parenthetical (as defined in the Turbine Contract). However,
we need to confirm that "commercial operation" is actually defined in the
Turbine Contract, as I believe this was the transaction where the term was
constantly used in the underlying agreement without definition.
5. Section 19(g) - In the definition of "Take Over," replace both
references to "Unit" with references to the "GE Equipment".
Please call if you want to discuss these comments. Thank you.
Carolyn M. Campbell
King?& Spalding
713-276-7307 (phone)
713-751-3280 (fax)
[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Thursday, March 01, 2001 7:05 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Form for Blue Dog
Hi Carolyn,
Could you check this and see if I did anything stupid with the revisions:
(See attached file: Form of LLC Purchase Letter AgreementBD2u.doc)
Thanks,
Kay
Confidentiality Notice
This message is being sent by or on behalf of a lawyer. It is intended
exclusively for the individual or entity to which it is addressed. This
communication may contain information that is proprietary, privileged or
confidential or otherwise legally exempt from disclosure. If you are not the
named addressee, you are not authorized to read, print, retain, copy or
disseminate this message or any part of it. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately by e-mail and delete
all copies of the message.
- Form of LLC Purchase Letter AgreementBD2u.doc | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
FYI - this may be a duplicate
----- Forwarded by Sara Shackleton/HOU/ECT on 06/12/2000 10:19 AM -----
Sheila Glover
06/09/2000 01:30 PM
To: Sara Shackleton/HOU/ECT@ECT, Donna Lowry/HOU/ECT@ECT, Lauren
Hagerty/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT, John Greene/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: [email protected]
Subject: Goldman Sachs - Enron Distribution Ventures MHC Limited (Mauirius
based)
I spoke with Eugenie Sibeud at Goldman Sachs who is a local market expert.
She spoke with someone from Hong Kong.
Per Eugenie, We probably do not need an FII (which takes the 9 months to
obtain) but we will probably need a FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) Form to
sell the shares. This form needs to be approved by RBI (Royal Bank of India)
taking approximately 3 weeks and is good for a specified period of time (e.g.
3 months).
She said that we may be able to complete the sale by opening a cash account
with Standard Charter Bank (GSs agent) or a special purpose account which
would stay open only for a month.
Eugenie is going to get back to me and forward to me the specifics which I
have tried to summarize above.
Thanks. Sheila. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
no
-----Original Message-----
From: Parks, Joe
Sent: Monday, January 28, 2002 2:01 PM
To: Meyer, Chris
Subject: RE: February - TW Volumes vis Compression Services
have you gotten a response
-----Original Message-----
From: Meyer, Chris
Sent: Monday, January 28, 2002 12:22 PM
To: Parks, Joe; Nemec, Gerald
Cc: Knippa, Mark
Subject: February - TW Volumes vis Compression Services
Boys - will need some sort of transaction agreement (or other agreement) to sale February gas volumes to a third party. To sale January volumes to Sid Richardson, I assume some sort of written arangement. Let me know.
chris meyer
x31666 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Linda and I are following the PTC for Corp. out of DC. Ed Coats in Enron
Corporate Tax leads from Houston. We have a Bracewell Patterson attorney in
DC retained to support our corporate tax efforts on Capitol Hill.
Enron Wind also has a lobbyist dedicated 24/7 to this effort.
Mark Metts/Enron@EnronXGate
07/02/2001 10:40 AM
To: Chris Long/Corp/Enron@ENRON
cc: Steven J Kean/NA/Enron@Enron
Subject: RE: Wind Production Tax Credit (PTC)
Chris,
Thanks very much for the prompt reply. This is exactly what I needed. Who
is working this in-house? Do we have any outside resources devoted to it?
Mark
-----Original Message-----
From: Long, Chris
Sent: Monday, July 02, 2001 8:45 AM
To: Metts, Mark
Cc: Kean, Steven; Robertson, Linda; Decker, Larry; Fisher, Dolores
Subject: Wind Production Tax Credit (PTC)
Mark - I left a voice mail on your cell.
The Wind Production Tax Credit expires on December 31, 2001. The PTC will
be extended. There is significant bipartisan support for the PTC, the
revenue number is reasonable, and renewables are a key component of the
energy debate.
The question is when and how. Two likely scenarios are:
1) As part of the Energy Bill. The House Ways and Means Committee will
mark-up the tax portions of the energy bill in mid-July. We understand that
Chairman Thomas is committed to including the PTC as part of the Ways and
Means bill. The Senate Finance Committee has not scheduled a mark-up. While
the energy bill will be debated during July, final action will likely not
occur until after the August recess. In this scenario, look to September at
the earliest.
2) There are 10 provisions, including the PTC, in the IRC that expire by
December 31, 2001. Historically, Congress approves an "extenders" package
late in the session to keep the tax credits functioning. While no one can
predict when Congress will adjourn, they are set to adjourn in early
October. In this scenario, the PTC would be extended in late September at
the earliest.
Mark, this is Congress, so anything can change.
Call me with any questions at (202) 466-9158. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
>What do you think is the next best step?
The next step is to gather up a few players who share this view and go to Mike as a non-Enron proposal and try it that way. I am going to give the idea a test drive with perhaps the most provocative and difficult and potentially significant player in the drama, Brenda Anderson of BPA. The Queen of Bonneville Trading sits over there across the river and survives on sheer guts and effrontery. I am going to saddle my horse, attach a white kerchief to my saber and ride over behind the lines for a secret caucus. This is the stuff of real diplomacy that could be fruitful.
Meanwhile, to hell with San Diego. Something will happen and it won't matter so we should focus on the big picture and let the ants gather there and scramble among the crumbs. ----cgy
-----Original Message-----
From: Sager, Elizabeth
Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2001 11:50 AM
To: Hall, Steve C. (Legal); Yoder, Christian
Subject: RE: Faith-based contracting
HI
So much wasted time and energy and the well is running dry at the same time the animosity towards Enron and marketers seems only to be increasing. I like the proposal to merge the discussions but... You will recall at the WSPP meeting in Colorado I asked Mike Small if he wouldn't consider merging the discussions/ contracting groups. After a long winded story about the personal pain he has and will continue to suffer (Shari's name came up a lot), he said he did not think it would ever work. I'm all for trying to forge this single contract approach and I think EEI members, drafting committee and all, would relish it as well. What do you think is the next best step?
ps - the meeting in San Diego on the 1st is still unclear for Houston based Enron employees. Terrorists Halloween scares have made everyone unlikely willing to fly. We are trying to get Mike to allow a videoconference but so far no commitment that this is OK. Lets talk about this also.
Hoping not to stay the course, again. Talk to you soon.
Elizabeth Sager
713-853-6349
-----Original Message-----
From: Hall, Steve C. (Legal)
Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2001 11:50 AM
To: Yoder, Christian; Sager, Elizabeth
Subject: Faith-based contracting
I agree with Christian that we cannot win over the WSPP folks simply by telling them that their contract is not as good as ours. Everytime I venture out to the larger NW community of IOUs, munis, and federal PMA's I realize that the WSPP is more than a contract, it's almost a religion. One cannot convince a Muslim that the Bible is better written than the Koran.
Whether it's assimilation or merger, or the hint that the WSPP might be destined for a larger role in advocacy and education, we need to give Mike Small a face-saving way of relinquishing the WSPP contract. Modifying the WSPP to look like the EEI only strengthens the resolve of WSPP-ers to stick with the original contract.---"Why should I change, the agreements are virtually identical?"
-----Original Message-----
From: Yoder, Christian
Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2001 9:28 AM
To: Sager, Elizabeth
Cc: Hall, Steve C. (Legal)
Subject: FW: Legal Discussion
Elizabeth,
I am going to divide my presentation into two parts. One is going to be designed to give the marketers "talking points" and the other is going to be a technical thing where I show them some bad wording and tell a couple of scary war stories.
I would like to get your take on the following kind of big picture Enron policy on WSPP approach. Unless you agree with and support this kind of "How Enron views the WSPP" policy, I shouldn't be advocating it at the meeting.
Enron's view is that the days of comparing the WSPP Agreement to the EEI should be coming to an end. It is time for a joint committee of WSPP and EEI experts to merge the agreements. Everybody is wasting too much time comparing the two agreements and trying to say one is better than the other. Every amendment that has been made in the past two years brings the agreements closer and closer into alignment and it is preposterous for any serious lawyer to argue that we are better off with two agreements, one that is almost like the other one. Valuable resource time is being wasted. Enron believes that a joint committee should accelerate the merger of the agreements.
This will free up the WSPP organization to do what it does best: provide an extremely useful industry formum kind of function. The WSPP should be focusing on more boondoggles and more future looking work like getting ready for RTO West, dealing with the emerging California changes, and open access in Oregon and Nevada. Right now, the highly talented regional organization is spending an unfortunate amount of time trying to distinguish its contract from the EEI when both are converging toward the same center. This unfortunate distraction is keeping the WSPP from adding the tremendous value it does add through its boondoggles and industry issue discussions. The WSPP organization is needed for bigger and better things than dragging us through an ever narrowing labyrinth of legal distinctions.
We need this kind of glazed over positive spin on the WSPP process because our marketers do not like to be isolated from the cozy herd at these boondoggles. Sales people do not want to feel alone and different. They are all about the slimy intimacy of sales. It is hard for Stewart Rosman to go to Cour d'Lane and have Greg Wolf and Shari Stack confront him with difficult questions about why Enron is voting so and so on such and such. He wants to feel loved. Therefore, this policy would let our marketers praise the WSPP for being a great organization, but at the same time, advocate that it become even greater by declaring victory on the contract front and shifting over to more important projects. Rosman should say: Enron loves the WSPP, it has done a great job with the contract reformation, that task is done, we now should move on to bigger and better tasks. Let's get the contract stuff wrapped up with a joint committee and get more important matters on the agenda.
Something like this is what we need to do with this ongoing mess. Otherwise, we pit Enron's clearmindedness against a stubborn mass of inert resistance and much toxic upheaval is the only result.
The world, including our little western power world, is not made up of people sitting around trying to be rational. It is full of all of the conflicts of history, ambitious tirades, irrational idiocyncracies and strong personalities. The WSPP institution is like one of the warring tribes of Lebanon. They are not going to go away. Enron needs to be more subtle in its regional diplomacy. Praise them as we bury them on the contract front. As our headquarters commander, I beg you to let Steve and me, as field operatives, pursue this diplomatic initiative over the next months. We can wind these guys up to talk this kind of talk next Wednesday. One consequence of the policy is that you would have to urge the EEI bureacracy to embrace a joint committee approach. ----cgy
-----Original Message-----
From: Rosman, Stewart
Sent: Friday, October 19, 2001 3:02 PM
To: Choi, Paul; Malowney, John; Van Gelder, John; Lackey, Chris; Buerkle, Jim
Cc: Belden, Tim; Calger, Christopher F.; Yoder, Christian; Hall, Steve C. (Legal)
Subject: Legal Discussion
Christian Yoder has graciously agreed to host a symposium comparing and contrasting the WSPP and the EEI. The meeting will take place on Oct 31 (Halloween) at 1:00 PM in Mt Bachelor.
Stewart | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Note new cost limits for building laterals within our existing blanket
authorization (i.e., without seeking a specific certificate). The $$ is
probably still not high enough to give us ability to build the whole project,
but it may give us some flexibility. Thanks MKM.
Also, has any one heard from Tino or Dennis in the last week or so? I left
Tino some voicemails on a question he had left for me, and the name of the
Enron windmill guy, but haven't heard back. Do we need to schedule a
follow-up meeting with them to talk about turbine availability and regulatory
options, etc? DF
---------------------- Forwarded by Drew Fossum/ET&S/Enron on 02/09/2000
09:59 AM ---------------------------
From: Mary Kay Miller 02/08/2000 07:44 AM
To: Drew Fossum
cc:
Subject: Re: FERC Daily Actions
This shows new automatic and prior notice $$ limits- $20.2 million, prior
notice Project Pueblo
Janet Butler
02/07/2000 05:36 PM
To: Tim Aron/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, John Ballentine/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Martha
Benner/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Eric Benson/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Donna
Bily/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT, Lynn Blair/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Rob
Bradley/Corp/Enron@ENRON, Lorna Brennan/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Bob
Chandler/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Bill Cordes/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Shelley
Corman/ET&S/Enron@Enron, Christi Culwell/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Mary
Darveaux/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Larry DeRoin/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Rick
Dietz/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Dari Dornan/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, John
Dushinske/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Diane Eckels/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, George
Fastuca/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Drew Fossum/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Donna
Fulton/Corp/Enron, Lou Geiler/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, John
Goodpasture/OTS/Enron@ENRON, Mary Hain/HOU/ECT@ECT, Bob M
Hall/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Mary Lou Hamilton/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Steven
Harris/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Glen Hass/ET&S/Enron@Enron, Robert
Hayes/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Rod Hayslett/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Bambi
Heckerman/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Theresa Hess/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Robert
Hill/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Staci Holtzman/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Tamara
Hopkins/ET&S/Enron@Enron, Stanley Horton/Corp/Enron@Enron, Lee
Huber/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Martha Janousek/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Steven
January/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Anne Jolibois/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Steven J
Kean/HOU/EES@EES, Jeffrey Keeler/Corp/Enron@ENRON, Robert
Kilmer/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Frazier King/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Steve
Kirk/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Tim Kissner/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Laura
Lantefield/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Linda L Lawrence/HOU/EES@EES, Blair
Lichtenwalter/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Elizabeth Linnell/HOU/EES@EES, Teb
Lokey/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Phil Lowry/OTS/Enron@ENRON, Susan J Mara/SFO/EES@EES,
Donna Martens/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Dorothy McCoppin/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Mike
McGowan/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Rockford Meyer/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Mary Kay
Miller/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Michael Moran/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Sheila
Nacey/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Ray Neppl/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Robert
Neustaedter/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT, Christi L
Nicolay/HOU/ECT@ECT, Sarah Novosel/Corp/Enron@ENRON, Maureen
Palmer/HOU/EES@EES, Zelda Paschal/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Geneva
Patterson/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Maria Pavlou/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Eileen
Peebles/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Keith Petersen/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Peggy
Phillips/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Janet Place/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Tony
Pryor/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Colleen Raker/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Bret
Reich/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Kathy Ringblom/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Jenny
Rub/GPGFIN/Enron@Enron, Cynthia Sandherr/Corp/Enron@ENRON, James
Saunders/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Donna Scott/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Susan
Scott/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Richard Shapiro/HOU/EES@EES, Michael
Smith/Enron@Gateway, Dave Schafer/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Mike G
Smith/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT, Louis Soldano/ET&S/Enron@ENRON,
Lon Stanton/ET&S/Enron@Enron, James D Steffes/HOU/EES@EES, James
Studebaker/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Jim Talcott/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Gina
Taylor/OTS/Enron@ENRON, Debbie Thompson/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Melinda
Tosoni/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Michael Van Norden/Corp/Enron@ENRON, Stephen
Veatch/FGT/Enron@ENRON, Donald Vignaroli/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Jody
Warner/NPNG/Enron@ENRON, Kimberly Watson/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Julia
White/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Kim Wilkie/ET&S/Enron@ENRON, Jane
Wilson/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT, Michele
Winckowski/ET&S/Enron@ENRON
cc:
Subject: FERC Daily Actions
February 4, 2000
Regional Transmission Organizations, RM99-2 Noticed change in workshop date
scheduled for Atlanta on April 6-7, rather than april 5-6.
Questar Pipeline, CP00-75. Noticed Questar's application to terminate transportation
agreement with Northern which has been inactive for ten years. Northern
agrees as evidenced with signed letter agreement.
Distrigas of Massachusetts, CP00-76. In a letter order, FERC has authorized a limited
certification allowing Distrigas to install air injection requipment at its
LNG terminal in Massachusetts between February 6, 2000 and March 31, 2000.
Trans-Union Interstate, CP00-47 NOI issued to prepare an environmental impact
statement on Trans-Union's pipeline project consisting of about 41 miles of
pipeline in Louisiana and Arkansas.
Publication of Project cost Limits Under Blanket Certificates, RM81-19, Final
Rule On February 7, FERC issued a final rule with the new limits applicable for
construction, acquisition, operation and miscellaneous rearrangement of
facilities under blanket certificate procedure. Attached is Final Rule with
limits. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Hi Theresa,
I promised you an update today on the Goldman Sachs International Terms of
Business Letter. I am in contact with Sarah at Goldman Sachs daily and am
trying to get her to set aside a time to discuss any outstanding issues and a
time table for quickly getting the account executed. I anticipate that she
and I will speak to try to wrap things up tomorrow or Wednesday. I willl
keep you posted. Until then, you can know that I call or email over there
every day or every other day.
Cheryl Nelson
Senior Counsel
EB3816
(713) 345-4693 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATES!
The commencement ceremony will be held on Sunday, May 20 in the Greek
Theatre. Graduates should arrive at 8:15 a.m. (The ceremony begins at
9:00 a.m.) The ceremony will be followed by a champagne reception at the
Kleeberger Sports Lawn, across the street from Haas.
You'll find commencement information at the Haas Alumni Network at:
http://www.haas.berkeley.edu/alumni/newgrads/evmba.html
ARRIVING/PREPARATION FOR CEREMONY:
The Greek Theater is just north of Haas, or left of us if you were to walk
OUT of the Haas building. It is on the east side of Gayley/Piedmont. You
should arrive back stage (by entering from the street side) by 8:15 a.m.
Once back stage, please go to the MBA table (you'll see the Evening MBA
staff there), and print your name on an index card as you would like it
read by Diane. You will keep the card with you and pass it to her on stage.
After you arrive, PLEASE stay backstage and assemble at the end of the area
closest toward Haas (south).
PARKING:
Anyone can park on campus on Sundays. Some lots will have attendant
parking. Otherwise just buy a $5 daily parking ticket from one of the
machines and display it on your dashboard. If you do so, you can park
pretty much anywhere on campus ("C," "F" or "S" lots) *except* in any VIP
or otherwise reserved parking spaces. You can use your permit for your
car. There is parking on the street, in Kleeberger, Foothill (up Hearst
past Gayley/Piedmont and to your right), or at the corner of Hearst and
Gayley.
A bit of personal parking advice: traffic gets very thick near the Haas
School on Commencement day. Remember that there will be another
department having its ceremony in the Greek Theatre after us, so
it will be especially congested on the way out. Park strategically, i.e. a
little bit down the hill and in the direction you eventually want to drive.
RECEPTION:
The reception will be held across the street from Haas on Kleeberger field.
If you have not picked up your two free tickets from us, please do so
before graduation. If you must, you can get them from us backstage, before
the ceremony--while supplies last. Otherwise, all tickets at the door will
be $5. You are admitted free in your cap and gown.
RETURNING REGALIA:
You will need to return your gown and hood in order to avoid being charged
for them. When you pick up your regalia in the Evening MBA office, we will
give you a yellow card receipt. REMEMBER to BRING the receipt with
you. After the reception, please tie the hood around the gown and attach
the receipt (we'll bring staplers) and deposit it in a box located near the
reception. You can keep the cap and tassel.
WEATHER:
Remember that the ceremony will be held RAIN OR SHINE. There is no indoor
facility on this campus large enough to accommodate Haas, and even if there
were, it would not be available on short notice if it's raining. The
ceremony is fairly long. Remember that MBAs, PhDs, and Undergraduates all
take part. Graduates and guests will be out in the elements for about two
and a half hours.
Both rain and shine each present challenges, especially for older or less
physically vigorous guests. Here are some tips, based on our past
experiences in the Greek Theatre:
RAIN - As you all know, the weather is unpredictable. If rain seems at
all likely you should:
1) Bring an umbrella
2) Wear clothing that you are not very fond of, as the dye in the gown can
run if it becomes wet.
3) Wear rain shoes.
4) Make sure your guests also have appropriate rain gear.
SHINE - If we are lucky, it will be sunny. On a sunny day, the Greek
Theatre can be very hot, even when the air temperature is moderate. If
it's sunny, you should:
1) Bring plenty of water to drink - there is a vendor selling drinks at
the Greek Theatre, but the lines can be very long and graduates won't be
able to leave during the Ceremony.
2) Advise your guests to bring hats, sunblock, water, etc.
3) Remind your out of town guests to dress in layers -- a sunny day
here usually means foggy for part of the ceremony and sunny for the rest.
EITHER WAY: Graduates will be seated on folding chairs, down close to the
stage. But your guests will be sitting on concrete for the duration. They
might consider bringing cushions.
Look forward to seeing all of you there, RAIN or SHINE.
If you have any questions, please give us a call us at 510-642-1406.
CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATES! | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
----- Forwarded by Steven J Kean/NA/Enron on 12/27/2000 02:03 PM -----
Alan Comnes@ECT
12/22/2000 03:39 PM
To: Steven J Kean/NA/Enron@Enron, Ginger Dernehl/NA/Enron@Enron
cc: Tim Belden/HOU/ECT@ECT, Robert Badeer/HOU/ECT@ECT
Subject: Charts
Steve, Ginger:
The first file has the charts and data you requested.
I am also forwading some charts on price caps. You may be interested in the
charts on California Stage 1/2/3 emergencies.
Alan Comnes | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
fyi
---------------------- Forwarded by Steven J Kean/NA/Enron on 07/18/2001 07:15 AM ---------------------------
From: Jeff Dasovich on 07/17/2001 07:31 PM
Sent by: Jeff Dasovich
To: [email protected], Richard Shapiro/NA/Enron@Enron, James D Steffes/NA/Enron@Enron, Susan J Mara/NA/Enron@ENRON, Harry Kingerski/Enron@EnronXGate, Leslie Lawner/Enron@EnronXGate, Michael Tribolet/ENRON@enronXgate, Kristin Walsh/Enron@EnronXGate, Karen Denne/Enron@EnronXGate, [email protected], Janel Guerrero/Enron@EnronXGate, Paul Kaufman/Enron@EnronXGate, Susan M Landwehr/Enron@EnronXGate, Linda Robertson/NA/Enron@ENRON
cc:
Subject: California Update--0717.01
What people know:
Hertzberg (et al's) bill (82XX)was heard in an "informational" hearing today and still sits in the Assembly Energy Committee. It will be heard again tomorrow (perhaps beginning at 10 AM) , at which time parties will have a chance to support/oppose and ask for amendments. Most, including us, oppose unless significantly amended.
The Wright (D) -Richman (R) bill (83XX)was heard in an "informational" hearing today and still sits in the Assembly Energy Committee. It will be heard again tomorrow, at which time parties will have a chance to support/oppose and ask for amendments. From our perspective, this is the best bill out there yet, though it still has serious problems---it isn't available electronically yet, but should be tomorrow, and I'll distribute then. The chances of the joint D-R bill being successful are slim, however, since it's up against the Speakers competing bill. There is talk that the Speaker will try to negotiate with Wright/Richman tonight and include any agreement in his bill (82XX).
The original version of the Governor's MOU bill sits in the Senate. Most believe that Burton will put it up for a vote this week and it will fail.
The Senate's version of the MOU (Sher-Peace-Kuehl) (78XX)came out today. It will likely be heard in the committee tomorrow or the next day. Notably, it kills Direct Access completely and makes Edison shareholders responsible for that portion of Edison's debt owed to suppliers. In short, a very bad bill.
Burton's 18XX, which would de-link the bond issuance (to pay back the General Fund) from the DWR contracts is likely to pass the Senate tomorrow or the next day. Many--including Enron--support the bill (though we are supporting it behind the scenes).
What people don't know:
Whether there's the time or the will in the Assembly and Senate to achieve by Friday a single, comprehensive bill that can be sent to the governor for his signature.
Whether the Legislature would postpone its month-long recess if the Legislature hasn't finished a bill by Friday (most folks think they will not postpone).
Whether it's true that, irrespective of the energy issue, the Legislature will fail to get the budget completed by Friday and therefore have to postpone their recess anyway, in which case they might continue to work on the energy legislation at the same time.
Odds-makers still say it's better than 50-50 that the Legislature does not get the Edison bills done by Friday and leaves on on its 30-day vacation.
Best,
Jeff
Sacramento is one goofy place. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
eSource presents free Lexis-Nexis training
Meet Lexis-Nexis trainers and
Learn to research basic information
in a hands-on Topical Session:
February 1 8:30-10:00 AM EB568
&
10:00-11:30 AM EB568
To sign up, please call Stephanie E. Taylor at 5-7928
* Please bring your Nexis login ID and password. If you don't have one, a
guest ID will be provided.
Check the eSource training page at http://esource.enron.com/training.doc for
additional training sessions and vendor presentations
http://esource.enron.com | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
There are several ambiguities and operational issues with this definition.
SOT: First, the phrase "available to operate without a status condition or
fault that would otherwise limit its operation" in SOT is very easily
misunderstood. Many owners & I.E.'s think that "System Okay" means the
turbine should produce power, as per the power curve, during every second of
SOT. This isn't true. If the turbine is paused offline or manually
stopped, untwisting cables, resetting, undergoing a load shutdown, in low
noise operation, or in spinning or starting up mode, then the SOT clock is
incremented even though the turbine can't produce power. I think the SOT
description should read something like"not faulted off for turbine
malfunction or offline for failed turbine systems." Either that or call this
counter something other than "System Okay".
DT: The phrase "or that is counted as Weather Out Time" may confuse the
owner. According to SCADA training if a downtime fault occurs at the same
time as a "weather out" condition then the turbine fault (DT) will have
precedence. This precedence may be hard to explain to owner. Therefore, I
recommend you delete the Weather out phrase. In other words, stop the
sentance on Majeure Events.
LOT: Precedence also can cause confusion here. If a turbine fault occurs
when the grid is outside of specs we've been told that DT will always take
precedence whether the grid induced the fault or the fault occurred due to
turbine malfunction not related to the grid. How does the controller
distinguish (and analysts from ten minute SCADA data) whether the fault was
due to the grid or the grid was driven out of spec by a turbine malfunction?
I recommend that you replace the phrase "except where line conditions are
forced out of specs due to Turbine malfunction" with " except when the
turbine faults offline." Further, it should be noted that when the turbine
faults off due to grid variations then it probably is true that EWC is
penalized for the grid variations.
MT: How do we implement the 36 hour limit on MT in the equation? I assume
that we compute a value MTexcess that is that portion of MT in excess of the
36 hour limit. Then we use MTexcess in the numerator instead of MT to
penalize EWC for exceeding the MT limit. Where did 36 hours come from?
The previous limit in all existing 1.5 contracts is 48 hours and MT, as
defined by the controller fault listing, includes several other tasks that
are not on a scheduled maintenance checklist. The 48 hours per year was
intended only to capture those tasks on the maintenance checklist.
WOT: How does the controller know when the turbine can't be repaired due to
weather related events or that weather makes access unsafe? If it can't
then you are adding an activity that must be tracked by manual log and
integrated into availability computations by a manual procudure that is not
value added to the customer and costly to operator.
EOT: What about icing sensor shutting down turbine? This isn't due to
Owner.
ST: This definition of ST rarely equals the total number of hours in the
"survey or measurement" period due to communication losses and power
outages. I recommend you remove that phrase from the definition OR alter
the definition of availability to (SURVEY - DT - RT - MT)/(SURVEY -
MTprorated). SURVEY is the maximum possible number of hours in the survey
period and MTprorated is the percent of 36 hours per year in the survey
period. I recommend keeping the current availability definition as it uses
info already in Visupro.
Availability equation as shown doesn't penalize EWC for MT above the 36 hour
limit. See MT above for solution.
From: Ilan Caplan on 04/17/2002 09:14 AM
To: Mark Fisher/EWC/Enron@Enron, Mark V Walker/EWC/Enron@ENRON
cc: Hollis Kimbrough/EWC/Enron@ENRON
Subject: Proposed Clipper Availability
Mark(s) -
Please review the attached calculation which Clipper proposes for
Availability. I will compare it with the contractual availability which have
recently proposed, but would prefer your input.
Thanks,
Ilan
---------------------- Forwarded by Ilan Caplan/EWC/Enron on 04/17/2002 09:26
AM ---------------------------
Mark Eilers
04/17/2002 09:02 AM
To: Ilan Caplan/EWC/Enron@Enron
cc:
Subject: Availability
Ilan
Can you please give this a quick read to see if this my work. This is a take
on our standard availability that Clipper is proposing. Let me know your
thoughts.
Mark | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
I just got off the phone with Darren Vanek. We have been talking about what is needed for about a month now. Almost two weeks ago he said he wanted a contract that allowed him to call for a letter of credit if one were needed in the future and that would suffice.
Apparently, a paralegal, is involved in generating such a contract and she was out all of last week. Darren said that he has no control over when the contract actually gets sent to me. Please do what you can to expedite the emailing of that contract to me so that I can order gas beyond Dec. 2001.
Thanks and regards,
Dick Bryan | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Mark,
The figures are $ 455,300 for the additional LOC and $ 227,650 for the current LOC.
Regards.
-----Original Message-----
From: McConnell, Mark
Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2001 6:52 PM
To: Cherry, Paul
Cc: Watson, Kimberly
Subject: email to USG confirming our decision not to require more LOC $
Rob Cooper (of US Gypsum) asked me to send him an email concerning our decision to not to force USG to provide the remaining 8 months of LOC and also asked me to verify a couple of other points. Below is my reply. Please let me know if you have any comments. Paul, please provide the dollar amount needed in the blank below.
______________________________________________________________--
Rob,
After reviewing the current status of United States Gypsum Company and Transwestern's status as a creditor of Administrative Claims, we will not proceed in seeking the additional $___________ letter of credit (worth approximately 8 months of reservation charges). The current letter of credit valued at $__________ is sufficient.
Also, our timing for the completion of the Red Rock Expansion that will make this capacity available is still on schedule for June 1, 2002. In our latest discussions with SOCAL, they have indicated that their expansion of the SOCAL Needles delivery point will be completed by that time. It would probably be best for you to discuss this with them yourself to verify its availability completely and thoroughly.
Please call me if you have any additional questions.
Best regards,
Mark
Mark McConnell
Transwestern Pipeline Company
713-345-7896 office
713-822-4862 cell
713-646-2551 fax
[email protected] | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
I like Terry's suggestion. In fact, in the preceding paragraph and the following paragraph where we refer to "shippers", we could refer to "customers" instead.
-----Original Message-----
From: Kowalke, Terry
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2001 12:33 PM
To: Donoho, Lindy; Rapp, Bill; Hass, Glen; Blair, Lynn; Harris, Steven; Lokey, Teb; Kilmer III, Robert; Watson, Kimberly; Lindberg, Lorraine; Lohman, TK
Subject: RE: SoCal Gas CPUC Proceeding
I agree with Lindy, I don't believe we want to mention anything about "Shipper Imbalances" my suggestion is to restate this paragraph like this:
In instances where SoCalGas happens to issue an Operational Flow Order ("OFO") during the Intraday 2 cycle, it can create imbalances with Transwesterns Customers. Because it does not afford Transwestern an opportunity to pass along these reductions to our upstream parties. When an OFO is issued in the Intraday 2 Cycle, an allocation is passed on to Transwestern through the confirmation process with SoCalGas. Due to the timing of these OFO's, Transwestern is not afforded an opportunity to confirm such reductions with Transwestern's upstream parties.
If you have further questions, please give me a call. Thank you.
Terry Kowalke
-----Original Message-----
From: Donoho, Lindy
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2001 11:43 AM
To: Rapp, Bill; Hass, Glen; Blair, Lynn; Harris, Steven; Kowalke, Terry; Lokey, Teb; Kilmer III, Robert; Watson, Kimberly; Lindberg, Lorraine; Lohman, TK
Subject: RE: SoCal Gas CPUC Proceeding
I'm a little nervous actually commenting that we have Shipper imbalances. Here are my comments.
<< File: SoCalCPUCAdviceLetter11-20-01.doc >>
-----Original Message-----
From: Rapp, Bill
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2001 11:25 AM
To: Donoho, Lindy; Hass, Glen; Blair, Lynn; Harris, Steven; Kowalke, Terry; Lokey, Teb; Kilmer III, Robert; Watson, Kimberly; Lindberg, Lorraine; Lohman, TK
Subject: SoCal Gas CPUC Proceeding
Attached is a draft of the letter that we propose to send to the CPUC regarding the AL2837 proceeding in which SoCal Gas is proposing changes to its "windowing" criteria. Your comments would be greatly appreciated. We need to file this tomorrow, so please communicate any comments to me by the close of business today, if possible. Thanks.
<< File: 11-21-01 Transwester Advice Comments 2837-A - DRAFTl1.doc >> | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
---------------------- Forwarded by Ami Chokshi/Corp/Enron on 05/05/2000
10:45 AM ---------------------------
[email protected] on 05/05/2000 10:31:49 AM
To: "Ami Chokshi" <[email protected]>
cc:
Subject: 6TH NOMS
(See attached file: egmnom-May.xls)
- egmnom-May.xls | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
The report named: Power West Price Peak <http://erv.corp.enron.com/linkFromExcel.asp?report_cd=30&report_name=Power+West+Price+Peak&category_cd=6&category_name=WEST&toc_hide=1&sTV1=6&TV1Exp=Y¤t_efct_date=10/17/2001>, published as of 10/17/2001 is now available for viewing on the website. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
-----Original Message-----
From: Kevin Dillon [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, December 17, 2001 9:50 AM
To: [email protected]; [email protected]; Lichtenwalter, Blair; [email protected]; Cary M. Jones; Morris A Flaum; Irsan Tisnabudi; J. Redford; Steve Ball; Paul Cooper; Irina Belmont; [email protected]; Victoria S Briscoe; 'Jerry Fuller'; Edward R Fullerton; Juanita E Poole; Rives Taylor; Brian Yeoman; Rick Miller; Scott Merville; [email protected]; Wesley Harrott; Maria E Hillman; Devin Longuet; Angela Hintzel; Loren Skinner; [email protected]; [email protected]; Evans Attwell; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; Eileen Smith; Hammer; Donna Ervin; Donald R Woods; Donna Ervin; [email protected]; Brad Stuebing; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; Russ Causey; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; Pam Stewart; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; John Koskoski; Scott Baxter; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; Agnes Chan; Jerry Ellis; Charlie Hagedorn; Tad Mulder; Alan Parker; Alan Austin; T Lad & Kristin Webb; Adele T. Dillon 2; Tom Dillon; the links; David Link; Brother; Jane Brust-Glaeser
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Quote for the day, #1,203.
"If nothing else, John Walker has usefully nailed one of the self-serving myths peddled after the awesome intelligence failure of September 11th: Awfully sorry we failed to see it coming, said the high-ranking suits, but it's impossible to do any covert deep-cover stuff out in Afghanistan; these fellows are all cousins and brothers-in-law -- a guy from Jersey would stick out like a lap-dancer in a burqa. As we now know, instead of being full of fearsome Pashtun warriors renowned down the centuries, the Omar/Osama ranks were like a novelty Gap ad, 'Losers of Many Nations' -- misfit Saudis and Pakis, Brits and Californians. Anyone can walk in off the street and be assistant supervisor of the third-floor latrine in Tora Bora by nightfall. The only distinguishing feature about John Walker is that he's such an obvious compendium of clapped-out clich?s from America's Left Coast the wonder is the mullahs didn't automatically take him for a CIA plant.
But no, Mr. Walker is for real -- born John Lindh in 1981, and from that bastion of well-heeled dopehead progressivism, California's affluent Marin County. Following the traditional Marin pattern, his parents divorced, his mother converted to Buddhism and the children were taught Native American spirituality. John was sent to an 'alternative' high school. (In the Bay Area, all the high schools are 'alternative.' The problem for parents is trying to find any alternative to the alternative.) The set texts included The Autobiography Of Malcolm X, and John liked it so much that like the late Mr. X he too decided to embrace Islam and change his name, to Sulayman. His parents, putting their foot down for what seems to be the first and last time, demanded the right to continue calling him John. They had, after all, gone to the trouble of naming him after one of the colossi of the age, John Lennon. To this, he
consented. In return, they let him study at the Mill Valley Islamic Center.
In 1998, after an awkward trip to their ancestral Ireland in which John trudged dutifully round the auld sod wearing his turban and white robes, Frank Lindh agreed to let his 17-year old son spend a year in Yemen, on the next stage of his 'spiritual odyssey.' He was just another middle-class kid who'd gone off to find himself, but, like most of the others, he always knew how to find daddy when he needed to. Last year, John e-mailed home to say al-Qaeda's attack on the USS Cole was justified -- oh, and by the way he was off to enroll in a Pakistani madrassa. So Dad wired him a couple thousand bucks, which goes a long way in Bannu. Aside from a glowing school report from his Imam, that was the last Mr. Lindh heard from Junior until he turned up brandishing an AK-47 while battling U.S. armed forces and declaring his approval of the events of September 11th.
John Walker's CV bears eloquent testament to his parents' scrupulous observance of the Bay Area's First Commandment: 'Thou shalt be non-judgmental.' Yeah, man, Yemen. Cool. Whatever's your bag. As one headline put it: 'A Product Of Bay Area Culture.' Exactly, I thought. But, this being The San Francisco Chronicle, they were applying the label with pride. Rhapsodizing about the area's 'religious tolerance' and the way children are taught 'to accept other cultures' and value 'critical thinking about the U.S. role in the world,' senior writer Louis Freedberg concluded that Walker's only misfortune was that 'his search for identity intersected precisely with the World Trade Center attacks.' If not for this unfortunate 'intersection' Walker might have become an 'idealistic doctor.' The President, he said, should allow the boy home 'and let him get his life back on track. We'd want nothing less for our own children, who could easily have found themselves in a similar mess.'
In fairness to the youth of northern California, that last part is an unjust slur. The marvel is that, after labouring under the twin burdens of the education system's multicultural orthodoxies and the preening moral superiority of their Boomer parents, no more Bay Area teens have signed on with Mullah Omar. Nonetheless, there is a difference between 'tolerance' of other cultures and the moral inertia displayed by the Lindhs. We can, in any case, guess the limits of Marin County's much-vaunted 'tolerance.' Imagine that the Marinated Muslim had instead announced that he was going to do what the late (CIA agent) Mike Spann did at his age: enlist in the Marines. Would Marilyn Walker have seen that as a valid part of her son's 'self-discovery'? Or would she have got out her joss sticks and wailed, 'Oh, my God, where did we go wrong?'
Mom says she's 'proud' of John, but is taking the line he must have been 'brainwashed.' From the look of him, his brain's the only thing that's been washed. John Walker resembles one of those hairy, smelly, cadaverous, vaguely deranged guys who stumble up to you late at night at remote Greyhound stations and demand money for medication. But right now that's shrewd image-positioning. President Bush seems to have bought the 'misguided' line, describing Walker as a 'poor fellow' who thought he was fighting for a 'great cause.' 'I can't see him as being unpatriotic,' says a neighbour. 'This is where his journey led him.' And, anyway, as everyone says, he's just a 'boy.'
John Walker is a 20-year old man -- though one can sympathize if protracted exposure to the Bay Area's 'critical thinking' (if only) has left him in a state of arrested development. For four decades, supposedly 'non-judgmental' flower-children like Marilyn Walker have reflexively characterized CIA men like Mike Spann as the dark agents of right-wing militarism. We are entitled to judge Marilyn's son, the comrade of Spann's killers, as the dark agent of left-wing Marinism. Raised by peaceniks and Marinated in 'tolerance,' he took up an AK-47 in defence of misogynists and gay-bashers: not an internal contradiction, but the logical reductio of the new left's moral nullity. Cocooned in one of the most prosperous enclaves on the planet, he was taught everything -- from Buddhism to Indian spirituality to Malcolm X -- everything except what it means to be an American citizen.
When a 13-year-old girl wants an abortion, the Marin County crowd insists that 'a woman's right to choose is sacred (and even parental notification taboo). Twenty-year-old men make choices, too. John Walker chose to go to war against his own country. Americans should respect his 'right to choose' and let him live with the consequences.
I'm not in favour of trying him for treason: Alan Dershowitz and the other high-rent lawyers are already salivating over the possibility of a two-year circus with attendant book deals and TV movies. But there is another way, suggested the other day by the Sun's Peter Worthington. In 1944, lacking the benefits of an immersion in Bay Area 'critical thinking,' the teenage Worthington volunteered for the Royal Canadian Navy, but, unlike Walker's apologists, he at least treats him as an adult exercising free will. As Mr. Worthington notes, on page four of John Walker's U.S. passport it states that any American who enlists in a foreign army can be stripped of his citizenship. Mr. Walker wants to be Abdul Hamid: Mr. Bush should honour his wishes. Let us leave him to the Northern Alliance and let his fancy-pants 'Frisco lawyers petition to appear before the Kabul bar, if there is one. It would, surely, be grossly discriminatory to subject Mr. Hamid to non-Islamic justice."
Mark Steyn, British-born journalist, "'Misguided boy' deserves Afghan justice," The (Canadian) National Post, 12/10/01. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Attached is the Deemed ISDA for the referenced counterparty. Please remember
to fax the counterparty U.S. IRS Tax Forms 1001 and Form W-8. Thanks. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Alison,
My group needs generally people with advanced skills in mathematics and
programming.
I shall try to help you by forwarding your resume (with your permission) to
other
units of Enron. Please, let me know if it's OK with you.
Vince
Enron North America Corp.
From: Mary Alison Bailey 11/21/2000 09:42 AM
To: Vince J Kaminski/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Interest in a Position
Dear Vince,
When we talked last, you mentioned you were considering making additions to
your office staff. If you are still considering these additions, I would
like to talk to you and see if there might be a place for me. It would be
wonderful to work with a group such as yours.
It has been great working in recruiting, but the time has come for me to try
something else. I am beginning to look around, but wanted to talk to you
first. If my skill sets match a position you might be adding, please
consider me. I have attached my resume so that you will have an idea of what
I have done.
Thank you for your consideration. Have a great Thanksgiving!
Alison Bailey
713-853-6778 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<html>
<head>
<title>Energy Central Direct</title>
</head>
<!--********************************************************************
What you are seeing is the Energy Central Direct HTML
customizable email product. In order for this service
to function properly, you must be online and read your
email through an email client that supports HTML messages.
If you would like to receive the Energy Central News
email products through our text based email system,
please email [email protected] with the following
information:
Request Text Format - Electric Power News
Request Text Format - Gas News
************************************************************************ -->
<style>
<!--
/* standard (wide) column style set */
.ecds-bttl { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecds-bsbt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecds-btxt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; }
.ecds-ittl { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; }
.ecds-isbt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font : italic; }
.ecds-itxt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; }
.ecds-bcpy { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 9px; font-weight : bold; color: gray; }
.ecds-bpwr { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecds-bspn { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecds-bmor { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-weight : bold; }
/* narrow column style set */
.ecdn-bttl { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecdn-bsbt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecdn-btxt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; }
.ecdn-ittl { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; }
.ecdn-isbt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font : italic; }
.ecdn-itxt { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; }
.ecdn-bcpy { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 9px; font-weight : bold; color: gray; }
.ecdn-bpwr { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecdn-bspn { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight : bold; }
.ecdn-bmor { font-family : Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; font-weight : bold; }
-->
</style>
<body bgcolor="#FFFFFE" leftmargin="0" rightmargin="0" topmargin="0" bottommargin="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0">
<table background="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/background3.gif" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%">
<tr>
<td align="center">
<table cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width="680" border="0">
<tr>
<td colspan="2" width="680"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left" valign="bottom">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:10pt;color:ffffff;font-weight:bold"> Monday, February 25, 2002 </span>
</td>
<td align="right" valign="bottom">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_ad.cfm?aid=1627&id=http://www.solarc.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/Solarc1_468x60.gif" width=468 height=60 border=0 alt="SolArc"></a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="680" border="0" background="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif">
<tr bgcolor="acacac">
<td><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/top_black_round2.gif" width="5" height="21"></td>
<td align="right">
<font face="arial,sans-serif" size="8pt" style="font-family:;font-size:8pt;font-weight:bold;">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_home.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >HOME</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >CONTENT SELECTION</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/services/default.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >MEMBER SERVICES</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/advertising.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >ADVERTISING</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/partnering.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >PARTNERING</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/services/contact.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >CONTACT US</a>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width="680" border="0" bgcolor="ffffff" background="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif">
<tr>
<td width="680"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecdtop103.gif" width="678" height="63"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td> </td>
</tr>
</table>
<table cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" width="680" border="0" bgcolor="ffffff" background="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif">
<tr>
<td width="11"> </td>
<td width="468" valign="top">
<a name="top">
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#000000">
<tr>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-left.gif"></td>
<td height="20" valign="bottom" class="ecds-bttl" style="color:#FFFFFF"> IN THIS ISSUE </td>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-right.gif"></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3" bgcolor="000000"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="1"></td></tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecds-btxt">
<table width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-btxt"><b>Daily Edition for [email protected] </b></span>
<br><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="4"><br>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td> </td>
<td class="ecds-bpwr" valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0px 0px 0px 10px">
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#20825B75-EB29-11D4-ABDB-00104B0EE463">Electric Power News</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#BAE8DA84-28E5-4D15-9C42-B4042DA4D905">Restructuring Today
</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#B4CB08D9-40DF-47C1-8356-E03C6D02D3DF">Utility Spotlight</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#58749B0E-3F0D-4B77-BC18-38E7D6B9A116">RER's eMetrix Load Forecast: CAL ISO</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#20825B76-EB29-11D4-ABDB-00104B0EE463">Electric Power News - Top Stories</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#20825B86-EB29-11D4-ABDB-00104B0EE463">Electric Power News - Most Requested</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#3BC3745F-5D59-4E56-8665-D289D59C668D">Gas Industry News - Top Stories</a></span>
<li style="margin:0px 0px 2px 10px"><span style="color:0033ff"><a href="#095B1A30-AC54-44F7-A8F0-1A83E5DC421A">Utility Stock Price - Top Gainers</a></span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td></tr></table>
</a>
<p>
<a name=20825B75-EB29-11D4-ABDB-00104B0EE463></a><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#000000">
<tr>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-left.gif"></td>
<td height="20" valign="bottom" class="ecds-bttl" style="color:#FFFFFF"> ELECTRIC POWER NEWS </td>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-right.gif"></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3" bgcolor="000000"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="1"></td></tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecds-btxt">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?auto=remove&item=111183"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>
Selected 66 of <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/">66</a> Articles Today!
</i></span>
<form action="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_articles.cfm" style="margin:0pt;padding:0pt">
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-isbt">THESE ARTICLES BROUGHT TO YOU BY</span>
<hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width=10> </td>
<td>
<span class="ecds-itxt">
ITRON TO ACQUIRE LINESOFT CORPORATION; MOVE STRENGTHENS COMPANY'S ROLE
IN ENERGY DELIVERY OPTIMIZATION. In a move that expands the company's
solution portfolio to include energy transmission and distribution-
related products and services, Itron Inc. announced that it has reached
an agreement to acquire LineSoft Corporation for $42 million in cash
and stock. LineSoft is a leading provider of software solutions and
engineering consulting services for optimizing utility transmission
and distribution systems. The acquisition enables Itron to offer
significantly broader value to electric utilities by helping them
increase the efficiency and reliability of their transmission and
distribution assets. To know more, start here: <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_news.cfm?aid=2444&id=http://www.itron.com">http://www.itron.com</a>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="6" width="1"><br><hr size=1 width=60% noshade><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="6" width="1"><br></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width=10> </td>
<td>
<span class="ecds-itxt">
METRIXND is the energy industry's most POWERFUL, VERSATILE, UNPARALLELED
forecasting tool! VERSION 3.0 offers new features like Microsoft's VBA,
giving you more flexibility than ever. With the new release of MetrixND
you are minutes away from developing accurate forecasting models. There
are no black boxes or hidden components. MetrixND is the only tool you
need for short & long-term hourly load forecasting, load profiling,
retail forecasting, and monthly energy & peak forecasting. See what the
buzz is about! View a demo at <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_news.cfm?aid=2311&id=http://www.rer.com/demos">http://www.rer.com/demos</a> and call RER, the
forecasting experts, at 1-800-755-9585 to talk about your forecasting
needs today! MetrixND - Accurate Forecasts. Intelligent Decisions.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bordercolor="aqua">
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2"><span class="ecds-bsbt">Top Stories</span><hr noshade></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749099" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron Executives Often Called Energy Regulators During Crisis, Records Show</b>
</a>
<br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By David Ivanovich, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 23</i> - Executives from Enron Corp. met or telephoned a dozen top energy regulators at least 25 times during the electric power crisis in California, records released Friday show.
</span>
<br><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="15"><br>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752030" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>California will ask federal agency to modify power deals, declare them overpriced</b>
</a>
<br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 24, 2002 - Associated Press</i> - California will petition the federal government to modify dozens of long-term electricity contracts signed during the peak of the power crisis, a spokesman for Gov. Gray Davis said Sunday.
</span>
<br><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="15"><br>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749928" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Midwest grid merger proceeds despite snags in South</b>
</a>
<br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Chris Baltimore, WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters)</i> - Two large regional electricity grid operators this week approved a merger that would weave together the patchwork wires of 20 Midwest and Southwest states and one Canadian province.
</span>
<br><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="15"><br>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749072" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Pennsylvania Court Rejects Public Utility Panel's Action to Help GPU Energy</b>
</a>
<br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By David DeKok, The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pa., Feb. 22</i> - Commonwealth Court Thursday threw out the state Public Utility Commission's financial bailout for electric utility GPU Energy, but upheld the merger of its parent company with FirstEnergy Corp.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bordercolor="aqua">
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Enron Debacle</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749667" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron's Insurance Policies Examined as Potential Source of Extra Money</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By John Keilman, Chicago Tribune, Feb. 24</i> - As attorneys scour the bankrupt Enron Corp. for money, some are locking onto $435 million of insurance meant to protect the company and top officials during lawsuits.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749815" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Lay Says He Didn't Keep Track of Partnerships Because He Planned to Quit</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Patrice Hill, The Washington Times, Feb. 23</i> - Former Enron Chairman Kenneth L. Lay said he sold Enron stock last year and did not keep track of the questionable off-book partnerships that led to the energy giant's demise because he was planning to leave the company.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748969" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron Reportedly Plans to Leave Houston Headquarters</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By James McLean, Evening Standard, London, Feb. 22</i> - Enron Corp's name is set to disappear as the remnants of the disgraced energy giant prepare to decamp from its Houston headquarters to more modest offices.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749095" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>California Congressman Disputes Enron Executive's Testimony</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Patty Reinert, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 22</i> - Rep. Henry Waxman contended Thursday that Enron executive Cindy Olson advised employees in 1999 to invest all of their retirement savings in company stock, contradicting Olson's congressional testimony that she urged diversification.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749197" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron Found a Second Home in the Caymans</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Gregg Fields, The Miami Herald, Feb. 22</i> - On a Caribbean Island that has seen its share of scoundrels, including the pirate Blackbeard and cocaine cowboys, Enron Corp. found a second home.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749199" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Florida Governor's Enron Link Called Coincidental</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>The Miami Herald, Feb. 22</i> - Three years before being elected Florida's governor, Jeb Bush saw a $91,527 investment in an Enron affiliate turn a tidy $7,118 profit in 10 months.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749313" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>New York Expert Dissects Maze of Decisions Leading to Enron Fall</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Melissa Davis, The Daily Oklahoman, Feb. 21</i> - When Enron Corp. published its 2000 annual report, saying it was "laser-focused" on increasing earnings per share, investors should have felt alarmed instead of reassured, a New York expert said Wednesday.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749814" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Public Spotlight Turns to Enron's Corporate Directors</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Chris Baker, The Washington Times, Feb. 23</i> - Corporate directors -- not just management -- are falling under increased scrutiny since the Enron Corp. collapse.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749896" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Fed reviews JP Morgan's Enron dealings</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>NEW YORK, Feb 22 (Reuters) -</i> U.S. banking regulators are looking into how J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. accounted for certain trades made with bankrupt energy trader Enron Corp., according to a memo obtained on Friday.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749915" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron could pay more bonuses to retain top staff</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>HOUSTON, Feb 22 (Reuters)</i> - Fallen energy trading giant Enron Corp. may pay further retention bonuses to key employees considered vital to its plans to emerge from bankruptcy, a company spokesman said on Friday.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751885" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Pipelines, power plants keeping Enron afloat through bankruptcy</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23 - Associated Press</i> - Enron Corp.'s pipelines and power plants may not be as lively as its commodity-trading operations once were, but they are the bankrupt company's main source of steady income these days.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748721" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>U.S. Lawmaker Says It's Time to Shift Enron Probe Into Reforms</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Russell Grantham, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Feb. 23</i> - U.S. Rep. W.J. "Billy" Tauzin has been spicing up a topic -- accounting -- that's normally about as dry as a cup of flour.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749090" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Arthur Andersen's Houston Office Struggles to Repair Damage from Enron Scandal</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Tom Fowler, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 22</i> - February should be a busy month for accountants, but for many of the 1,700 Houston employees of Arthur Andersen every day crawls by, as they wait for the other shoe to drop.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749097" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron Investigation Proves More Compelling Than Winter Olympics, Poll Finds</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Julie Mason, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 22</i> - More Americans in a new poll released Thursday say they are paying closer attention to the Enron story than the Winter Olympics.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749278" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron Could Be Improperly Hiding Away Money from Its Largest Subsidiary</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Judith Schoolman, Daily News, New York, Feb. 22</i> - The New York bankruptcy court judge overseeing the Enron case acknowledged the company could be improperly squirreling away money that belonged to its largest subsidiary, Enron North America, which is being liquidated.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749835" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>New Hartford, Conn., Officials Want Answers on Enron Connection</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By David Rivera, Waterbury Republican-American, Conn., Feb. 22</i> - The Board of Selectmen want to know why the Connecticut Resource Recovery Authority entered into a deal with the now bankrupt Enron Corp. and why it could cost taxpayers $100,000 more a year.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749921" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>SEC Pitt challenges accountants, threatens execs</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters) -</i> Accounting firms need to put their heads together to improve audits and fight financial fraud in the post-Enron world, while corporate managers may soon be forced to surrender ill-gotten gains, the top U.S. financial markets regulator said on Friday.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749478" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Photograph Brought Instant Fame to Houston Enron Worker</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Mike Agnello, The Roanoke Times, Va., Feb. 22</i> - On Dec. 3, the future looked bleak for 24-year-old Meredith Stewart.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749856" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Conn. authority may hike trash fees, blames Enron</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>HARTFORD, Conn., Feb 21 (Reuters)</i> - Trash fees for Hartford area residents stand to rise 31 percent, a state authority warned on Thursday, unless it finds a way to replace millions of dollars a year in expected revenue that will vanish if the bankruptcy court presiding over Enron Corp.'s crash cancels its contract with the agency.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">National Energy Policy</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749775" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>GAO Sues Cheney over Energy Policy Group</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By James Kuhnhenn, Knight Ridder Washington Bureau, Feb. 23</i> - The General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress, sued Vice President Cheney Friday in an unprecedented effort to obtain the names of energy industry executives who helped the White House draft its energy policy.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749304" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Official Urges Need for National Energy Plan at Midland, Texas, Meeting</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Julie Breaux, Odessa American, Texas, Feb. 22</i> - Volatile fuel prices, tensions stemming from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, energy distribution disruptions and California's staggering electric deregulation problems have underscored the need for a cohesive national energy plan, a high-level energy official says.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749930" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Bush to set out constitutional defense to GAO suit</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Adam Entous, WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters)</i> - In its coming court fight with congressional investigators, the White House will argue that releasing records from its energy task force meetings would undercut the Constitution's separation of powers, weakening the presidency and possibly national security.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2" align="center">
<table width="98%" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td>
<br><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="4" border="0"><br>
<span class="ecds-isbt" style="font-size:9px">
ADVERTISEMENT
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<table width="100%" border="1" cellpadding="7" cellspacing="0">
<tr bgcolor="ffffcc">
<td>
<span class="ecds-itxt">
Access the most comprehensive on-line energy merger and acquisition
database available now. Energy Central Professional offers advanced
customer service and world-class search and sort features. View this
revolutionary resource now. Click here for immediate access
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_news.cfm?aid=2521&id=http://pro.energycentral.com/professional/snapshots/mergers/default.cfm">http://pro.energycentral.com/professional/snapshots/mergers/default.cfm</a>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Competition & Deregulation</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752024" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Public Power Tax Reform May Resurface During Senate Energy Debate</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 22, 2002 - E&E Publishing</i> - Senate Energy Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) may try on the Senate floor next week to fix one of the thornier electricity restructuring tax problems facing Congress with an amendment meant to open the power grid by adjusting private-use restrictions on public power.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Mergers, Acquisitions & Divestitures</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749934" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>AES puts UK's Drax power station up for sale-paper</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters)</i> - U.S. power firm AES Corp has put Drax, Britain's largest power station, up for sale, the Sunday Telegraph newspaper reported.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748892" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>London-Based Electric Firm Says Takeover Deal with German Firm Is on Course</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Daily Mail, London, Feb. 23</i> - PowerGen remains confident that the 765 pence a share cash takeover by Germany's E.ON will be approved by regulators and completed this spring ? nearly a year after it was launched.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749428" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Portland, Ore., Official Ponders Portland General Electric Purchase</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Richard Colby, The Oregonian, Portland, Ore., Feb. 22</i> - At the Tualatin Valley Water District, nobody faults Commissioner Gordon Martin for thinking small.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751977" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Houston company wraps up purchase of Orion</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23 - Charleston Daily Mail</i> - A Houston company has completed its $4.8 billion purchase of Orion Power Holdings Inc.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752023" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Powercomm holds bidding auction to sell off 30% stake</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 22, 2002 - Associated Press</i> - Powercomm Inc., a telecom unit of Korea Electric Power Corp., conducted an auction to sell off the company's 30% share to bidders on February 21.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">California Crisis</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748804" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>California Regulators Clear Way for Bond Sale to Cover Electricity Costs</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Mike Taugher, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif., Feb. 23</i> - The California Public Utilities Commission cleared the way for the state to sell a record $11.1 billion in bonds to cover electricity costs by approving an agreement that forfeits the commission's authority over how much money is collected from utility ratepayers.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749512" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>California PG&E Bankruptcy Case's Tab: $1 Million A Week</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Claire Cooper, The Sacramento Bee, Calif., Feb. 22</i> - Lawyers and accountants have been billing about $1 million a week in the Pacific Gas and Electric bankruptcy case, eating steadily from the pot of money that will be available to pay off the utility's creditors.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Rates</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749632" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Washington State Regulators Asked to Approve 5 Percent Increase to Ratepayers</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Bert Caldwell, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash., Feb. 22</i> - Washington customers of Avista Utilities will pay 5 percent more for electricity if state regulators approve a complex settlement announced Wednesday.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749638" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Revenue Shortfall in Murray, Utah, Could Bring Rise in Electric Power Bills</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By John Keahey, The Salt Lake Tribune, Feb. 21</i> - It has been 16 years since residents of this mid-Salt Lake Valley community have seen an increase in rates for electricity.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">General</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751978" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Cutting Power Not Standard Procedure</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 24 - Palm Beach Post</i> - Pinellas County rescue workers watched helplessly Dec. 11 as 21- year-old Andrew Miller sat injured in his car - which had a live, 7,200-volt power line draped across it.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Trading/Marketing</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749735" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Participants in New York Energy Exchange Workshop Trade Ideas</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Russell Ray, Tulsa World, Okla., Feb. 22</i> - In 2001, the New York Mercantile Exchange proved it can handle crises.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">New Technologies/Markets</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749462" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>California-Based Fuel-Cell Maker Postpones Plans for Reading, Pa., Plant</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Tony Lucia, Reading Eagle, Pa., Feb. 21</i> - The California firm that Albert R. Boscov has indicated may be interested in building a plant in Reading said Wednesday that its plans have been postponed, but not canceled.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Power Projects</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748799" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Anaconda, Mont.-Area Officials Give Nod to Power Plant Plans</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>The Montana Standard, Butte, Feb. 22</i> - During a special session Thursday, Anaconda-Deer Lodge County Commissioners awarded a bid for land near the substations east of town, and accepted a proposal for the possible construction of a power generating facility there.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749170" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Tractebel Begins Construction on Malvern, Ark., Power Plant</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By David Mercer, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Little Rock, Feb. 22</i> - Tractebel Power Development Inc. said Thursday that construction has begun on a 720-megawatt gas-fired power plant near Malvern, the second in Hot Spring County and one of a wave of independent generating projects planned around the country for the wholesale market.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749466" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>South Carolina Panel to Discuss Plans for Gas-Fired Generating Plant</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Gene Crider, The Herald, Rock Hill, S.C., Feb. 21</i> - The state's Public Service Commission will hold a public hearing in Fort Mill on Calpine Corp.'s plans to place a gas-fired generating plant in the area, but their main evidentiary hearing will be held in Columbia.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749614" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Neighbors Complain of Plans for Electrical Power Plant in St. Paul, Minn.</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By David Hanners, Saint Paul Pioneer Press, Minn., Feb. 23</i> - A Minneapolis company wants to build a gas-fired electrical power plant near downtown St. Paul, but neighbors complain the generating plant would add to an area that already has too much heavy industry.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751814" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Legislature: Bill To Kill Power Plant Votes Argued</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 21 - Columbian</i> - Rivals battling over legislation that would remove a public-vote requirement for new publicly-funded power plants tossed around some pretty big names Tuesday.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Renewables</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748910" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Study: Renewable-Energy Program Could Stimulate Colorado Economy</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Steve Raabe, The Denver Post, Feb. 22</i> - An aggressive renewable energy program could stimulate Colorado's economy and save consumers billions of dollars, a new study shows.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751777" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Enron may cause change in wind farm's direction</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 21 - Omaha World - Herald</i> - The financial collapse of energy giant Enron Corp. is putting a snag in the development of Nebraska's first wind farm.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751846" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Power options explored</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 22 - Dominion</i> - FARMERS and rural groups are seeking information about alternative power sources as concerns mount over uncertainty about electricity price rises and the threat of power companies stopping supply to some uneconomic supply areas.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751948" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Utah Urged to Try Renewable Energy</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23 - The Salt Lake Tribune</i> - Advocates of renewable energy sources are calling on the Utah Legislature to step up to the plate during debate over national energy policy and approve measures that would ease the state toward consuming more environmentally friendly power.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751953" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Maine has potential for renewable energy, report says</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 22 - Bangor Daily News Bangor, ME</i> - Maine could generate 95 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, according to a report released Thursday by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752025" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Crops Seen as a Cleaner Fuel Source</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23, 2002 - The Fresno Bee</i> - The power crunch in California could have unintended benefits for Valley farmers under a plan that calls for more use of alternative forms of energy.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752026" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>'Green Power' Plan Pushed</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23, 2002 - www.lvrj.com</i> - With the U.S. Senate poised to consider a comprehensive energy bill next week, local environmental leaders are pushing a proposal to require the nation to get one-fifth of its electric power from so-called "green" or renewable sources.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752027" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Yarmouth Company Proposes Wind Farm</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23, 2002 - Kennebec Journal</i> - A Maine company that has proposed building seven wind turbines in Vermont also hopes to build even more of them atop two mountains in Franklin County.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752029" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Maps May Put Wind Back in Projects' Sails</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 24, 2002 - Tri-City Herald</i> - The release of a series of wind-charting maps is forecast to help jump-start the flagging interest in wind power in the Northwest.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Energy Efficiency/Conservation</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749316" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Oklahoma City-Based Firm to Monitor Energy Use at Grocery Stores</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Adam Wilmoth, The Daily Oklahoman, Feb. 22</i> - Oklahoma City-based Automated Energy Inc. announced Thursday that it has signed a multiyear agreement to monitor energy use at nationwide grocery stores.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Fuel</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749456" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Rochester, Minn., Officials Mull Ramifications of Rail Deal</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn., Feb. 22</i> - Despite news Thursday that the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad plans to acquire I & M Rail Link, a deal that could reduce potential coal-train traffic through Rochester, Mayo Clinic and city officials remain concerned.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Environmental</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749382" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Pittsburgh Region Grapples with Air Pollution Problem</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Don Hopey, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Feb. 23</i> - The Pittsburgh region has an itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny air pollution problem. That's not nearly as good as it sounds, even for a city where 60 years ago streetlights were lit through the day and Downtown businessmen changed soot-soiled shirts after lunch.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Nuclear</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749175" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Casino Bosses Address Nuclear Dump Question in Nevada</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Dave Berns, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Feb. 21</i> - The question briefly hung in the air at a Wednesday afternoon political event that featured three Republican senators from Washington, D.C.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749421" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Kennewick, Wash.-Area Energy Firm to Focus on Safety</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By John Stang, Tri-City Herald, Kennewick, Wash., Feb. 22</i> - Energy Northwest recently terminated the leases of its paying tenants at the Reactor No. 1 site so it can boost safety fix-it measures for the Columbia Generating Station's reactor.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751897" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Commission To Issue Formal Orders Hiking Nuclear Power Plant Security</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23 - Palm Beach Post</i> - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is preparing to issue formal orders requiring tighter security at the nation's nuclear plants.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2751965" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Public can view nuclear plant's renewal application</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23 - Omaha World - Herald</i> - The Fort Calhoun Nuclear Power Plant's application to renew its license is now available to the public.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2752028" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>?1bn Power Plant for Teesside?</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Feb 23, 2002 - Newsquest (The North East) Ltd</i> - BRITISH Energy hasn't ruled out building another nuclear power plant on Teesside, once an existing operation reaches the end of its life.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749346" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Kentucky Senator Wants Waste Conversion Plants in Paducah Area</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Joe Walker, The Paducah Sun, Ky., Feb. 21</i> - U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning said he will keep pushing for facilities here and in Ohio to convert uranium hexafluoride waste because the plan is efficient and could otherwise mean the loss of key technology to help preserve the Paducah uranium enrichment plant.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<span class="ecds-bsbt">Financial</span><hr noshade>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2748905" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>British Utility Firm Centrica Raises Funds for Move into U.S. Market</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>Daily Mail, London, Feb. 22</i> - Centrica, the home services group which already supplies 14 million British households with gas, electricity, telecom and roadside services, is raising UKpound 425 million to finance a string of acquisitions in North America in the wake of the Enron collapse.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749370" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Peoria, Ill.-Area Officials Worry AES Corp. Will Be the Next Enron</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Paul Gordon, Journal Star, Peoria, Ill., Feb. 22</i> - Area civic and legislative leaders are concerned the next Enron will be in their back yard.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749631" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Gates Ups the Stake in Spokane, Wash.-Based Avista</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Bert Caldwell, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash., Feb. 20</i> - Microsoft founder Bill Gates, the largest holder of Avista Corp. stock, increased his stake in the Spokane energy and technology company last year.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"> </td></tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="20">
<img src="/images/trans.gif" width="15" height="1">
</td>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/nr_article.cfm?id=2749676" class="ecds-ittl">
<b>Peoples Energy Shareholders Decide to Keep Andersen in Charge of Company Books</b>
</a><br>
<span class="ecds-itxt"><i>By Melita Marie Garza, Chicago Tribune, Feb. 23</i> - Shareholders of Chicago-based Peoples Energy voted Friday to retain Andersen as the company's accountant, though Peoples' officials said they would be closely watching for signs that fall-out from the collapse of Enron Corp. could imperil the accounting firm's solvency.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2" align="center">
<br><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="4"><br>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<table width="100%">
<tr>
<td align="left">
<span class="ecds-bpwr">
Powered by <a href="http://www.energycentral.com" target="_top">Energy Central</a>
</span>
<br>
<span class="ecds-bcpy">
© 2002 CyberTech, Inc. All rights reserved.
</span>
</td>
<td align="right">
<span class="ecds-bmor">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/newsroom/">More News</a>
</span>
<br>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</form>
</td></tr></table><span style=font-size:9px;font-family:arial,sans-serif><a href=#top>Top</a></span>
<p>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_ad.cfm?aid=1785&id=http://www.rer.com/demos" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/RER468_022502.gif" width=468 height=60 border=0 alt="MetrixND 3.0 Just Released"></a>
<p>
<p> <a name=BAE8DA84-28E5-4D15-9C42-B4042DA4D905></a><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#000000">
<tr>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-left.gif"></td>
<td height="20" valign="bottom" class="ecds-bttl" style="color:#FFFFFF"> RESTRUCTURING TODAY
</td>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-right.gif"></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3" bgcolor="000000"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="1"></td></tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecds-btxt">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?auto=remove&item=109955"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td>
<span class="ecds-itxt">
There is no information to display today.
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<table width="100%">
<tr>
<td align="left" valign="top">
<span class="ecds-bpwr">
Powered By <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/buscenters/default.cfm?cpane=10002&vid=3247&cid=0&catid=0">US Publishing</a>
</span>
<br>
<span class="ecds-bcpy">
© 2002 US Publishing. All Rights Reserved.
</span>
</td>
<td align="right" valign="top" class="ecds-bmor">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22003&id=892&next=0">More Info</a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</TABLE>
</td></tr></table><span style=font-size:9px;font-family:arial,sans-serif><a href=#top>Top</a></span><p> <a name=B4CB08D9-40DF-47C1-8356-E03C6D02D3DF></a><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#000000">
<tr>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-left.gif"></td>
<td height="20" valign="bottom" class="ecds-bttl" style="color:#FFFFFF"> UTILITY SPOTLIGHT </td>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-right.gif"></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3" bgcolor="000000"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="1"></td></tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecds-btxt">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?auto=remove&item=110262"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<span class="ecds-itxt">
February 19, 2002<P>
</span>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3225&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>CPUC Proposes An Alternative Plan To Help Reorganize Bankrupt PG&E</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3226&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Enron Can Be Saved, Minus Name, New Pipeline, Power Firm?Cooper</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3228&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>DC Current -- Likely Enron Impacts: Larger SEC, More Disclosures, Tougher Audits</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3229&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Communications & PR -- KPMG Consulting Ad Distances from Taint of Andersen?s Services at Enron</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3230&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Communications & PR -- Dynegy Energy Services</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3231&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Communications & PR -- Los Angeles, CA</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3232&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Power Marketing -- MA Aiming at More Renewables As Power Issues Hurting CA Economy</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3233&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Natural Gas -- Despite Sudden Withdrawal Upsurge, Guernsey Still Sees Prices Falling</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3234&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Natural Gas -- Exelon Agrees to Sell Natural Gas in Detroit</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3235&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Natural Gas -- Northern Border to File 10-K With KPMG Audit</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3236&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Natural Gas -- Moody?s To Review SEMCO, Possible Downgrade</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3237&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Nuclear -- Uprates, Short Outages Help Exelon To 2001 Record Average Capacity</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3238&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Around the Circuit -- Bush Unveils New Plan for Controls On Air Emissions from Power Plants</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3239&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Around the Circuit -- GE Enters Water-Treatment Sector in $1.8B Deal</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3240&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Who's News</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3241&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>MA Regulators, 2 Major Utilities Embroiled in A Rate Controversy</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3242&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Contracts</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3243&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Fitch Explains 2 Ratings: AA on Northwest Energy Bonds, AAA TVA</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left">
<ul style="margin:0,0,0,15">
<span class="ecds-ittl">
<li>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22007&aid=3244&id=414&&pd=02/19/02&pid=100095">
<b>Financial Focus: Special Programs Provide 15% of ?NJR? Net?Downe</b></a>
</span>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td colspan="2">
<table width="100%">
<tr>
<td align="left" valign="top">
<span class="ecds-bpwr">
Powered By <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/buscenters/default.cfm?cpane=10002&vid=6286&cid=0&catid=0">
Utility Spotlight</a>
</span>
<br>
<span class="ecds-bcpy">
© 2002 Utility Spotlight. All Rights Reserved.
</span>
</td>
<td align="right" valign="top" class="ecds-bmor">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/publications/default.cfm?cpane=22003&id=414&next=0">More Info</a>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</TABLE>
</td></tr></table><span style=font-size:9px;font-family:arial,sans-serif><a href=#top>Top</a></span><p> <a name=58749B0E-3F0D-4B77-BC18-38E7D6B9A116></a><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#000000">
<tr>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-left.gif"></td>
<td height="20" valign="bottom" class="ecds-bttl" style="color:#FFFFFF"> RER'S EMETRIX LOAD FORECAST: CAL ISO </td>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-right.gif"></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3" bgcolor="000000"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="1"></td></tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecds-btxt">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?auto=remove&item=110876"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
This content block is available when you subscribe to Energy Central Professional.
Become a professional member of Energy
Central <a href="http://pro.energycentral.com">today</a>!
<p>
</td></tr></table><span style=font-size:9px;font-family:arial,sans-serif><a href=#top>Top</a></span><p>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#000000">
<tr>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-left.gif"></td>
<td height="20" valign="bottom" class="ecds-bttl" style="color:#FFFFFF"> ABOUT ENERGY CENTRAL DIRECT </td>
<td bgcolor="ffffff"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-frame-curve-right.gif"></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3" bgcolor="000000"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" width="1" height="1"></td></tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecds-btxt">
<span class="ecds-itxt">
<p>
<b>ABOUT ENERGY CENTRAL DIRECT</b><br>
This e-mail summary service is provided FREE to qualified professionals in the power industry. This e-mail
summary may be redistributed provided it is kept in its entirety.
<p>
* <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm">Click here</a> to change your preferences.
<p>
* Visit <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/services/member_email_management.cfm">Member Services</a> to START,
STOP, or CHANGE FORMAT for all of your e-mail subscriptions.
<p>
* To BEGIN receiving this service directly signup at <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/default.cfm">
www.enerycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/</a>.
<p>
* To STOP receiving this service
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_unsubscribe.cfm?mid=33489">click here</a>
or send a message to <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a> or call Member Services at 303-782-5510.
<p>
<b>PRESS RELEASES</b><br>
Submit press releases and other news to <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>.
<p>
<b>SPONSORSHIP AND ADVERTISING</b><br>
For sponsorship or advertising info call sales at 303-782-5510.
<p>
TO DELIVER YOUR ARTICLES, PAPERS, PROCEEDINGS OR MONOGRAPHS THROUGH ENERGY CENTRAL:<br>
Energy Central provides a variety of mechanisms for delivery of information to power professionals including
this e-mail service, Energy Central Web Site (<a href="http://www.energycentral.com">http://www.energycentral.com</a>),
Energy Central Conference Watch™ and others. We can deliver your information on a promotional, subscription
or a pay-per-view basis. For more information, contact Mark Johnson at 303-782-5510
(<a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>)
</span>
<p>
</td></tr></table>
<p>
<center>
<img src="http://log.energycentral.com/global/email_track.cfm?id=10002&mid=33489" width="1" height="1">
</center>
</td>
<td width="10"> </td>
<td width="180" valign="top">
<p>
<span class="ecdn-bttl" style="color:000000" align="left">Sponsors<br><hr noshade color="0A6462" size="1"></span>
<div align="center">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_sponsor.cfm?aid=1631&id=http://www.siliconenergy.com/ecentral.htm" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/SiliconEnergyLogo.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="Silicon Energy"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_sponsor.cfm?aid=1470&id=http://www.thestructuregroup.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/TSG_newlogo.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="The Structure Group"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_sponsor.cfm?aid=1493&id=http://www.allegrodevelopment.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/AllegroLogo150x40.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="Allegro Development"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_sponsor.cfm?aid=1634&id=http://www.itron.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/Itron150x40.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="Itron"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_sponsor.cfm?aid=1632&id=http://www.excelergy.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/smallexcel.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="Excelergy"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_sponsor.cfm?aid=1633&id=http://www.esp-us.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/ESP150x40.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="Energy Solutions Plus, Inc."></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_ad.cfm?aid=1459&id=http://www.rer.com" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/RERLogo150x40.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="RER"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_ad.cfm?aid=1467&id=http://www.lodestarcorp.com/loc/english/index.asp" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/LodestarNew150x40.gif" width=150 height=40 border=0 alt="LODESTAR CORPORATION"></a>
<br><br>
<img src="#context.root#/images/trans.gif" height="8" width="1" alt=""><br>
</div>
<p>
<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="100%" >
<tr>
<td width="100%" valign="bottom" class="ecdn-bttl" style="color:#000000">TALK TO US</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="15" width="100%" valign="middle" class="ecdn-bttl" bgcolor="#000000">
<img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="12" width="1" border="0">
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecdn-btxt">
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
<span class="ecdn-bsbt"><a href="mailto:[email protected]">Ideas Wanted!</a></span><br>
We are eager to hear your ideas, feedback, and suggestions for this product.
Together we will create the most useful information tool for the electric power industry.
<p>
<span class="ecdn-bsbt"><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/partnering.cfm">Partners Wanted!</a></span><br>
Reach over 50,000 electric power professionals with your news, analysis,
commentary or insight into the industry. Call Mark Johnson at 303-782-5510
<br>
</span>
</td></tr></table>
<p>
<a name=20825B76-EB29-11D4-ABDB-00104B0EE463></a><table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="100%" >
<tr>
<td width="100%" valign="bottom" class="ecdn-bttl" style="color:#000000">ELECTRIC POWER NEWS - TOP STORIES</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="15" width="100%" valign="middle" class="ecdn-bttl" bgcolor="#000000">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?action=auto&item=112104"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="12" width="1" border="0">
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecdn-btxt">
Energy Central's editors have selected these as the top stories of the day:
<p>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2752030&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>California will ask federal agency to modify power deals, declare them overpriced</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>Feb 24, 2002 - Associated Press</i></span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2749099&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>Enron Executives Often Called Energy Regulators During Crisis, Records Show</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>By David Ivanovich, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 23</i></span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2749928&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>Midwest grid merger proceeds despite snags in South</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>By Chris Baltimore, WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (Reuters)</i></span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2749072&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>Pennsylvania Court Rejects Public Utility Panel's Action to Help GPU Energy</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>By David DeKok, The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pa., Feb. 22</i></span></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
</td></tr></table><p>
<p>
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:9px;align:left">Advertisement</span>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/go_ad.cfm?aid=1635&id=http://www.siliconenergy.com/invites/ecentral.htm" target="_top"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ads/SiliconEnergy180x450_022502.gif" width=180 height=450 border=0 alt="Silicon Energy"></a>
<p>
<a name=20825B86-EB29-11D4-ABDB-00104B0EE463></a><table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="100%" >
<tr>
<td width="100%" valign="bottom" class="ecdn-bttl" style="color:#000000">ELECTRIC POWER NEWS - MOST REQUESTED</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="15" width="100%" valign="middle" class="ecdn-bttl" bgcolor="#000000">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?action=auto&item=111490"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="12" width="1" border="0">
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecdn-btxt">
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
These stories have been most requested by Energy Central members in the last two weeks.
</span>
<p>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2742168&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl">
<b>Fire sale: Power plants priced to move after Enron</b></a> <br>
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
<i>By Carolyn Koo, NEW YORK, Feb 20 (Reuters)</i>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2734699&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl">
<b>Building Spree to Bring United States Sudden Burst of Power</b></a> <br>
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
<i>By Ted Reed, The Charlotte Observer, N.C., Feb. 18</i>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2727800&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl">
<b>Electric Utility in Pennsylvania to Do Away with Meter Reading</b></a> <br>
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
<i>By Tim Mekeel, Lancaster New Era, Pa., Feb. 12</i>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2738338&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl">
<b>AES to shed assets to raise up to $1.5 billion</b></a> <br>
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
<i>NEW YORK, Feb 19 (Reuters) -</i>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?id=2738168&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl">
<b>E-mail from Chicago to Houston Could Hold Key to Enron Shredding</b></a> <br>
<span class="ecdn-itxt">
<i>By Cam Simpson, Chicago Tribune, Feb. 19</i>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td></tr></table><p> <a name=3BC3745F-5D59-4E56-8665-D289D59C668D></a><table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="100%" >
<tr>
<td width="100%" valign="bottom" class="ecdn-bttl" style="color:#000000">GAS INDUSTRY NEWS - TOP STORIES</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="15" width="100%" valign="middle" class="ecdn-bttl" bgcolor="#000000">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?action=auto&item=111797"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="12" width="1" border="0">
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecdn-btxt">
Energy Central's editors have selected these as the top stories of the day:
<p>
<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?t=g&id=2748773&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>Bridgeport, Conn.-Area Utility Regulator Criticizes Natural Gas Ruling</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>By Dana Ambrosini, Connecticut Post, Bridgeport, Feb. 23</i></span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?t=g&id=2749916&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>Investors pound Rio Alto after gusher of bad news</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>CALGARY, Alberta, Feb 22 (Reuters) -</i></span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><a href="http://www.energycentral.com/global/news.cfm?t=g&id=2748722&title=1" class="ecdn-ittl"><b>Maneuvers Begin on Georgia Governor's Natural Gas Bill</b></a><span class="ecdn-itxt"><br><i>By Matthew C. Quinn, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Feb. 23</i></span></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
</td></tr></table><p> <a name=095B1A30-AC54-44F7-A8F0-1A83E5DC421A></a><table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="100%" >
<tr>
<td width="100%" valign="bottom" class="ecdn-bttl" style="color:#000000">UTILITY STOCK PRICE - TOP GAINERS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td height="15" width="100%" valign="middle" class="ecdn-bttl" bgcolor="#000000">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm?action=auto&item=110569"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/ecd-x.gif" align="right" border="0"></a>
<img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif" height="12" width="1" border="0">
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" bordercolor="cacaca">
<tr><td width="100%" class="ecdn-btxt">
This content block is available when you subscribe to Energy Central Professional.
Become a professional member of Energy
Central <a href="http://pro.energycentral.com">today</a>!
<p>
</td></tr></table><p>
<p>
</td>
<td width="11"> </td>
</tr>
</table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="680" background="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif">
<tr>
<td width="130"> </td>
<td align="right"><img src="http://www.energycentral.com/images/ecd/bottom_black.gif"></td>
<td align="left" bgcolor="ffffff">
<span style="font-family:arial,helevtica,geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_home.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >HOME</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/ecd_start.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >PERSONALIZE</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/services/default.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >MEMBER SERVICES</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/advertising.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >ADVERTISING</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/ecdirect/partnering.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >PARTNERING</a> -
<a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/services/contact.cfm" style="color: black; text-decoration: none;" >CONTACT US</a>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="680" background="http://www.energycentral.com/images/trans.gif">
<tr>
<td colspan="3"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="3">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:10px;color:ffffff">
Copyright © 1996-2001 by <a href="http://www.energycentral.com/sections/about/default.cfm" target="_top" style="color:ffff00"><font color="ffff00">CyberTech, Inc.</font></a> All rights reserved.
<hr color="ffffff" size="1">
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="3">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:10px;color:ffffff">
Energy Central® is a registered trademark of CyberTech, Incorporated.<br>
CyberTech does not warrant that the information or services of Energy Central will meet any specific requirements;
nor will it be error free or uninterrupted; nor shall CyberTech be liable for any indirect, incidental or
consequential damages (including lost data, information or profits) sustained or incurred in connection with the
use of, operation of, or inability to use Energy Central.<br>
Contact: 303-782-5510 or <a href="mailto:[email protected]" style="color:ffff00">[email protected]</a>
</span>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="3"> </td>
</tr>
</table>
</td></tr></table>
</body>
</html> | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
The Enron Building in Houston will be closed for the rest of the day. The offices in New York and Washington, D.C. have also been closed, and all employees have been accounted for. We're asking all Houston-based employees not involved in critical operations to go home to be with their families. We have every reason to believe the Enron Building is safe and secure. Each Enron location has the discretion to determine what is in the best interest of their employees. We know of no Enron employee or facility affected by today's tragic events. Let's keep all the victims of these tragedies in our thoughts and prayers.
If you have information that you believe may be relevant to this matter, please email [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>. For updates, view http://www.enron.com/corp/usbombingcrisisupdate. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
When: Tuesday, January 29, 2002 1:00 PM-2:00 PM (GMT-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada).
Where: 39C1
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Teb has asked we get together to dicuss potential changes to FGT's rate cap calculation. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Absolutely | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
i think i changed mine. Let me know if you see something wrong.
thx
-----Original Message-----
From: Wadle, Susan
Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2002 2:36 PM
To: Gadd, Eric; Hyatt, Kevin; Dowd, Steve
Subject: Updating your information in the HR site
I've just had a call from HR who was putting together a list for STAN HORTON (wondering why I wasn't on 13 with the rest of the team). If you haven't already updated your information from the move, please do that.
Reminder that our fax number is 713/646-1700.
Thank you. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
The committee had a lengthy conference call today. Let me touch on key
topics. First, the application to employ PriceWaterhouse is being
contested by both the debtor and the US trustee. There was a meeting today
with the debtor to narrow differences. The debtor will provide a list of
its key concerns and we'll see if we can deal with them. The UST just
believes that there is too much of a chance of conflict between roles in
the two cases. We'll be setting a hearing soon to get the issue resolved
on way or the other. Second, PGE has sought broad discovery from PX not
only of individual participants' claims against PGE but also underlying
trading information. PX contends that much of this information cannot be
disclosed under the tariffs. For that reason, PX hasn't even kprovided
this information to its participants. Eisenberg is opposing the discovery
for that reason as well as based on burden to the debtor. The PX committee
feels that Montali will accomodate discovery, at least to some extent.
Therefore, in the meet and confer this afternoon, the committee probably
will support disclosure if (1) participants get whatever of their
information as is disclosed to PGE, (2) substantial limitations are imposed
on the parties that will have access to the information and the use to
which it can be put and (3) PGE reimburses PX for a part of the cost. In
addition, the committee intends to file a motion in the PX case requesting
that the debtor be ordered to turn information over to individual
participants and to our accountants who will have the responsibility to
test numbers but not to make general disclosure of accounts of individual
participants. Third, Howard Weg believes that without some agreement on
the chargeback issue, FERC will take a long time to rule on whether PX
should return collateral. Accordingly, Weg wants the participants to come
to an agreement that for any specified period, shortfalls will be shared
prorata among participants. I asked Weg to send an email out to committee
members describing in detail his proposal and the basis for it so that we
could discuss it in detail during our next call. Fourth, the commandeering
matters are proceeding. The committee will complete interviews of
prospective counsel next Monday. In the meantime, the Victims Compensation
Claims Board should rule June 22. A summary denial is expected.
Interestingly, only about 30% of the participants submitted claims to the
board. PX's expert opinion was made available to the committee. He fixes
the value of commandeered contracts at $1.060 billion minus $350 million of
contract prices for a loss of just under $700 million. We are following up
to test these numbers. The committee's counsel has been negotiating a
stipulation for relief from stay in the PGE case. It's moving too slowly,
so our counsel is drafting a stay relief motion for our review. No one
seems inclined to start a commandeering suit until relief is granted.
Fifth, our counsel is having second thoughts about a stipulation with
Edison that would address the bond, the force majeur litigation and related
matters. The question that is under review is whether the proposed deal
could be unwound if SCE files its own cha;pter 11 case. On force majeur,
Judge Montali apparently rejected PGE's argument on that point. Sixth,
there is still no deal with the trade creditors' committee. They want
about double the $4 million we're offering. We expect any day a motion to
extend plan exclusivity by the debtor. Seventh, we discussed some
committee representation issues. The committee voted against adding Puget
Sound as a member. The committee agreed that it represented those who had
claims based on the scheduling coordinator role performed by PX for ISO.
The committee discussed whether it represented IOU's and concluded that it
did if they were owed in their role as sellers to the PX. Finally, the
next meeting was set at 10 pst on June 25. Feel free to call if there are
questions. Bob Nelson | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Notice No. 01-50
February 6, 2001
TO:
ALL NYMEX/COMEX DIVISION MEMBERS
ALL MEMBER FIRMS
ALL CLEARING MEMBERS
FROM: NEAL WOLKOFF
RE:
POSITION ADJUSTMENT DEADLINES FOR THE MARCH 2001 METAL AND ENERGY CONTRACTS
[NYMEX RULE 9.04(P) AND COMEX RULE 4.37(A)]
________________________________________________________
As a reminder, position adjustments for both NYMEX and COMEX Division metals
contracts are prohibited beginning on the tenth business day prior to the
first business day of the delivery month, and throughout the delivery month.
Therefore, all position adjustments of concurrent futures positions for the
March 2001 metals contracts must be completed prior to February 14, 2001.
Additionally, position adjustments of concurrent futures positions for NYMEX
energy contracts are not permitted during the last three trading days of the
respective contracts. Rules 9.04(P) and 4.37(A) are attached.
If you have any questions concerning this matter, please contact Nick Galati
at (212) 299-2920, Nick Falcone at (212) 299-2919, or Bonnie Yurga at (212)
299-2879.
NYMEX RULE 9.04 - CLEARING PROCEDURE
(P) Concurrent Futures Positions
(1) Concurrent long and short positions in the current delivery month may not
be offset by netting, transfer, expit, adjustment or any other bookkeeping
procedures, but each side must be offset by normal floor transactions in
accordance with Exchange Rules. Provided, however, that a clearing member
will be exempt from this requirement if: (I) one side of the concurrent
position is established the business day prior to the date that the offset
memoranda are filed with the Clearing House; (II) a clearing member filing
such offset memoranda can satisfy the Exchange at its request that the delay
in effecting the offset is attributed to an error in the filing of its
clearing sheets; and (III) by 10:30 a.m. on the same date that a clearing
member files such offset memoranda, the clearing member also files with the
clearing house an updated and accurate Long Open Interest Report.
(2) For the purposes of this Rule 9.04(P), the current delivery month for
energy futures contracts commences on the open of trading on the third
business day, prior to termination of the respective futures contract,
including the termination date. The current delivery month in platinum and
palladium commences on the tenth (10th) business day prior to the first
business day of the delivery month.
COMEX RULE 4.37A - CONCURRENT FUTURES POSITIONS
(1) Concurrent long and short positions in the current delivery month may not
be offset by netting, transfer, expit, adjustment or any other bookkeeping
procedures, but each side must be offset by normal floor transactions in
accordance with Exchange Rules. Provided, however, that a clearing member
will be exempt from this requirement if one side of the concurrent position
is established the business day prior to the date that the open positions are
filed with the Clearing House.
(2) For the purposes of this Rule 4.37A, the current delivery month for
metals futures contracts commences on the open of trading on the tenth (10th)
business day, prior to the first business day of the delivery month.
The current delivery month for Eurotop futures commences on the open of
trading on the tenth (10th) business day prior to the termination of the
respective futures contract, including the termination date.
__________________________________________________
Please click on the link below to indicate you have received this
email.
"http://208.206.41.61/email/[email protected]&
refdoc=(01-50)"
Note: If you click on the above line and nothing happens, please copy
the text between the quotes, open your internet browser,
paste it into the web site address and press Return. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Layoffs Possible As Enron Reduces Broadband Burn Rate
Dow Jones Energy Service, 07/12/01
USA: Losses widen to $102 million for Enron Broadband.
Reuters English News Service, 07/12/01
Enron's 2nd-Qtr Profit Rises 40% on Electricity Sales (Update5)
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
Enron's Skilling Sees California Energy Crisis Easing (Update2)
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
Jeff Skilling Inteview
CNBC, 07/12/01
Enron Expects To Cash In On New U.S. Federal Mandate For Open Wholesale Power
Markets
CNNfn: Market Coverage - Morning, 07/12/01
Jeff Skilling Interview
Bloomberg Information TV, 07/12/01
USA: INTERVIEW-Enron chief sees California problems fading.
Reuters English News Service, 07/12/01
Enron CEO:Foreseeable Business Prospects Remain Excellent
Dow Jones News Service, 07/12/01
Enron 2Q Net Rises 40% As Trading Revenue Soars
Dow Jones News Service, 07/12/01
USA: UPDATE 3-Enron quarterly earnings rise, beat estimates.
Reuters English News Service, 07/12/01
Enron reports earnings increase of almost 40 percent
Associated Press Newswires, 07/12/01
Venture capital chasing next big - and little - thing in energy
Associated Press Newswires, 07/12/01
A Volt From Blue, U.S. Grid Rules Get Power Co's Abuzz
Dow Jones Energy Service, 07/12/01
Marlin Water Trust II Taps Euro And Dollar Bond Markets
Capital Markets Report, 07/12/01
FERC Power Grid Orders Will Open Markets for Traders (Update2)
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
Enron CEO Skilling on California Crisis, FERC Talks: Comment
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
Enron Chief Executive Sees California's Energy Crisis Easing
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
FERC Transmission Decision Will Open Power Markets for Traders
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
California Not Due Cash Refunds for Power Purchases (Update1)
Bloomberg, 07/12/01
Layoffs Possible As Enron Reduces Broadband Burn Rate
By Erwin Seba
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
07/12/2001
Dow Jones Energy Service
(Copyright (c) 2001, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
HOUSTON -(Dow Jones)- Enron Broadband Services executives said staff
redeployments, including possible layoffs and an office closure were part of
the plans to reduce losses at the telecommunications unit of Enron Corp.
(ENE).
The news came shortly after Enron President and Chief Executive Jeffrey
Skilling told an investor call Thursday morning that Broadband Services lost
$102 million in the second quarter of this year.
"We've got to get that burn rate down," Skilling said. "And we will get the
burn rate down in the next two weeks."
Broadband Services Senior Vice President Kelly Kimberly said Enron hadn't yet
determined the exact number of the unit's approximately 1,000 employees to be
redeployed.
"We will be moving some commercial support people to corporate," Kimberly
said. "There will be redeployments. There may be some severances."
Commercial support employees are in departments like human resources and
legal support offices.
Also, the unit will close its Portland, Ore., office, but its back-up network
operations center (NOC) there will remain in operation.
Portland employees will be offered redeployment in Houston or other offices.
Those who do not accept redeployment will be offered severance packages,
Kimberly said.
EBS's primary NOC is in northeast Houston, one of the areas hardest hit by
Tropical Storm Allison. In spite of heavy rains and flooding last month, the
Houston NOC continued functioning. However, Enron officials did activate the
Portland NOC in case the Houston center could not remain open.
This is the second redeployment of Broadband Services employees this year.
The earlier redeployment was attributed by executives to the transition from
building the EBS optical fiber network to operating the network.
Revenues Victim Of Crash In Telecom Prices
Skilling blamed the crash of telecommunications prices for the decline in
revenues in the second quarter.
"There is a meltdown out there," Skilling said during the conference call.
Skilling said many potential counterparties among carriers can do only
short-term deals in the bandwidth market because their creditworthiness is so
weak.
The company believes it will be one or two years before the bandwidth market
gets to the point Enron had expected it to be this year, Skilling said.
Enron is the primary market maker in the bandwidth arena. Skilling and
Kimberly said the company will continue to develop the commoditized market.
That leadership has left Enron feeling increasingly lonely in recent weeks,
said an industry analyst.
"Enron was trying to move this market fast," said William Bandt of Arthur
Andersen L.L.P. "They've been working to get out at the front of this market.
Sometimes that's like being at the end of the high-dive board all by
yourself."
Overall, Enron is in good financial shape because of its core energy
industry.
For the second quarter this year, Enron reported net income, excluding
non-recurring items, of $404 million on revenues of $50.1 billion. In the
second quarter of 2000, the company reported net income of $289 million on
net revenues of $16.9 billion.
The earnings per diluted share for the quarter is 45 cents compared with 34
cents a year ago. Skilling said the company expects to achieve $1.80 in
recurring earnings per diluted share this year.
Broadband Services reported a loss of $102 million in the second quarter on
$16 million in revenues before interest and taxes. In the same period of
2000, the unit reported revenues of $151 million and a loss before interest
and taxes of $8 million.
EBS had 759 transactions in the second quarter 2001 compared with 23 in the
second quarter of 2000. The company added 45 new customers in the second
quarter, giving it a total of 165 customers, Skilling said.
Carriers and network services providers made up more than 70% of Enron's
broadband customers and accounted for about one-third of its transactions, he
said.
In the second quarter of this year, the company delivered 98,478 terabytes of
data compared with 13,692 a year ago.
For the year so far, EBS has delivered 141,878 terabytes of data compared
with 19,697 in same period a year ago.
Broadband Services has a goal of delivering 570,000 terabytes this year.
Enron has signed a long-term contract with MSN to provide broadband services,
Skilling said. The deal will allow MSN to provision and pay for bandwidth as
it's needed. The company will give more information on that deal later,
-By Erwin Seba, Dow Jones Newswires, 713-547-9214 [email protected]
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
USA: Losses widen to $102 million for Enron Broadband.
By C. Bryson Hull
07/12/2001
Reuters English News Service
(C) Reuters Limited 2001.
HOUSTON, July 12 (Reuters) - The revenue rug got pulled out from under Enron
Corp.'s broadband division in the second quarter, leading to a
wider-than-expected loss inside the nascent unit, the company said on
Thursday.
Enron Broadband lost $102 million on revenue of $16 million in the second
quarter. In the year-ago quarter, when the telecom sector was much stronger,
the unit brought in $151 million in revenue and lost just $8 million.
The losses and the shrinking revenue opportunities caused by severe weakness
in the telecommunications market led Enron President and Chief Executive Jeff
Skilling to announce a restructuring that will include an unspecified amount
of job cuts within Enron Broadband Services.
"This quarter was the absolute evidence that there is a serious problem in
the telecom industry," Skilling told Reuters in an interview. "Revenue
opportunities just dried up. People are not contracting."
The telecom and Internet network carriers that are Enron Broadband's target
customers are suffering from credit problems and other financial difficulties
preventing them from entering into the long-term deals that are the unit's
bread and butter.
Enron plans to turn bandwidth into a tradeable commodity that can be sold and
packaged much like natural gas. Enron believes bandwidth capacity is
essentially the same as gas pipeline capacity, and can be traded the same
way.
Skilling said the worse-than-expected telecom weakness should push back plans
for profitability inside the unit by about a year. Initially, Enron planned
to turn a profit from broadband by at least 2002.
But Skilling said near-term cost cutting, the company's agility and small
asset position should enable it to quickly react to lower revenue targets.
Workers whose jobs are removed from Enron Broadband will be redeployed to
other positions within the company, Skilling said.
One encouraging sign was the increase in transactions in sequential quarters,
from 580 deals in the first quarter to 759 deals in the second, Salomon Smith
Barney analyst Ray Niles said.
"It was a little bit below our expectations, but the volumes are still up
sequentially. The key metric remains growth in transactions. At the end of
the day, given enough transactions, it should become a profitable business,"
Niles said.
The flashy unit, which gave Enron a once-valuable telecom cache that drove
its stock to record highs last summer, has fallen from grace recently as the
telecom market tanked earlier this year.
Enron Broadband cut jobs earlier this year and also reduced its capital
budget by a half-billion to $250 million as the telecom market first dropped
sharply.
Broad telecom weakness as well as the California power crisis and a
struggling power project in India combined to push the energy giant's stock
down 15.7 percent in the quarter. It underperformed the broader Standard &
Poor's utility index, which was down 6.32 percent in the same period. Enron
shares were down 48 cents, or 1 percent, at $48.62 in afternoon trading on
the NYSE.
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Enron's 2nd-Qtr Profit Rises 40% on Electricity Sales (Update5)
2001-07-12 16:25 (New York)
Enron's 2nd-Qtr Profit Rises 40% on Electricity Sales (Update5)
(Updates shares. Adds analyst comment in fourth paragraph.)
Houston, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- Enron Corp., the top energy
trader, said second-quarter profit rose 40 percent as its sales of
natural gas and electricity surged in the U.S. and Europe.
Net income rose to $404 million, or 45 cents a share, from
$289 million, or 34 cents, in the year-earlier period, Enron said.
Revenue almost tripled to $50.1 billion. The Houston-based company
sold almost twice as much power in North America and five times as
much in Europe than in the year-earlier quarter.
Though electricity and natural-gas prices surged in
California, Enron Chief Executive Jeff Skilling said the state
``is just not a big factor'' in Enron's increasing profits. The
Houston-based company boosts earnings by increasing sales of
energy and other commodities such as lumber and steel rather than
raising prices, analysts said.
``That's the nature of the commodities business,'' said Zach
Wagner, an analyst with Edward Jones & Co. who has a ``buy''
rating on Enron. ``As markets open up, their volumes will grow.
Their margins are basically flat.''
Enron's profit margin was less than 1 percent last year and
has averaged 2.1 percent during the past five years, based on
Bloomberg data. That compares to a profit margin of 6.5 percent
for Exxon Mobil Corp., the largest publicly traded energy company.
Shares of Enron have dropped 31 percent during the past year
despite steadily increasing earnings, and sales that now rival
those of Exxon Mobil.
Broadband Meltdown
Investors are concerned about lackluster results from the
company's broadband business, which was set up to trade space on
fiber-optic telecommunications networks. Enron shares surged
87 percent last year when the boom in Internet and
telecommunications businesses seemed certain to increase demand
for broadband capacity. Enron shares fell 40 percent this year as
the boom fizzled.
The broadband business had a loss before interest, minority
interests and taxes of $102 million in the second quarter,
compared with an $8 million loss a year earlier. Broadband revenue
plunged 89 percent to $16 million from $151 million. Enron said it
is firing broadband staff to reduce costs.
``There's a meltdown out there,' Skilling said. ``You have to
do very short-term transactions (in broadband) because people
don't have the credit to do long-term transactions.''
Investors are questioning whether Enron can continue to post
huge gains in sales in its energy and commodity businesses,
analysts said. The earnings news today left the stock up
45 cents, or less than 1 percent, to $49.55.
``It was telecommunications that took the stock to its lofty
height . . . and disappointment with telecommunications that has
held the stock back,'' Wagner said. ``What they're trading at now
is purely as an energy company.''
Spokeswoman Karen Denne declined to say how many people will
be fired or where the cuts would take place in the company's
broadband business. Enron has broadband staff in Houston, London,
Singapore and Portland, Oregon. Denne said Enron would try to find
internal jobs for the broadband workers and only cut those
employees it can't place.
In a conference call, Skilling said the broadband business
still has potential.
``We're getting a negative impact on our stock price from the
broadband business, and I don't think that's right,'' Skilling
said.
Buyer and Seller
Skilling and his predecessor, Ken Lay, have transformed a
natural gas-pipeline company into the biggest competitor in the
business of trading commodities such as gas and power. Enron also
uses financial instruments such as futures contracts to help
protect customers from swings in energy prices.
Enron says it makes money regardless of whether prices go up
or down in California because it is both a buyer and a seller in
the markets where it operates, making much of its money from fees
for arranging trades. It also profits from selling risk management
contracts to utilities and other companies that want to lock in
energy prices.
Enron was expected to make 42 cents a share in the quarter,
the average estimate of analysts polled by First Call/Thomson
Financial. Enron reiterated its 2001 profit forecast of $1.80 a
share and said it expects to make $2.15 in 2002. The First Call
estimate for 2002 was $2.12.
Enron's revenue tripled from $16.9 billion in the year-
earlier quarter. Most of the gain came from Enron's Wholesale
Services business, which includes commodities trading and
development of energy projects such as power plants.
Earlier this year, Enron estimated it was owed as much as
$500 million for California energy sales. Skilling said he thinks
California prices have stabilized and the state is going to get
through the summer ``just fine.'' While electricity and natural
gas prices in the West are up from a year ago, they are down from
the first quarter.
``The financial impact on Enron is over now,'' Skilling said.
European Expansion
Enron had first-half revenue of $100.2 billion, almost equal
its revenue for all of last year. Skilling has predicted revenue
will top $200 billion this year, rivaling Exxon Mobil's
$232 billion in 2000 sales.
Enron is continuing to expand its trading business in Europe.
The company entered Europe ahead of its competition and became the
dominant trader there, said Bob Christensen, a First Albany
analyst who rates Enron a ``strong buy.''
``We have just started down the path in Europe,'' Skilling
said. ``Look for great things from Europe in the future.''
In California and other parts of the U.S., Enron has a
growing business in contracts that manage energy supply for big
customers such as Owens-Illinois Inc. and Eli Lilly & Co.
Contracts increased 89 percent to $7.2 billion in the quarter,
Enron said.
The energy-services unit's profit increased 30 percent to $60
million in the quarter, and the business is on track to make $225
million this year, more than double 2000's results, Enron said.
Profit was little changed at Enron's pipeline and utility
businesses, which are more closely regulated than the trading
operations. Enron has a 25,000-mile gas pipeline system and owns
Portland General, an Oregon utility.
The company reported a loss of $109 million for higher
``corporate-wide expenses.'' About a quarter of that was from its
Azurix water unit, Skilling said. The loss compares with profit of
$17 million a year earlier.
Enron's Skilling Sees California Energy Crisis Easing (Update2)
2001-07-12 16:17 (New York)
Enron's Skilling Sees California Energy Crisis Easing (Update2)
(Updates with closing share price.)
Houston, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- Enron Corp. Chief Executive
Jeffrey Skilling said higher retail prices for electricity in
California has curtailed power demand and should lead to fewer
blackouts than expected this summer.
``The expectation of higher retail prices has dampened demand
considerably,'' Skilling said in a conference call with analysts
and investors. ``I think we're going to get through the summer
just fine in California. That will ultimately lead to lower
wholesale prices for power.''
The state had been facing about 15 hours of blackouts a week
this summer, the North American Electric Reliability Council, a
national group that monitors and coordinates U.S. power supplies,
said in May. California has been spared outages recently because
of conservation efforts, cooler temperatures and new power plants.
Prices for power and natural gas in California should stay
close to current levels because of the drop in demand, Skilling
said in an interview with Bloomberg Television.
Power plants producing enough energy for about 1.2 million
homes have opened this summer in California, California Governor
Gray Davis said yesterday in a statement.
``We're not out of the woods yet, but we are making
progress,'' Davis said.
California is seeking $8.9 billion in refunds from generators
such as Houston-based Enron, the biggest energy trader, for power
bought in the last year. Under the formula used by California to
derive that figure, Enron is actually owed $44 million because it
bought more power than it sold since May 2000, Skilling said.
Shares of Enron rose 45 cents to $49.55. The company said
today second-quarter profit rose 40 percent as higher sales of
electricity more than made up for a loss in its telecommunications
business.
Enron stock has fallen 40 percent this year. The political
rhetoric surrounding the California crisis and negotiations over
possible refunds has hurt Enron's stock price, Skilling said.
``All this noise from California has obscured the performance
of the company,'' Skilling said.
Date July 12, 2001
Time 09:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Station CNBC
Location Network
Program The Squawk Box
Mark Haines, anchor:
Energy earnings: Enron reporting second quarter earnings,
forty-five cents a share, beating expectations of forty-two
cents a share. Surpassing last year's earnings of
thirty-four cents. Net income roes forty percent to
four-hundred-four million dollars. Revenue up one-hundred
and ninety-five percent to fifty-billion. (Graphic: Enron
(ENE): Actual $0.45, Estimate $0.42, Year Ago $0.34,
Revenue up 195% to $50.06b, Net Income up 40% to $404m)
Enron said revenue numbers were driven by a surge in
wholesale services business. Stock is trading at a
fifty-two week range, forty-two to ninety. Right now at
the low end, around forty-nine yesterday. Let's take a
closer look at the numbers. Joining us now is Enron CEO
Jeffrey Skilling. And in the spirit of full disclosure, I
have some shares of Enron in my IRA.
Mr. Skilling, how does revenue go up so much and the
bottom line doesn't benefit more?
Jeffrey Skilling (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
Enron): Well we had a net income increase, Mark, of over
forty percent and earnings per share up thirty-two
percent, so I think it was a real good quarter.
Haines: Yeah, but that doesn't answer the question, well,
how can revenue grow like a hundred and fifty and--and the
bottom line only benefits forty--forty percent?
Skilling: What--what drives our net income, Mark, is the
increase in physical volumes delivered. Revenues are
impacted by price levels and price levels really don't
impact us because we don't own generation facilities, we
don't own gas production assets. So prices move up, prices
move down, that impacts our revenue. But what really
matters to us is how much volume are we delivering to
customers and our volumes this quarter up fifty-eight
percent, which drove that increase in our wholesale income.
Haines: How unusual should we consider the--the last few
quarters?
Skilling: I think the most lasting legacy of the problems
in California may be an order that came out of the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission yesterday. And what they did
is they forced open--moved to four mandatory, what they
call regional transmission organizations. (Graphic: Enron
(ENE) 8-Quarter Earnings History Chart) This will make the
marketplace for electricity in North America open. And
what that means is there is a tremendous additional amount
of growth, we believe, in the electricity markets in North
America as these markets open up for competition.
Similarly Europe--Europe is really just starting. I don't
know if you saw our numbers in Europe, but our gas volumes
were up over a hundred percent. Our electricity volumes
were up over four hundred percent in Europe. That market's
just starting to open and has tremendous future
opportunities in it. (Graphic: One of the world's leading
electricity, natural gas and communications companies;
Delivers physical commodities and financial & risk mgmt.
services to customers around the world)
Joe Rivkin (Citigroup Investments): Mr. Skilling, I--you
are building a global fiber-optic network, which is in
effect owning some capacity that you're going to be selling
or trading. Can you help us understand the logic behind
that? And, also, what will make that network different
from several of the other networks that are out there or
under construction? (Graphic: Has developed an
intelligent network platform to facilitate online business;
Divides its business into four core areas: Wholesale,
Broadband, Energy and Transportation Services)
Skilling: Yeah. Thanks, Jack. It's--it's a very, very
different network than what you'll see anywhere else in the
world. If you look at most networks, the capacity to input
data and the capacity to output data is very similar to
what the long-haul capacity is. In our network it's very
different, the capacity input and output is enormous
relative to the amount of long-haul capacity we have. That
allows us to bring data into our system, move it on to
other people's systems by creating a marketplace for
bandwidth, to get customers lower prices. We think this is
the future, particularly given the melt down in client and
prices for bandwidth around the world. We think this is
exactly the right strategy to have. We're focussing on
those areas where we--we believe that marketplace will be
good in the future. In fact, we announced in the press
release this morning a contract with Microsoft. A
multi-year contract to provide bandwidth services that is
really geared towards providing instantaneous access to
bandwidth for customers, which is really a new product
which we think is going to be very important for the
future. (Graphic: Formed in July 1985 as a result of the
merger of Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth of Omaha,
Nebraska; Headquarters in Houston, Texas; Approximately
20,000 employees; Yearly High: 90.75, Yearly Low: 42.35;
Market Cap: 36.6b; Top Competitors: AEP, Duke Energy,
Reliant Energy)
Haines: Does this get you into the technology business?
Because if you're dealing with what's coming into a pipe
and what has to go out of it, there's--there's a lot of
effort going into place to either compress the information
or expand the information or route the information...
Skilling: Right.
Haines: ...how are you dealing with that?
Skilling: Well, really, what we're doing in the
telecommunications business is identical to what we do in
the natural gas and electricity business. They're pipes,
and the data moves through the pipes. If they can crush
more--more data into the same amount of pipes, that's good,
that opens the market, provides additional capacity. What
we do is we purchase and sell that capacity and make it
available through our switching capabilities to any
customer that wants to get real time access to bandwidth.
(Enron Corp (ENE) 3-Month Stock Chart and 6-Month Stock
Chart)
Haines: How much of a cloud on the horizon is this
California energy situation? The--you are suing the state
of California, California is asking for documents, you're
refusing to provide them. The situation doesn't look too
pleasant. (Graphic: Enron Corp (ENE) 1-Year Stock Chart
and 3-Year Stock Chart)
Skilling: Well, Mark, you know, I think--I think the
entire California thing I think is past the high water
mark. Prices now are moving up in California and economics
101 demand's going down. I think we're going to get
through this summer all right. As Joe was saying, the
weather's pretty cool out in California. I think that's
going to keep the demand for electricity down. As prices
come down in California, I think the whole tone of
discussion in California will get better. And as I said,
this whole thing with the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission--they recognize now it's important to open the
grid, it is critical to create efficient markets for
electricity. And the step yesterday, I think, is a
landmark step in opening that market and I think that's
going to reduce the problems from California. (Graphic:
Enron Corp (ENE) 5-Year Stock Chart)
Haines: All right, sir, thank you very much. We
appreciate your bringing us up to date.
Skilling: Thanks, Mark.
Haines: Jeffrey Skilling, CEO of Enron.
# # #
Business
Enron Expects To Cash In On New U.S. Federal Mandate For Open Wholesale Power
Markets
Rhonda Schaffler, Barry Hyman
07/12/2001
CNNfn: Market Coverage - Morning
(c) Copyright Federal Document Clearing House. All Rights Reserved.
RHONDA SCHAFFLER, CNNfn ANCHOR, MARKET CALL: The nation`s number one buyer
and seller of energy posted strong second quarter numbers. Enron (URL:
http://.www.enron.com/) earned 45 cents a share, beating estimates by 3 cents
and the year-ago quarter by 11 cents. Revenue surging almost 200 percent and
the company says it`s on track to meet not just expectations this year but
expectations for next year.
Shares, though, have been slashed in half in the past six months due mostly
to the California power crisis and weakness in the broadband market, as Enron
continues to build its` global fiber optic network.
Joining us from Houston to talk about all this is Jeff Skilling, CEO and
president at Enron.
Jeff, good to have you back on "Market Call".
JEFF SKILLING, CEO, PRESIDENT, ENRON: Thanks, Rhonda. Good to be here.
SCHAFFLER: Congrats on the quarter. But it`s an interesting quarter for you
in that, for a change, not everything`s firing on all cylinders.
SKILLING: Well, you know, it`s a little bit of the tale of two cities. You
know, the energy business is very strong. As you can see from our numbers, we
had a great quarter-another great quarter in the energy business. Broadband
business is suffering from some of the problems the broadband business has,
but luckily, in Enron, it`s a very small portion of our net income. So, the
real story for Enron is this strong, strong growth and strong profitability
of our energy business.
BARRY HYMAN, CNNfn GUEST HOST, MARKET CALL: Jeff, I just want to concentrate
on the broadband part for a second. You`re significantly cutting costs there
and your stock seems to have gotten hit as almost a technology stock since
the beginning of this year. Where do you see the broadband part going
forward? And how you can make money in that particular sector? Or is it
really a viable place to be?
SKILLING: Yeah. Barry, I really do believe that they`ve taken all the value
of broadband business out of our stock completely. It`s gone. And we`ve also
been hurt a little bit by what`s going in California, in spite of the fact
that we continue to hit our numbers.
We`ve hit our estimates, or exceeded estimates, very quarter for the last
four years. But I think people are just a little nervous about us. As far as
broadband goes, it is a tough, tough market. The revenues have dried up in
that business.
There are two areas where we have focused, which have been our primary area
focus. One is to create a market place-a real-time market place for
bandwidth. We feel very good about that. That is continuing to grow. And a
content delivery service where we provide a turnkey service for customers.
We just announced, in fact, in the earnings release, a new contract with MSN
that really provides that dynamic provisioning of bandwidth for customers.
And those are the two areas we`re focusing on. The rest of the market we are
just going to eliminate our activities there and just focus on those two
activities. And we see those as having enormous future potential for
customers. It`s going to be tough for the next year or so as that market kind
of digs itself out of a hole. But I think longer-term it`s a great place to
be and we have exactly the right strategy for pursing that market.
SCHAFFLER: Can you tell us a little bit about what you`re doing in Europe
with the energy markets there? Because Europe`s an interesting story as well,
because of concerns about the slowdown there?
SKILLING: Yeah, it`s interesting, Rhonda. Our volumes in Europe were
incredible. Our gas volumes were up over 100 percent. Our electricity volumes
were up over 400 percent.
What you`re seeing there is, in spite of the slowdown in the economy in
Europe, they`re opening up their markets to competition so the non- regulated
portion of the energy market, which is the only portion of the market where
we compete, is just exploding. It`s growing by leaps and bounds. And so we
expect Europe to be a significant contributor to future growth.
Similarly, even in North America, as we`re seeing the economy here slowdown.
We had a landmark decision come out of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
yesterday. They have mandated now the establishment of four regional
transmission organizations. And this sounds kind of technical, but
essentially what it does is it is going to force fully open-force fully the
North American wholesale power markets in North American. And that, I think,
will provide significant new growth opportunities for us in North America.
So, I think the North America and the European gas and electric markets are
really not dependent on economic activity, as far as Enron`s concerned.
They`re really dependent on how quickly we move to open competitive markets
and we`re seeing a very, very fast transition there-and great news out of the
FERC yesterday.
SCHAFFLER: Jeff Skilling, CEO of Enron. Nice to see you again. Congrats on
the quarter. We`ll talk soon.
SKILLING: Thanks, Rhonda.
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Date July 12, 2001
Time 12:30 PM - 01:00 PM
Station Bloomberg Information TV
Location Network
Program Newsline
Suzy Assaad, anchor:
There's a lot ahead for you in this next half hour. We're
going to talk live with the CEO of Enron, Jeffrey Skilling.
His broadband division is having some troubles and we're
going to ask him why he thinks he can turn it around.
* * *
Assaad: Enron came out with earnings and they actually
beat the Street. The energy and communications company
earned forty-five cents a share from continuing operations
and that was three cents better than what the Street was
expecting. (Graphic: Enron (ENE) 2Q, 2001 > Actual EPS
$0.45 > Estimated EPS $0.42 Earnings Alert) The news sent
shares of Enron sharply higher in the early part of the
session. On the day, though, they have managed to turn a
little bit to the downside. (Graphic: Enron intraday
stock chart)
Enron, though, is having problems with its broadband
division. The company is projecting lower revenues for
broadband and it is going to eliminate jobs to lower costs.
Now can broadband be turned around and if not, what will
they do about it? Joining us live from Houston is the CEO
of Enron, Jeffrey Skilling. (Graphic: Enron. Enron 2Q
profit rises 40% to $404 million as higher sales of
electricity more than made up for a loss in its
telecommunications business)
Mr. Skilling, thank you for being on the show and let's
start off with that question. How do you plan to turn
broadband around, if--continue to keep it or get rid of it?
What are your plans for there?
Jeffrey Skilling (Chief Executive Officer, Enron): Well we
believe longer term the broadband business is going to be a
good business. It's clear, though--absolutely clear that
we're going through a meltdown in the business right now.
And so what we need to do is we just need to get our cost
structure in line with the current view of what revenues
can be in that business and that's what we're in the
process of doing. (Graphic: Enron. Net income at the top
energy trader rose to $404 million, or $0.45/share from
$289 million or $0.34/share a year earlier) I think, given
our strategy--our strategy has not been an asset-heavy
strategy--we should be able to do this pretty easily and
pretty quickly. As you've seen from our numbers that we
announced today, we have extremely strong growth on the
energy side of our business, so we'll end up redeploying
people from the broadband business back into our energy
business. So we think we can move pretty quickly on it.
(Graphic: Enron. Houston-based company says it sold
almost twice as much power in North America and five times
as much in Europe in the quarter)
Assaad: That's--that's quite a drain then. I mean in a
year where you're having such great numbers, to have the
broadband be such a drain on your bottom line.
Skilling: Well it's not that big in the grand scheme of
things. You know our energy business is a big business,
it's growing very quickly. Our revenues in energy this
quarter were over fifty billion dollars. So that's really
the big part of our business and, sure, the
telecommunications business I think long term is going to
be an opportunity. I wish it were an opportunity right now
but I think what we need to do is just get that burn rate
down, get it consistent with what the revenue opportunity
is in the industry. We'll be a survivor and when this
business comes back, I think it has all the promise that we
all know it has, it's just going to be a little delayed
from what we thought before.
Assaad: Could we actually get your outlook, Mr. Skilling,
on energy prices going forward?
Skilling: Sure. It's--it's--
Assaad: Is it a one-way street up?
Skilling: I don't think so. We've been really surprised
by the decline in demand. If you look at demand for
electricity and natural gas in North America, it is way
down this year, almost unprecedented decline in demand for
a developed economy. I've never seen anything like it
before. And--and I think it's been triggered by the fact
that prices went up last year and customers--sort of
Economics 101--customers have decided that there are
cheaper alternatives and so the demand has gone down and
that has really driven down prices. You know gas prices
are way off from what they were earlier this year. Power
prices all across the country are way down from what they
were earlier this year. And so I think it's just natural
economics taking effect. But what I think it means is that
the current price level that we're seeing for gas and
electricity are probably likely to be the prices that we'll
see for--for some time now. They're on the low side of the
range that everyone was expecting but I think that's what
it looks like. (Graphic: Enron. President, CEO Jeffrey
Skilling has predicted that revenue will top $200 billion
this year)
Assaad: In terms of what's going on in California,
it's--it's said that that has put some pressure on your
stock price as of late. What are your predictions down
that end?
Skilling: Well it has put pressure on our stock price.
You know we've--we've hit earnings or exceed earnings
expectations every quarter for the last four years and yet
our stock's down this year. I think the reason for that is
that all of this noise from California has obscured the
performance of the company. (Graphic: Enron. In places
including CA, Enron has a growing business in contracts
that manage energy supply for big clients such as
Owens-Corning, Lilly)
But I think we're now, because prices are
dropping--wholesale prices are dropping for power, I really
think we've seen the high water mark of the problems in
California. (Graphic: Enron. Contracts increased 89% to
$7.2 bln in the quarter, Enron says) It's been cool in
California, prices are down and I think as this works its
way through the system, I think a lot of the noise and a
lot of the antagonism will start to go away and I think--in
fact I think probably the greatest legacy of this whole
California debacle will be what happened yesterday in the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. You know they came
out with an order that most people weren't really, I don't
think, looking at that carefully. But this--this order
requires the development of a very, very efficient
marketplace for electricity in North America. (Graphic:
Enron. While California power prices were double year-ago
levels, Enron reiterated its 2001 profit forecast of
$1.80/share and said it made no difference to Enron's
bottom line) It's a huge step forward, it's very, very
positive. And so while it's technical in nature, I think
ultimately it will have probably the most impact going
forward in time, more than this whole California things has
had.
Assaad: Interesting. In terms though of--of going forward
from here, it's also said that a lot of your wholesale
margins, a lot of certainly your volumes are going to be
dependent on the development of Europe, that this is really
the area of growth for you right now. Do you agree with
that and where do you see Europe going for you in the next
year?
Skilling: Well, Europe is important and Europe is just
starting the process of liberalizing markets, the
continental countries. And so we think there's enormous
growth opportunities there. Gas volumes were up over a
hundred percent. Our power volumes were up over four
hundred percent. So I think there's great opportunity
there and that will be a source of growth in the future.
(Graphic: Enron. That's because Enron's risk-management
business makes money it expects to make $2.15 in 2002;
First Call estimate for 2002 was $2.12, whether power
prices rise or fall, analysts say)
Assaad: Mr. Skilling, do you think there's greater
opportunity for Enron in Europe than there currently is
here in the U.S.?
Skilling: No. And that's--I was about to say that with
this change in the federal policy, this--currently only
about twenty percent of the wholesale market for power is
accessible. You can only get to about twenty percent of
the locations in the country because of flawed regulation
in North America. If these rules go through, as was
dictated yesterday by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, the entire U.S. market opens up and so this is
an enormous growth opportunity. And--and because this is
our biggest business, we think it will have more effect
than Europe. (Graphic: Enron. Enron's ability to boost
profit and sales even as its broadband business slumped
shows it can manage changing market conditions, analysts
say) But longer term, Europe's a great market, great
business for us.
Assaad: Absolutely. Thank you very much for joining us
today. Jeffrey Skilling, joining us to talk about Enron.
# # #
USA: INTERVIEW-Enron chief sees California problems fading.
By C. Bryson Hull
07/12/2001
Reuters English News Service
(C) Reuters Limited 2001.
HOUSTON, July 12 (Reuters) - The thus-far cool summer in California and the
emergence of specifics about Enron Corp's limited involvement in the
embattled California power market should ease pressure on the energy giant's
stock, the company's chief executive said on Thursday.
"I think we are going to get through the summer just fine. In terms of the
financial impact on Enron, it's pretty much over," Enron President and Chief
Executive Officer Jeff Skilling told Reuters in an interview.
The rhetorical attacks on the Houston company as an out-of-state generator
ignore key facts about how much power Enron sold into California, he said.
"I don't know how they can keep using us as the poster child when all of the
numbers keep coming out. The poster child ought to be the Los Angeles
Department of Water and Power," Skilling said.
According to sales records maintained by the California Independent System
Operator, which manages most of the state's power grid, Enron accounted for
0.4 percent of the alleged $9 billion in overcharges.
The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is slated to decided if there
was an overcharge to California, and if so, how much should be refunded.
The same records show that the L.A. municipal utility and other municipal
utilities in the state overcharged PG&E Corp.'s Pacific Gas and Electric and
Edison International's Southern California Edison utilities millions more
than Enron did.
"I believe ultimately in the longer term, as people become more knowledgeable
about the data and statistics, I don't think they'll harp on Enron so much,"
Skilling said.
Skilling has personally felt the nasty nature of the duel between California
and "out-of-state power producers," the label California Gov. Gray Davis, a
Democrat, has used to blast energy companies like Enron. During a June 21
speech in San Francisco, a demonstrator threw a cream pie and hit Skilling in
the face.
"I knew something was going to happen out there, but we wanted to get our
facts out and show our commitment to getting the facts out," Skilling said of
the reason for his visit.
After he was hit with the pie, Skilling calmly explained his and Enron's
belief for the reasons behind California's power woes.
While Davis blames Enron and others for jacking up wholesale energy prices,
the companies pinpoint California's flawed deregulation scheme and a rise in
the price for natural gas as the main problems.
The latest manifestation of the flat-out war between California politicians
and Enron is a California legislative committee's finding that Enron is in
contempt for refusing to hand over confidential business documents in a probe
into price gouging.
The California Senate believes the finding gives them the power to fine Enron
and possibly jail its senior officers.
But just before the Senate Select Committee to Investigate Market
Manipulation voted to hold Enron in contempt on Wednesday, the Houston
company sued in a California court on a claim the legislature has no
jurisdiction over them.
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Enron CEO:Foreseeable Business Prospects Remain Excellent
By Bob Sechler
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
07/12/2001
Dow Jones News Service
(Copyright (c) 2001, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
AUSTIN, Texas -(Dow Jones)- Flush from reporting a 40% year-over-year
increase in net income for the second quarter and substantially beating Wall
Street expectations, Enron Corp. (ENE) Chief Executive Jeff Skilling said
Thursday that prospects for his company remain extremely strong.
"We are well-positioned for future growth," Skilling told analysts during a
conference call.
Skilling also downplayed ongoing controversy regarding the power crisis in
California - which has contributed to a pall over Enron stock - saying he
thinks the issue already has reached "a high-water mark" and should subside.
California likely will make it through the summer without much additional
power problems, he said, helped by lower prices and cooler weather.
Enron, Houston, reported second-quarter net income Thursday of $404 million,
40% more than net income of $289 million in the year-go period.
The company surpassed Wall Street expectations for the quarter, reporting
earnings of 45 cents a share on revenue of $50 billion. Enron had been
expected to earn 42 cents a share, according to the consensus of analysts
polled by Thomson Financial/First Call.
Enron earned 34 cents a share on $16.8 billion in revenue in the year-ago
period.
CEO Skilling also heralded the decision Wednesday by the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission ordering that four large electric-transmission
organizations be formed to optimize the flow of electricity nationwide.
The move will lead to a major improvement in business conditions for
companies such as Enron, he said, because it will create a solid foundation
for competitive power markets across the country. Enron officials estimated
that they'll eventually be able to compete in more than 90% of U.S. power
markets because of the commission's order, as opposed to the 20% the company
forecasts now.
Enron is the nation's largest electricity trader and marketer.
"This is a major, major step forward," Skilling said. "All the lights are
green right now" for Enron's wholesale-services division, which accounted for
about 97% of Enron revenue in the second quarter.
Skilling expressed confidence that Enron will meet Wall Street's full-year
earnings expectations of $1.80 a share. In addition, he said the company will
earn $2.15 a share in 2002, an increase from current 2002 expectations of
$2.12 a share.
Still, Enron's otherwise solid second-quarter results were marred by the
performance of its broadband-services division, where among other activities
it has been a pioneer in creating a trading market for broadband, or
high-speed Internet capacity. The division lost $102 million in the quarter
before interest, minority interests and taxes, compared with an $8 million
loss in the year-ago period.
Skilling said the division has been the victim of an overall "meltdown" in
the broadband industry.
"Revenue this quarter, or revenue opportunities, just dried up" in broadband,
he said.
The business climate eventually will rebound and bear fruit for Enron,
Skilling said, but that is probably one to two years away.
In the interim, Enron is planning to overhaul the broadband unit, cutting
costs and narrowing its scope to focus strictly on intermediation, or
trading, activities and on providing specific bandwidth to large enterprise
customers. Enron didn't reveal details of the planned cuts Thursday.
Still, Skilling did note that he thinks investors already have penalized
Enron for the broadband unit, or at best given it no value as reflected in
the stock price. He said he thinks that reaction is unwarranted and
understates the future potential of the broadband unit.
Later, in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires, Chief Executive Skilling
reiterated that California's ongoing efforts to resolve its power crisis will
have no negative impact on Enron.
He also dismissed as "all politics" a move Wednesday by a California Senate
committee to forward a contempt charge against Enron to the full California
Senate. The committee initiated the action because Enron has refused to
provide certain financial documents that the committee has requested as part
of an investigation into wholesale power prices in the state.
"They have no jurisdiction, and they've made it clear they won't keep
confidential" the information that they have requested, Skilling said
Thursday. "In the absence of that, we don't particularly want to turn over to
them information."
Enron shares recently traded at $48.80, down 30 cents, despite the company's
strong second-quarter results. Skilling said the stock was being held back
because of its tie to the energy sector, which has been struggling overall.
"Give it a couple of days," he said. "I think we've hit the low-water mark on
our stock price, and I think we have a lot of upside."
-Bob Sechler, Dow Jones Newswires; 512-236-9637
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Enron 2Q Net Rises 40% As Trading Revenue Soars
By Bob Sechler
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
07/12/2001
Dow Jones News Service
(Copyright (c) 2001, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
AUSTIN, Texas -(Dow Jones)- Enron Corp.'s (ENE) second-quarter net income
rose 40%, led by a huge uptick in revenue at its wholesale services division,
which includes energy trading operations.
"The numbers were excellent, no question about it," said John Olson, an
analyst with Sanders Morris Harris. "It was a good quarter, and management
has clearly raised the bar for 2001 and 2002."
The company reported second-quarter net income Thursday of $404 million, or
45 cents a share, compared with year-ago net income of $289 million, or 34
cents a share. Enron had been expected to earn 42 cents a share, according to
Thomson Financial/First Call.
Revenue ballooned to $50.06 billion from $16.89 billion in the year-ago
period.
However, the strong results didn't prevent Enron stock from falling modestly
in Thursday's trading. The shares traded recently at $48.80, down 0.6%.
Analysts cited a host of reasons for the lack of investor response, not the
least of which is lingering uncertainty regarding California's energy crisis
and the outcome of energy deregulation efforts overall. Enron is the nation's
largest electricity trader and marketer.
"There's a perception there that's hurting Enron's stock, creating
uncertainty about it," said Louis Gagliardi, of John S. Herold Inc. Enron is
"still under the shadow of the California situation and deregulation."
Gagliardi and others said they tend to agree with Enron Chief Executive Jeff
Skilling that California's efforts to resolve its power problems won't hurt
the company. But they said investors are jittery nonetheless.
For his part, Skilling blamed the lack of enthusiasm in the stock market
Thursday on his company's perceived tie to the overall energy sector, which
is slumping after a period of strong growth. He said he expects the stock to
respond over the next few days once investors "digest" the strong
second-quarter results.
"I think we've hit the low-water market on our stock price, and I think we
have a lot of upside," he told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview.
Skilling told analysts Thursday that Enron will meet full-year earnings
expectations of $1.80 a share, and he also raised the forecast for 2002
earnings to $2.15 a share from $2.12 a share.
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
USA: UPDATE 3-Enron quarterly earnings rise, beat estimates.
By C. Bryson Hull
07/12/2001
Reuters English News Service
(C) Reuters Limited 2001.
HOUSTON, July 12 (Reuters) - Energy marketing and trading powerhouse Enron
Corp. said on Thursday its second-quarter earnings rose almost 40 percent to
beat Wall Street estimates on robust growth in its workhorse wholesale energy
business.
The Houston-based company, the No. 1 U.S. natural gas and electricity
marketer, reported net income excluding non-recurring items of $404 million,
or 45 cents a share, compared with $289 million, or 34 cents a share, in the
same period a year ago.
Analysts had expected earnings in the range of 40 to 44 cents a share, with
an average of 42 cents, according to Thomson Financial/First Call.
Enron also said it was confident it would reach its target of $1.80 for
recurring earnings per diluted share for the full year 2001, while saying it
expected to earn a slightly better-than-expected $2.15 per diluted share in
2002.
Initially, Wall Street reacted favorably and pushed the stock up by as much
as $1.70, but the stock reversed in early afternoon trading on the New York
Stock Exchange, shedding 27 cents to move to $48.83.
One of the only black marks in the quarterly report was widening losses -
$102 million - in Enron's nascent broadband unit due to weak demand for those
telecom services.
Volume growth in Enron's core wholesale energy business drove all but $1.5
billion of $50.06 billion in second-quarter revenues. Revenues more than
doubled from $16.88 billion in the year-ago quarter.
"Our wholesale and retail energy businesses continue to dramatically expand
business activity and increase profitability," Enron President and Chief
Executive Officer Jeff Skilling said in a statement.
Total energy volumes, including natural gas, oil and power, increased 58
percent to 74 trillion British thermal unit equivalents per day, the company
said. Global power volumes led the growth as they more than doubled to 285
million megawatt-hours, with three-quarters of that coming from North
America.
Salomon Smith Barney analyst Ray Niles said the wholesale segment was the key
earnings driver, propelled by volume growth, high trading volatility and the
liquidity added by EnronOnline, the company's marquee Internet trading
platform.
EUROPEAN OPERATIONS
Another key factor, Niles said, is the emergence of Enron's European
wholesale operations, which swelled with power volumes nearly quintupling to
73 million megawatt-hours. Gas volumes doubled.
"Europe is kicking butt and it's about a quarter of their activity, nearly
double what it was last year. And that is a new market that is the size of
the U.S.," Niles said.
Growth in Europe is coming faster than expected, Skilling told analysts in a
conference call.
"It's surprising how quickly this thing is opening up and how the volumes are
growing," he said.
Enron nearly doubled new retail energy services contracts year-over-year,
moving to $7.2 billion in total value from $3.8 billion. That growth
accounted for $60 million in pre-tax income, up from $46 million a year ago.
Skilling said the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's order on
Wednesday to create four regional power grids should help increase Enron's
retail business as larger entities look for ways to package power costs.
Enron's retail arm does that by managing costs and trimming usage for large
retail customers.
"People want direct access, and right now we are the only player that can
provide it," Skilling said.
On the negative side of the balance sheet, Enron reported a $109 million
pre-tax, pre-interest loss attributable to unexpected expenses and the failed
spinoff of water company Azurix Inc.
BROADBAND BUSINESS HURTING
Skilling acknowledged that Enron's budding broadband business endured a rough
quarter with $102 million in losses compared to $8 million a year ago.
The flashy unit, which gave Enron a once-valuable telecom cache that drove
its stock to record highs last summer, has fallen from grace recently as the
telecom market tanked earlier this year and revenue dried up from credit-poor
customers.
Broad telecom weakness, as well as the California power crisis and a
struggling power project in India combined to pressure the energy giant's
stock down 15.7 percent in the quarter. It underperformed the broader
Standard & Poor's utility index, which was down 6.32 percent in the same
period.
Since the close of the quarter, the stock has been hovering near $49, just
over half an all-time high of $90.25 reached last August. It had traded at
more than $81 as recently as mid-February.
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Enron reports earnings increase of almost 40 percent
07/12/2001
Associated Press Newswires
Copyright 2001. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
HOUSTON (AP) - Enron Corp. reported a nearly 40 percent increase in
second-quarter earnings on Thursday and beat analysts' expectations due to
robust growth in its power marketing and energy management businesses in the
United States and Europe.
The Houston-based energy wholesaler and retailer earned $404 million for the
quarter ended June 30, or 45 cents per share. That compared with $289
million, or 34 cents per share a year earlier.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call predicted earnings of 42
cents per share.
Despite continued growth in its natural gas and electricity trading business,
though, Enron's stock has faltered in the past year due to unmet expectations
for its high-speed Internet business.
Enron's broadband business reported a $102 million loss, compared with an $8
million loss for the same quarter a year ago.
Enron President and Chief Executive Jeff Skilling said Enron would
"significantly" reduce spending in its broadband unit "to match the reduced
revenue opportunities currently available."
Enron reported $50.1 billion in revenue for the second quarter of 2001,
almost triple the $16.9 billion reported for the same quarter a year ago.
Company officials expressed confidence of reaching $1.80 per share in
earnings for the full year 2001 and $2.15 per share for 2002.
"Our wholesale and retail energy businesses continue to dramatically expand
business activity and increase profitability," said Skilling.
Enron has been embroiled in the conflict over California's energy woes, with
a committee of that state's Senate issuing subpoenas to the corporation and
other generating companies earlier this year in connection with an
investigation of possible price manipulation in energy markets.
Shares of Enron were up 26 cents to $49.36 on the New York Stock Exchange on
Thursday Morning. Enron's stock was trading above $70 a share at this time
last year.
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Venture capital chasing next big - and little - thing in energy
By JUSTIN POPE
AP Business Writer
07/12/2001
Associated Press Newswires
Copyright 2001. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
BOSTON (AP) - Not so long ago, investing in the energy industry meant buying
into oil wells, hydroelectric dams and the smokestacks of big, clunky utility
companies straight off of a Monopoly board.
No longer. Deregulation has unleashed competition, and headlines from the
California power crisis have sent entrepreneurs and investors scurrying into
the energy sector.
While old economy energy companies have attracted much of the attention,
there's growing interest in smaller companies that comprise an emerging
sector called "energy technology." It encompasses everything from software to
microturbines to Internet tools that manage, monitor and even trade
electricity.
A recent energy industry venture capital fair, which organizers said was the
first of its kind, drew 75 start-up companies to Boston - an event many
investors who attended said would have been unimaginable even a few years
ago.
The companies and VCs are after the "$300 billion jump ball" made possible by
electricity deregulation, said Todd Klein, managing director of Kinetic
Ventures, a Chevy Chase, Md.-based VC firm.
Their monopolies gone, power companies are being forced like never before to
improve productivity. Start-ups are trying to help them with a new generation
of high-tech gadgets.
Meanwhile, technology companies are demanding cheaper and more reliable power
sources. Entrepreneurial talent also is drifting to energy. And finally,
several technologies developed in government labs have recently become
commercially viable.
"We have been following these technologies 10 years, and they never were
anything more than science experiments," said Jeff Miller of Boston's Beacon
Group, which manages $1.6 billion in two energy VC funds. "Now you've got the
demand coming from the marketplace and very serious managers with very
focused business plans."
Offsetting the flurry of enthusiasm is tighter funding from the VCs.
According to research firm Venture Economics, 77 companies took in more than
$1.2 billion in funding in the sector last year, but so far this year just 17
companies have raised a total of $132 million. That pales in comparison to
the old economy energy companies, which have raised $7 billion in IPOs this
year.
David Lincoln, founder of EnerTech Capital in Wayne, Pa., told entrepreneurs
at the conference that nobody is in a hurry to make deals, and the conditions
that VCs impose now "were virtually unheard of 18 months ago."
Still, new public energy companies accounted for a third of all IPOs in the
first six months of the year. And the power crisis has caused the entire
investment community to take notice.
"Three or four years ago, when we were looking at certain deals, we'd go to
the banks and we'd never know who to talk to," Lincoln said. "Do you talk to
the utility bankers, or the technology bankers?"
Now, every major investment bank has begun tracking a sector.
"Everybody's backing out of the dot-coms and telecoms," said Bradley Johnson,
president of Washington, D.C.-based Pepco Technologies, which was seeking
funding here. "They're saying the next new thing is energy, but they haven't
figured it out yet. The management groups at these energy funds are sitting
back, figuring out where they want to be."
They are chasing some of the relative success stories like Chatsworth,
Calif.-based Capstone, which makes freestanding microturbines that allow
businesses to produce their own electricity. Company shares have traded as
high as $100, but have fallen under $20, and the company still hasn't turned
a profit.
The sector "still hasn't seen its Netscape," Klein said.
The upshot - and the lesson from last month's venture capital fair - is that
the next little thing is on the minds of VCs as much as the next big one.
That means technologies that don't necessarily revolutionize how electricity
is produced so much as help traditional companies produce it, and customers
use it, even just a little bit more efficiently.
"I think with the events which occurred in California and which are
threatening to occur in other parts of the company, people are focused on
immediate solutions to those problems," Klein said.
Many companies touting those types of solutions were at the fair, such as
Encinitas, Calif.-based PredictPower, which builds systems to help companies
manage their electrical use. Others showed flywheels, which store electricity
on site to guarantee a perfectly steady stream of power for sensitive
equipment. And some are still fighting to break into the already crowded
online electricity exchange market.
Other companies target the power companies themselves, with everything from
software to satellite meter-readers.
"There's just a lot more focussing on taking away the antiquities inherent in
the old utilities system," said David Smith, who follows the sector for
Solomon Smith Barney.
Especially at the venture capital level, where backers tend to be looking for
smaller investments and quicker returns. That's meant short shrift for some
early-stage "green" companies.
"Everybody's supply side," lamented R.W. Cushing, an entrepreneur whose
Austin, Texas, alternative energy marketing company generally got the cold
shoulder from VCs. "Nobody thinks in demand terms."
In fact, alternative energy firms raised $2 billion last year from IPOs and
VCs, according to Clean Edge, a research firm that tracks "green" investment.
But renewable energy requires deep pockets and patience, and tends to be
backed by big power companies which, if they can make alternative energy
work, will have the infrastructure in place to connect it to the grid.
Many big power companies ensuring they get the needed technology by backing
start-ups themselves. Houston-based conglomerate Enron, for instance, has
invested $90 million in 12 companies it sees as strategic partners, two of
which have gone public.
"I don't think there is a dearth of interest or investment in renewable
technologies," Lincoln said. "(But)... the reason why you see such a strong
level of interest in helping the supply-side companies is, right now, that's
where the capital is being spent."
With AP Photo
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
A Volt From Blue, U.S. Grid Rules Get Power Co's Abuzz
By Arden Dale
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
07/12/2001
Dow Jones Energy Service
(Copyright (c) 2001, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Energy companies, beware. This could mean you win, and
it could mean you lose. Not today, not next week, but down the road.
Big changes in the way power companies control the U.S. electricity grid are
looming because of orders announced by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission on Wednesday. At stake are billions of dollars companies could
make buying and selling electricity.
Power companies across the U.S. scrambled Thursday to learn details of the
orders, which haven't actually been issued yet. They will probably be
available by Friday, FERC spokespeople said.
Companies that may benefit most, including Enron Corp. (ENE), Dynegy Inc.
(DYN), Duke Energy Corp.(DUK) and Williams Co. (WMB), market electricity but
don't own power lines. Big transmission-owners such as Southern Co. (SO),
American Electric Power Co. (AEP) and Entergy Corp. (ETR), stand to lose
control over their assets, according to analysts.
"This is a major, major step forward," Enron Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey
Skilling said of the FERC orders in a conference call on the company's
earnings Thursday.
On Wednesday, the FERC said it would direct transmission owners to form huge
regional power grid operators by merging groups that already operate in the
Northeast and Southeast. It said it would assign judges to start mediating
right away with companies over a 45-day period to work toward compliance.
The new grid operating giants must be up and running by December 2001,
according to FERC spokesperson Celeste Miller. The FERC is widely expected to
issue similar orders for the West and Midwest.
The move this week accelerates a push the FERC's been making for several
years to form regional transmission operators, or RTOs. In 1999, the agency
issued a rule known as Order 2000 that directed companies to come up with
plans to form RTOs. Many utilities missed deadlines to file plans, and
companies including Enron criticized the FERC for not giving stronger
directives and setting more aggressive deadlines.
California's energy crisis has also prompted harsh criticism of the FERC, and
may have helped push the agency to take stronger actions, according to some
observers.
Energy companies and Wall Street analysts said the action this week took them
by surprise, more because of how fast the agency wants change to occur than
because of what it wants done. Some said they doubt change will happen that
fast.
"It's a departure from the slower transition to the new market, which has
been supported by companies like American Electric Power Co. and Southern
Co.," said Christine Uspenski, an analyst at Schwab Capital Markets L.P.
(SCH) "That doesn't mean necessarily that the older companies won't survive,
but clearly FERC is moving to catch up to the trailblazers in the industry."
Utilities and other power companies have already formed a number of grid
operating organizations. Three are up and running in the East, including one
in the New England, one in New York and another in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Those groups will be joined under one of the new orders.
The orders are intended, in part, to address complaints by some companies
that they can't move power freely around the grid to maximize their profits.
They say utilities sometimes manipulate markets unfairly by claiming lines
are congested and denying others access.
"Clearly, there is a benefit for the marketplace," said David Clement,
associate director at the Cambridge Energy Research Associates. "It simply
makes it easier for wholesale power marketers to do business."
Enron expects the orders will open up U.S. wholesale markets dramatically,
according to spokesman Mark Palmer. Right now, the market is about 20% open
to competitors: after companies comply with the order, it will be more like
90% open, Palmer said.
The FERC's orders this week didn't have an impact on energy company stocks.
That's partly because changes won't occur immediately, and because
transmission assets aren't huge profit centers for companies, according to
Steve Fleishman, an analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co. (MER).
Transmission lines do offer their owners benefits, however. "They're not as
sexy as growth businesses, but they're great cash generators," said Uspenski.
The FERC's orders will help to stimulate sorely needed investment in power
lines and power plants, said a number of analysts. The U.S. grid is straining
under the weight of increased power flows due to deregulation, but
investments have been stymied by uncertainty over how the grid will be run,
among other factors.
"We think it's important that the FERC has put a template out there that
indicates what it's next steps are going to be," said Pat McMurray, a
spokesperson for the Edison Electric Institute, a utility group.
EEI, along with a number of utilities, couldn't comment extensively on the
orders yet because it hadn't seen them. Southern Co. was among them.
(Kristen McNamara contributed to this article.)
- By Arden Dale, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-2052
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Marlin Water Trust II Taps Euro And Dollar Bond Markets
By Richard A. Bravo
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
07/12/2001
Capital Markets Report
(Copyright (c) 2001, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Marlin Water Trust II tapped the investment-grade
corporate bond market Thursday with a $475 million issue and a EUR515 million
issue.
Marlin Water is a special purposes vehicle that was created by Enron Corp.
(ENE) in 1998 to finance its purchase of U.K.-based water utility Wessex
Water PLC. The current issue was a refinancing of that debt transaction.
All interest payments are pre-funded from Enron Credit and principal
repayment is backed by Enron equity.
The transaction was done through Marlin Water Trust II in order to keep the
debt off Enron Corp.'s balance sheet, said syndicate officials involved with
the deal.
The U.S. portion of the deal was a $475 million offering of Rule 144a debt
that was priced to yield 6.31%, or 2.25 percentage points over Treasurys.
Gray market levels were quoted at 2.25 percentage points over Treasurys, a
level that investors and traders said was a strong showing.
"These levels are reasonably positive on a day when the corporate market is
so jittery," said Stephen Kane, portfolio manager at Metropolitan West Asset
Management.
Corporate spreads to Treasurys were out five to 10 basis points on the day.
Marlin Water Trust II also priced a EUR 515 million piece, which was priced
to yield 6.19%.
Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. and Deutsche Bank Alex. Brown were co-leads
on both transactions.
Enron Corp. officials weren't available for comment.
-By Richard A. Bravo, Dow Jones Newswires; 201 938-2087
[email protected]
Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
FERC Power Grid Orders Will Open Markets for Traders (Update2)
2001-07-12 17:03 (New York)
FERC Power Grid Orders Will Open Markets for Traders (Update2)
(Adds comment from utility consultant in fourth paragraph.)
Washington, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission's decision to restructure the U.S.
electricity grid opens the country's power markets to further
competition, analysts said, even as California struggles with the
aftermath of its deregulation.
``The only reason for doing this is so you can have
competition,'' said Christopher Ellinghaus, an analyst at Williams
Capital Group LP. ``It's so you can build a transmission system
that lets generators deliver power across utility boundaries
without interference by the utilities themselves.''
The FERC wants four regional transmission organizations in
the U.S. -- one for the Southeast, one for the Northeast, one for
the Midwest and one for the West -- that would allow more trading
among regions. Florida has the option not to join, and Texas is
exempt from FERC jurisdiction.
``The FERC had given some hints,'' said Larry Winter, a
partner at Accenture Ltd. who has consulted with utilities forming
transmission organizations. ``Now they are telling the utilities,
at least in the Northeast and Southeast, exactly what they want.''
Energy traders such as Enron Corp., Mirant Corp. and Aquila
Inc. stand to benefit as barriers to electricity transmission
fall, Enron officials said.
``We'll have the chance to match hundreds of potential supply
sources with thousands of markets,'' Enron Executive Vice
President Steve Kean said on a conference call with analysts and
investors. ``It's a significant expansion of the market in a very
short time.''
California Crisis
California's two biggest utilities have racked up about
$14 billion in debt because power prices surged after the state
deregulated its market, and the utilities weren't allowed to pass
higher prices on to customers. The state began buying power on the
utilities' behalf in January. A power shortage led to blackouts
for millions of Californians this year.
Politics and different market rules are the major obstacles
to consolidating the transmission organizations that utilities
proposed, Winter said.
The commission wants the transmission systems of New England,
New York and the mid-Atlantic states to combine.
``New York is not on the same page'' as New England's grid
operator, which based its rules on those of PJM Interconnection
LLC, the grid manager for Pennsylvania, Delaware, and eastern
Maryland and New Jersey, Winter said.
Enron shares rose 45 cents $49.55. They have fallen 31
percent in the past year. Aquila fell 45 cents to $25.55. Mirant
fell $1.20 cents to $36.58.
Enron CEO Skilling on California Crisis, FERC Talks: Comment
2001-07-12 15:12 (New York)
Houston, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- Enron Corp. Chief Executive
Jeffrey Skilling comments on the company's ongoing dispute with
the state of California about power sales and the settlement talks
on the issue being led by an administrative law judge at the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Skilling's remarks were made in a telephone interview
following the release of Enron's second-quarter earnings.
Houston-based Enron's shares have fallen 41 percent this
year.
On the settlement talks:
``It's pretty clear that the state has no particular interest
in resolving this. It makes for good political fodder, and so I
think they'll spend a lot of time making a lot of noise about it,
and basically nothing will happen until the judge comes in, and
the judge will set some kind of conclusion.''
Skilling said the $8.9 billion in refunds California has
requested from power generators and sellers ``has no relevance to
any true or valid claim the state of California has.
``They want their $8.9 billion, and then they say they'll
continue to sue after the fact. That's not the basis of a
settlement.''
On the outlook for the California power crisis:
``If you look at the impetus for this whole thing, it was
very, very high prices in the wholesale market. Those prices have
abated now. They're down significantly, and I think that's going
to reduce the noise level in California.''
On Enron's links to the Republican Party and its relationship with
California:
``I think our connection and (Enron Chairman) Ken Lay's
connection with the Republican Party has sort of set us up to be
their target, but the reality is our business is based on a lot of
things, and California is just one of them.''
Enron and its employees gave $113,800 to President George W.
Bush's election campaign, making them jointly Bush's 12th-largest
contributor, according to the Center for Responsive Politics,
which tracks campaign finance. Lay gave the $2,000 maximum for an
individual.
Lay also gave more than $325,000 in unlimited and largely
unregulated ``soft money'' to Republican committees that helped
finance Bush's campaign. That was part of at least $1.6 million
contributed during the election by Enron and its officers, two-
thirds of which went to Republicans, according to FECInfo, which
also tracks campaign finance.
California Governor Gray Davis is a Democrat, and both houses
of the state legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Enron Chief Executive Sees California's Energy Crisis Easing
2001-07-12 12:39 (New York)
Enron Chief Executive Sees California's Energy Crisis Easing
Houston, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- Enron Corp. Chief Executive
Jeffrey Skilling said higher retail prices for electricity in
California has curtailed power demand and should lead to fewer
blackouts than expected this summer.
``The expectation of higher retail prices has dampened demand
considerably,'' Skilling said in a conference call with analysts
and investors. ``I think we're going to get through the summer
just fine in California. That will ultimately lead to lower
wholesale prices for power.''
The state had been facing about 15 hours of blackouts a week
this summer, the North American Electric Reliability Council, a
national group that monitors and coordinates U.S. power supplies,
said in May. California has been spared outages recently because
of conservation efforts, cooler temperatures and more power plants
starting.
California Governor Gray Davis said that power plants
producing enough energy for about 1.2 million homes have opened
this summer in California.
``We're not out of the woods yet, but we are making
progress,'' Davis said in a statement yesterday.
California is seeking $8.9 billion in refunds from generators
such as Houston-based Enron, the biggest energy trader, for power
bought in the last year. Under the formula used by California to
derive that figure, Enron is actually owed $44 million because it
bought more power than it sold since May 2000, Skilling said.
Shares of Enron fell 20 cents to $48.90 in early afternoon
trading. The company said earlier today second-quarter profit rose
40 percent as higher sales of electricity more than made up for a
loss in its telecommunications business.
FERC Transmission Decision Will Open Power Markets for Traders
2001-07-12 12:20 (New York)
FERC Transmission Decision Will Open Power Markets for Traders
Washington, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- The Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission decision to restructure the U.S. electricity
grid opens the country's power markets to further competition,
analysts said, even as California struggles with the aftermath of
its deregulation.
``The only reason for doing this is so you can have
competition,'' said Christopher Ellinghaus, an analyst at Williams
Capital Group LP. ``It's so you can build a transmission system
that lets generators deliver power across utility boundaries
without interference by the utilities themselves.''
The FERC wants four regional transmission organizations in
the nation -- one for the Southeast, one for the Northeast, one
for the Midwest and one for the West -- that would allow for
increased trading between different regions. Florida has the
option not to join any RTO, and Texas is exempt from FERC
jurisdiction.
Energy traders such as Enron Corp., Mirant Corp. and Aquila
Inc. stand to benefit as barriers to electric transmission fall,
Enron officials said.
``We'll have the chance to match hundreds of potential supply
sources with thousands of markets,'' Enron Executive Vice
President Steve Kean said on a conference call with analysts and
investors. ``It's a significant expansion of the market in a very
short time.''
California's two biggest utilities have racked up about
$14 billion in debt because power prices surged after the state
deregulated its market, and the utilities weren't allowed to pass
higher prices on to its customers. The state began buying power on
the utilities' behalf in January. A shortage of power led to
blackouts for millions of Californians this year.
Shares of Enron fell 3 cents in midday trading to $49.07.
They had fallen 31 percent in the past year. Aquila fell 44 cents
to $25.56. Mirant fell 52 cents to $37.26.
California Not Due Cash Refunds for Power Purchases (Update1)
2001-07-12 18:01 (New York)
California Not Due Cash Refunds for Power Purchases (Update1)
(Adds comment from judge's recommendation in third paragraph,
background in fourth.)
Washington, July 12 (Bloomberg) -- California should not
receive any cash refund for claims it was overcharged for
electricity, a federal judge overseeing settlement talks said in a
report to federal regulators.
California's debts to power sellers for electricity they sold
in the state is higher than any refund the state can claim,
Administrative Law Judge Curtis Wagner wrote in a report to the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
``While there are vast sums due for overcharges, there are
even larger amounts owed to energy sellers'' by California and its
utilities, Wagner wrote in his report. He said California is owed
``hundreds of millions of dollars, probably more than a billion
dollars.''
FERC ordered Wagner to hold settlement talks on California's
claim it was overcharged by $8.9 billion for electricity. The
sides failed to reach an agreement and FERC ordered the judge to
make a recommendation to the commission. FERC plans to decide on
the size of any refunds. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Who would see or use this?
-----Original Message-----
From: Terraso, Michael
Sent: Monday, November 12, 2001 12:33 PM
To: Cash, Michelle
Subject: FW: Emergency Response Procedures
Michelle,
Please review and modify the attached draft emergency response procedures as you deem necessary, especially the last section regarding mobility impaired personnel. If you would prefer to forward them to someone else for formal review, please do so. Thank you for your assistance. Mike Terraso
<< File: All Enron Emergency Response Procedures.doc >> | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
I am not currently negotiating any deals with this counterparty. If the contract is with HPL, any issues they have should be directed to AEP. Also given your information regarding trade status, I would not consider entering into any type of contract with this company. Finally, I can offer you no info with regards to the "LLC", The only company I am aware of is "Upstream Energy Services Company.
-----Original Message-----
From: Balfour-Flanagan, Cyndie
Sent: Friday, July 20, 2001 1:21 PM
To: Dickson, Stacy E.; Theriot, Kim S.; Baxter, Bryce; Perlingiere, Debra; Sever, Stephanie; Brackett, Debbie R.; Hare, Bill D.; Greif, Donna
Cc: Bryan, Linda S.; Richardson, Stacey; Schott, Samuel; Elledge, Susan
Subject: Upstream Energy Services Company: Headquarter/Tradename issue revisited
While researching an EOL issue for Upstream Energy Services Company I noticed two records in the Global Counterparty Database that looked to be duplicates.
49992 Upstream Energy Services Company [Tradename]
92260 Upstream Energy Services Company, LLC [Headquarters]
Both records are "active" (as they should be based on the current classification)
However, the note listed below seems to suggest that the customer is actually doing business as LLC:
<< OLE Object: PBrush >>
The only master contract we had in existence was assigned to AEP/HPL and all current business is now conducted under GTCs. BOTH CP versions are EOL counterparties and both appear on the 7/19/01 Credit Watch Report as "No Trades" with an E-rating of 10.
The question: Should all activity actually be under only the LLC version? Knowing most traders, they are going to pick which ever one they happen to click on first.
Bryce: Does anyone in your group know any reasons why Upstream Energy Services Company, LLC would want to segregate invoices & payments? One under "Upstream Energy Services Company" & the other under "Upstream Energy Services Company, LLC"?
Donna: Is there a pathing issue that needs to keep transactions under both CP versions? One under "Upstream Energy Services Company" & the other under "Upstream Energy Services Company, LLC"?
Debbie: Since they are linked, we are capturing exposure for transactions under either. How would credit prefer to see this?
Stacey/Debra: Are we currently negotiating a replacement GISB with Upstream? If so, any idea which name is or will be on the contract?
Stephanie: What is EOL's view?
The reason I bring this issue to your attention is based on the previous discussions surrounding the debate and concern on downstream system and deal capture under Headquarters, Divisions & Tradenames. Given the obvious similarities of the names as listed in the Global Counterparty database, any confusion that can be avoided in the future would be a benefit for all groups.
Thank you!
Cyndie
[Global Contracts] | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
No, he thinks he is God's gift to contracts.
From: Suzanne Adams@ECT on 06/06/2001 09:08 AM
To: Kay Mann/Corp/Enron@ENRON
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Is this his attempt at humor because he is on the email list. I told them
you are on vacation, but they still want to have the call.
Kay Mann@ENRON
06/06/2001 07:36 AM
To: Suzanne Adams/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Sometimes John forgets that he is not a lawyer.
---------------------- Forwarded by Kay Mann/Corp/Enron on 06/06/2001 07:36
AM ---------------------------
Kay Mann
06/06/2001 07:31 AM
To: John G Rigby/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Next time you vote for me, please copy me on the email.
Kay
From: Scott Dieball@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT on 06/05/2001 05:44 PM
To: John G Rigby/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
cc: Suzanne Adams/HOU/ECT@ECT, Kay Mann/Corp/Enron@Enron
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Vacation??? I've heard that tomorrow at the staff meeting Mark H. will be
rolling out the new policy of eliminating all vacation for ENA legal folks.
John G Rigby
06/05/2001 03:08 PM
To: Suzanne Adams/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Scott Dieball/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Lets continue without Kay. I think this call will be focusing on the
documents sent out already.
Suzanne Adams@ECT
06/05/2001 02:42 PM
To: John G Rigby/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Kay will be on vacation Thursday and Friday. Can the call go on without
her? Same time, 1:30 p.m. CDT? Let me know please.
John G Rigby@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
06/05/2001 02:25 PM
To: Suzanne Adams/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
lets make the change- GE cannot make it wednesday- plus the extra day gives
both GE and us time to review the exhibits and the new T&C draft. given that
Sheila is in her "hostage situation", the other key person is Kay. Thanks.
Suzanne Adams@ECT
06/05/2001 12:02 PM
To: John G Rigby/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
John, I'm not going to change the call to Thursday until I hear from you to
make sure you guys want it that way. Thanks, Suzanne
John G Rigby@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT
06/05/2001 11:17 AM
To: [email protected]@ENRON
cc: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected]
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Changing to Thursday works better for Scott Dieball, John Rigby and Peter
Thompson.
[email protected]
06/05/2001 08:49 AM
To: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected]
cc:
Subject: RE: Weekly GE Conference Call
Any chance of postponing until Thursday afternoon - same time?
Steve
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, June 04, 2001 7:09 PM
To: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; Swift, Stephen L
(PS, CommOps); Barnas, Michael C (PS, Legal); Shoemaker, Kent (GEAE);
[email protected]; Schroeder, John H Jr (PS, Sales);
[email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]
Subject: Weekly GE Conference Call
Importance: High
The weekly conference call will take place at 1:30 p.m. CDT on Wednesday,
June 6, 2001. EB38C1 has been reserved for those of you in Houston.
Dial In: 1-888-285-4585
Participant: 536220
Host: 121970 (Sheila) | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS E-MAIL--THIS ACCOUNT IS NOT MONITORED
AP User:
Attached is/are the payment proposal(s) for your business unit. Please review and forward to your approver(s)/CAO.
Thank you.
SAP AP Team
- 20020116-ENWC.XLS | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Assuming that this relates to a request from one of the online trading sites
(Buy Side Direct, Trading Edge or LIMITrader), Sara is correct that we intend
to use Morgan Stanley as our prime broker to clear our trades through the
site's clearing broker.
Mike
x39990
---------------------- Forwarded by Mike Fowler/Corp/Enron on 10/05/2000
10:15 AM ---------------------------
From: Sara Shackleton@ECT on 10/05/2000 10:13 AM
To: Samantha Boyd/NA/Enron@ENRON
cc: Mike Fowler/Corp/Enron@ENRON, Paul Radous/Corp/Enron@ENRON
Subject: Re:
I'd stick with Anthony. I didn't think that Prudential was one of our
clearing brokers (remember, the letter must come from our clearing broker).
Please keep Mike Fowler and Paul Radous informed. Thanks. Sara
Samantha Boyd@ENRON
10/05/2000 09:32 AM
To: Sara Shackleton/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Re:
Sara,
I have Kevin Enright at Prudential Securities, Incorporated and Anthony
Capolongo at Morgan Stanley researching the "Prime Broker Letter".
Samantha M. Boyd
Sr. Legal Specialist
Enron North America, Corp.
1400 Smith, EB3802A
Houston, TX 77002
Phone: (713) 853-9188
Fax: (713) 646-3490
email: [email protected]
Sara Shackleton@ECT
10/03/2000 06:53 PM
To: Samantha Boyd/NA/Enron@Enron, Stephanie Panus/NA/Enron@Enron
cc:
Subject:
Paul Radous has requested that we seek a "Prime Broker letter" to send to the
CP.
Click on this link to view the document in the Financial Trading Agreements
database--> | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Amarjit, based on the e-mailed information below, we are resending Enron's offer of employment. You had committed to start work on Wednesday, October 24th and you have indicated that you will not be able to report to work. When you return to the United States you are welcome to reapply for a position with Enron. Thanks, Mark Broadfoot
-----Original Message-----
From: Amarjit Singh [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Sunday, October 21, 2001 11:28 PM
To: Wells, Malcolm
Subject: Apology
Hi Malcolm,
Please accept my sincere apology for not being able to join Enron
right now as I had an unavoidable emergency at home that has forced me to
come to India over the weekend.My stay here might stretch to approximately a
month or so.I donot want that the company shall suffer any loss due to my
absense so pls advice accordingly. Your company offers an invaluable
opportunity, and I would appreciate any consideration you can give me in
rescheduling my joining date after a month.
Pls contact my fiancee Kamal for any urgent issue as I am keeping my
cellphone with her.She would convey the message to me by best means.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
<html><DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Amarjit Singh</DIV>
<DIV>408-984-2040</DIV>
<DIV>408-836-7473</DIV></html>
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Notice No. 01- 100
March 21, 2001
TO:
All Exchange Members
FROM:
Neal Wolkoff, Executive Vice President
SUBJECT:
STRIP Code Changes on NYMEX ACCESSc
Currently, the commodity codes CS and NS are used on NYMEX ACCESSc to trade
Cinergy STRIPS and Entergy STRIPs respectively. These codes are known only
within the NYMEX ACCESSc system. These codes have been approved to be used
to trade WTI Calendar Swap and SoCal Basis Swap on enymexsm. As a result,
the NYMEX ACCESSc strip codes will be changed.
The following STRIP code changes will go into effect on Sunday, March 25th
for trade date Monday, March 26th:
Commodity Old STRIP Code New STRIP Code
Cinergy CS CE
Entergy NS NE
Please call the NYMEX ACCESS Control Center (NACC) for further information at
1-800-438-8616.
__________________________________________________
Please click on the link below to indicate you have received this
email.
"http://208.206.41.61/email/[email protected]&
refdoc=(01-100)"
Note: If you click on the above line and nothing happens, please copy
the text between the quotes, open your internet browser,
paste it into the web site address and press Return. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
John Sherriff has asked me to update you on the status of our relationship
with EnCom, as well as what I am doing to develop a plan for the way forward
with our investment.
Background
As you may be aware, Enron made its investment in EnCom in October 1999.
Bruce Wrobel is President/CEO. Our current cumulative investment is now
$34,750,000. We own 63.80 %, and have the right to put 5 members on a board
of nine. There are two other strategic, Japanese investors in the business;
Orix, primarily known as a leasing firm, and YTC, primarily a parts supplier
for Toyota. Enron Japan (EJ) in particular values Orix as a strategic
partner even beyond the context of EnCom (a fact that was reconfirmed when
Ken Lay met with their Chairman during his recent week in Tokyo).
At present, the relationship between EnCom (its vehicle for doing business in
Japan is E Power; and I will use the two terms interchangeably) and EJ is a
difficult one. EnCom entered the Japanese market some months before EJ
entered, and EnCom was seen in the market as Enron's entry vehicle for
Japan. I infer that EnCom has benefited from this association with the Enron
name, and Enron apparently did not discourage it in the early days. With the
arrival of EJ in Tokyo early this year, Enron is working to roll out our
wholesale/merchant business model in Japan. EnCom/E Power has and continues
to receive coverage in the media (much of it self-generated) indicating that
they intend to sign up customers. In fact, E Power's COO Mr. Awono, says
that they will need to sign up retail customers to be able to have load to
support the large power projects they are planning to do. (This unlikely
formula suggests, at least on his part, a degree of naivete, at best, about
how offtake from plants in deregulated markets can be and should be
managed.). Finally, EJ reports meeting with customers, e.g., Sony, who
indicate that E Power holds itself out as also being a "trader". This has
caused some confusion in the marketplace about which "Enron" entity is
providing wholesale/merchant services.
There now also is a question as to what EnCom's business model in Japan
should be. Conversations between Orix and EJ personnel in Tokyo suggest that
Orix believed that Enron would be intimately involved in the day-to-day
management of EnCom (we are not, and Bruce has conceded that prior to EJ's
reporting relationship into London being established, Enron involvement and
direction was largely absent). Moreover, it appears that Orix also believed
that EnCom would be engaged in the business of "aggregation" of power
supplies for further resale in the Japanese market (this is essentially
describing the core Enron merchant business in different terms).
Conversations between Orix and EJ indicate that Orix now does not see EnCom
having in place the people and skills to execute on an aggregation business
strategy. Rather, Orix sees EnCom as having the skill sets of large-scale
asset developers, and this is not a business Orix is particularly interested
in pursuing. Finally, Orix has an employee secunded to EnCom/E Power, and he
reports that Orix now even lacks confidence in EnCom's ability to deliver any
large-scale asset development opportunities. John and I are tentatively
scheduled to meet Orix's Chairman in London on 27th November.
To give E Power its due, it is now also frustrated (Wrobel telephone
conversation with me) because Ken Lay clearly signaled in some of his media
interviews in Tokyo that we were bringing the full panoply of Enron skills to
the market, including the possibility of large-scale power projects. It is
Wrobel's view that this message in the marketplace now undercuts EnCom, as he
believes that people will look to a $60 billion market cap company as a
preferred counterparty for asset development, over a company capitalised at
present to the tune of about $40 million. There is also a Business
Opportunities Agreement between EnCom and EJ addressing how opportunities
that come to Enron personnel, who are also on EnCom's Board, should be
handled. Wrobel believes that we are being a bit narrow in our
interpretation of the Business Opportunities Agreement, a view I do not
share. Ken's statements are correct, i.e., we can do large-scale developments
in JapanIn sum, there is not an agreement as to a clear division of lines of
business between the two organisations.
At present, frustrations on both sides about confusion in the marketplace and
in media messages (EnCom has now agreed that Enron will lead all contacts
with the media, for both firms), have contributed to a situation that is not
amicable. Communications in Tokyo between EJ and E Power have virtually
dried up, though recently EJ has invited E Power to work together on a
Proposal for Mitsubishi.
So Where Are We?
John has asked me to lead an effort to evaluate Enron's investment in EnCom.
This will be fairly comprehensive, including an assessment of the talent on
the ground in Tokyo, an assessment of the viability of their prospects (both
in terms of likelihood of permitting, and, to the extent possible, their
economics), and an assessment of what Enron's stake in this venture ought to
be going forward. I will evaluate the full range, from assuming 100%
control, to a reduced stake (even down to zero), to taking equity in
particular projects. As such, I have sent to Wrobel a list of items
reflecting our initial information requirements for due diligence.
Second, while this due diligence proceeds, we are also attempting to agree on
respective roles for EnCom and EJ in the Japanese market. We remain
committed to retaining an asset development capability in the market, which
does not go down well with Wrobel. We also are sceptical that EnCom has on
board now, or will acquire, the risk management skills that we believe will
be necessary to actually manage fuel and offtake along the lines that Enron
has found highly profitable, e.g., Sutton Bridge tolling. We have said that
we respect their talent for being able to develop large-scale assets (though
our Technical Services Group has already questioned their high staffing
levels), and that we feel the profit-maximising strategy for both firms is
for EnCom to develop projects (sites, permits, engineering), with Enron
holding a tolling agreement and doing the project financing. We believe E
Power should be able to develop very bankable deals on this basis. We do not
have agreement on this point. Wrobel seemingly believes that they will be
able to do the risk management functions, and receive lucrative returns for
the assets they do develop. At this early stage we see no evidence that they
can manage such risks (or that lenders would let them do that), and that it
is more likely that they will end up with a classic IPP structure with gas
"in", PPA "out", and reasonable but not rich returns on equity. Wrobel sees
our "tolling agreement" proposition as taking too much out of EnCom's deals.
For our part, we have said we are willing to assure attractive equity returns
(without saying what that number is), and reward them for their development
efforts.
Our latest effort is to try to agree a tolling arrangement for a project in
Tohoku province. E Power has already met local officials. As it turns out,
EJ was approached by national government to do a project at the same
industrial complex as that which E Power is working on. By letter from me to
Wrobel of 15 November, Enron has proposed that we pool or combine our efforts
(i.e., E Power's engineering and local permitting expertise, with Enron's
political capital garnered at national level), get the project done together
rather than competing, and divide our labours as noted above, i.e., Enron
does fuel and off-take, E Power does development of the asset. In the phone
call from me to Wrobel that preceded the sending of the letter, Wrobel
expressed serious displeasure with Enron's proposal. He and I are to speak
again; he is to call me back, and if he does not do so on 17 November, I will
call him on 20 November.
I will plan to make progress on my wider review assuming cooperation from
EnCom on our due diligence information requirements. John and I are
committed to moving this forward quickly, but much of the necessary
information is not in hand.
Please let me know if you have any further questions. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Can you confirm this for Virginia?
---------------------- Forwarded by Jesse Bryson/HOU/ECT on 04/11/2001 03:36 PM ---------------------------
Virginia Thompson
04/05/2001 01:19 PM
To: Jesse Bryson/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Pinnacle Losses - DMS#7508
Jesse,
Can you confirm this for me? If so, I'll put the annuity on your books
Thanks,
Virginia
---------------------- Forwarded by Virginia Thompson/PDX/ECT on 04/05/2001 03:26 PM ---------------------------
From: Amy Clemons @ ENRON 04/05/2001 07:53 AM
To: Virginia Thompson/PDX/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Pinnacle Losses - DMS#7508
---------------------- Forwarded by Amy Clemons/Corp/Enron on 04/05/2001 09:53 AM ---------------------------
"Sattler, Lorraine L(Z82390)" <[email protected]> on 04/05/2001 09:47:49 AM
To: "'[email protected]'" <[email protected]>
cc:
Subject: RE: losses
Per the Hourly Traders notes:
For losses incurred on March 16
1MW at 1100 for $225
1MW at 2300 for $200
Deal done at 0940 with Bill at Enron
Fred Mavroudis was the PWMT trader
Fred advised Michelle in the APS Transmission Group
Lorraine
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, April 04, 2001 4:19 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: losses
Could you give me more of a detail on what the losses were for with
Pinnacle on the 19th?
Thanks
Amy | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
For those of you interested in obtaining tickets for opening night (tonight!)
at PGE Park, please e-mail me by 3 PM today.
Who: Portland Beavers vs. Fresno Grizzlies
When: 6:30 PM, Tonight!
Where: PGE Park (formerly Civic Stadium)
Two tickets per employee - first come, first served.
Please e-mail me to indicate interest.
Thanks!
Anna | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
All -
Please refer to the attached credit worksheet for terms to be included within
the confirmation of trades Q36157, Q36441, and Q36442. Please let me know if
you have any questions.
Thanks,
Jay | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
-----Original Message-----
From: Wright, Lee
Sent: Thursday, October 18, 2001 4:37 PM
To: Bodyshop
Subject: Security Smart ID Tags-Off Property Usage
To remain consistent with Enron's directive to improve security access to the building, all Enron Body Shop members are required to check-in at the Body Shop Front Desk and present an Enron Photo ID badge or another form of Photo ID to the Security Officer each time you visit. To assist our members who participate in outdoor activities during their visit, Security SMART ID tags are available at the Body Shop Front Desk for your convenience. Simply slide the SMART ID tag through the shoe laces between an eyelet and snap the tag closed.
The SMART ID tags serve both as a safety identification tag while members are exercising off property as well as provide the security identification verification required when entering the Body Shop. Each day you plan to exercise outside, present your Enron Photo ID Badge or another form of Photo ID to the Front Desk Receptionist to receive your temporary Security SMART ID. Your Photo ID will be returned to you when you return the SMART ID tag to the Front Desk at the end of your visit. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Michelle thanks, from the logistics point of view I would recommend to do Guatemala,fly to Nicaragua as it's a short 30 min. flight.
From there Panama City is about 1hr.15min.
The next jump would be to Venezuela where VENGAS and ACCRO (30 min from Caracas) where you could do a direct flight home back to Houston.
That would be my recommendation.
I will be checking with Guatemala on the November date.
Rgds, Teo
From: Michelle Blaine/ENRON@enronXgate on 10/22/2001 06:47 PM
To: Teobaldo Camejo/ENRON_DEVELOPMENT@ENRON_DEVELOPMENT, Stephanie Truss/ENRON@enronXgate
cc: Richard B Sanders/Enron@enronXgate
Subject: RE: Guatemals-FCPA
I'm thinking the week of November 5-7 because I thought I would be in Toronto and now I don't have to go. I'd like to do Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama and Venezuela in one big trip. Help me with logistics here. I know there are a couple of places in Venezuela, but where else did you need me and are we trying to combine any of these offices?
-----Original Message-----
From: Camejo, Teobaldo
Sent: Monday, October 22, 2001 6:28 PM
To: Truss, Stephanie; Blaine, Michelle
Subject: RE: Guatemals-FCPA
Any news on possible dates?
Let me know please.
Rgds, Teo | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
No big deal at all, I was just curious. You missed quite the show today!
-----Original Message-----
From: Dasovich, Jeff [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Friday, August 31, 2001 2:42 PM
To: [email protected]; Jeff Dasovich
Subject: RE: CSUS
Don't know. I'll find out. Any sensitivity if we had? Thanks.
Best,
Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: Scott Govenar [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Friday, August 31, 2001 4:20 PM
To: Jeff Dasovich
Subject: CSUS
Jeff,
I know you said you were participating in the CSUS event, but is Enron
actually giving any money? If so, I'm just curious as to how much.
Scott
**********************************************************************
This e-mail is the property of Enron Corp. and/or its relevant affiliate and
may contain confidential and privileged material for the sole use of the
intended recipient (s). Any review, use, distribution or disclosure by
others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient (or
authorized to receive for the recipient), please contact the sender or reply
to Enron Corp. at [email protected] and delete all
copies of the message. This e-mail (and any attachments hereto) are not
intended to be an offer (or an acceptance) and do not create or evidence a
binding and enforceable contract between Enron Corp. (or any of its
affiliates) and the intended recipient or any other party, and may not be
relied on by anyone as the basis of a contract by estoppel or otherwise.
Thank you.
********************************************************************** | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
<<Budget Brief for May 8th.doc>>
Good afternoon:
Attached is a weekly Budget Brief produced by Assemblyman George Runner and
the Assembly Republican Fiscal staff. If you have any questions, please do
not hesitate to call me.
RSC
Richard Costigan, III
Chief of Staff
Office of the Assembly Republican Leader
California State Assembly
Phone:(916) 319-2005
- Budget Brief for May 8th.doc | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Jeff,
Greg is requesting Enron Industrial Markets' 2001 Goals & Objectives (no more
than 3 to 4 each) asap.
Many Thanks,
Liz Taylor | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Is there an action item with regards to the preparation of agreements?
If so, I would like Dave Fuller in Portland to work on the creation of the appropriate gas contracts and the discussions with Puget.
Please advise. BT
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanek, Darren
Sent: Monday, October 22, 2001 3:04 PM
To: Tycholiz, Barry
Subject: RE: Puget Energy
Barry,
Sorry for not getting back to you. The Power MTM positions are approx $570,000 and all related to physical positions with a total Net Power position of approx $1.2MM. I have been working with Beverly Ikeda of Puget on the issues and so far so good. Puget is going to deliver a $10MM Letter of Credit to cover the financial positions. From our conversations, her traders do not anticipate hedging any further and really only need access to short term EOL business. In addition, she and I discussed the needs of bilateral contracts with margining rights to prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future.
Thanks,
-D
-----Original Message-----
From: Tycholiz, Barry
Sent: Monday, October 22, 2001 2:52 PM
To: Vanek, Darren
Subject: Puget Energy
Darren, did you check this already.... are there any power MTM positions with Puget Energy that would be in addition to the Gas MTM that you put on my desk. ( $ 50 MM)
Thanks. BT | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Hi Mark....
Ruth asked me to inform you of our next Brazilian Subcommittee meeting which
is scheduled to take place next Monday (3/12) at 9:30 am (NY TIME). Please
advise if you will be able to attend or would like to participate via
conference call. Call in details will be provided this week.
Regards,
Scott Marra
Administrator for Policy & Media Relations
ISDA
600 Fifth Avenue
Rockefeller Center - 27th floor
New York, NY 10020
Phone: (212) 332-2578
Fax: (212) 332-1212
Email: [email protected] | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Steve, would like your reaction to this......thanks.
-----Original Message-----
From: Pieper, Kalen
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2001 7:41 AM
To: Barnard, Marla; Jones, Robert W.- HR Exec; Joyce, Mary; Lynch, Drew;
Olson, Cindy; Smith, Gary P.
Subject: Promotion Criteria -
As promised, attached are the promotion criteria that David and team have
drafted. Please get comments back to all on list by 6/11. The decisions
below were agreed to for mid-year HR PRC:
There will be no Sr. Director roles within HR. We will not promote any HR
employees to this title this year. We will grandfather those that are in
currently in Sr. Director and VP titles unless peformance dictates otherwise.
Sr. Directors and some VPs will be PRCed with the Directors
We will discuss the Analysts and Associates that were rated 1 or 2 and ensure
that we are considering Analysts and Associates in our staffing process.
Let me know if I left anything out. Have a great week
kp | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
this week is tough for lunch, we have meetings today and tomorrow, friday i
am playing golf in the morning. Where do you live? if you are in the
woodlands you are welcome to come by my house this weekend. I will be at the
childrens festival here in the woodlands on saturday. Sometime sunday is
also ok. or next week sometime.
----- Original Message -----
From: <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 17, 2000 6:25 PM
> Charlie:
> It was a pleasure meeting you yesterday afternoon at the Columbia
> Business School information session. As you probably noticed through my
> enthusiasm, I really enjoy working in the energy-finance industry,
> especially with Enron. Working in this sector, at this time, has created
> many new opportunities. I am interested in talking with you to see if we
> can do some type of transaction with you guys. It sounds like you have a
> lot going in areas that we might be interested in. If you could send me a
> business proposal or summary of what your doing, that would be helpful.
>
> With regards to Columbia Business School, I applied last year and did
> not get in due to my GMAT score. I decided to take a graduate level
> finance class this summer, which I received an A. I am currently taking
> another graduate finance class this semester. I am also retaking the
GMAT,
> with the hopes of increasing my quantitative score.
> Last year, I was asked back for an interview, which I felt was a good
> sign. I heard from one of my recommenders that the only thing that I
> needed to improve on was my GMAT score. Recently, I wrote a brief letter
> to the Dean of Admissions, Linda Meehan, informing her of my recent
actions
> as well as my continued interest with Columbia. I hope that these actions
> will help me get into Columbia this year. My desire to go to Columbia,
> stems from their network, location, reputation and curriculum. Since
> growing up in Pelham, it would be nice to get back to New York for a
> little while.
> As you can see, my desire to go to Columbia is very strong. I hope
> this brief e-mail has provided some insight into what I'm doing to get
into
> Columbia. I hope we can meet for lunch sometime soon either up in the
> Woodlands or downtown. Again, thank you for your interest and I look
> forward to talking with you about Columbia and future energy transactions.
> Regards,
>
> Ben Rogers
> | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
The report named: NG - Price P/L <http://trv.dev.corp.enron.com/linkFromExcel.asp?report_cd=10&report_name=NG+-+Price+P/L&category_cd=5&category_name=FINANCIAL&toc_hide=1&sTV1=5&TV1Exp=Y¤t_efct_date=05/25/2001>, published as of 05/25/2001 is now available for viewing on the website. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
CALENDAR ENTRY: APPOINTMENT
Description:
Richard/OBA Mtg. To meet in Lynn's office
Date: 5/11/2001
Time: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM (Central Standard Time)
Chairperson: Outlook Migration Team
Detailed Description: | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Here is a list for the schedulers downstairs...we will get you a more completed one later.
-----Original Message-----
From: Saldana, Alex
Sent: Friday, November 16, 2001 3:54 PM
To: Rangel, Ina
Subject: STENO NUMBERS
INA,
THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE FOR NOW. MONDAY EVERYONE THAT DOES NOT HAVE A STENO WILL. IF YOU NEED THE LIST OF NEW STENOS PLEASE CONTACT BRANDEE JACKSON BECAUSE I WILL BE OUT ON VACATION.
THANKS. SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG.
Alex Saldana
Administrative Assistant
Enron Networks
(713) 345-7389 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
I have some real concerns over this contract Louise put together for
Jonathan. Shanna, can you check this out with Robert Jones. I'd like to
restructure this contract.
Jeff
----- Forwarded by Jeffrey A Shankman/HOU/ECT on 02/21/2001 11:19 AM -----
Robert Jones@ENRON
02/21/2001 10:16 AM
To: Jeffrey A Shankman/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Louise Kitchen/HOU/ECT@ECT, Shanna Funkhouser/Corp/Enron@ENRON
Subject: Jonathan Whitehead
Jeff,
Attached is the term sheet we put together for Jonathan Whitehead:
Please give me a call if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Robert
---------------------- Forwarded by Robert Jones/Corp/Enron on 02/21/2001
10:10 AM ---------------------------
Louise Kitchen@ECT
02/21/2001 08:29 AM
To: Jeffrey A Shankman/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Robert Jones/Corp/Enron@ENRON
Subject: Jonathan Whitehead
I have had some discussions with Jonathan and recommended he takes the LNG
job offered. Assuming he does, we have already set out the terms for him
coming over (fully negotiated) so there is nothing to do on the HR side
provided you are happy with the numbers.
Louise
ps Robert please send Jeff the Jonathan numbers. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Thurs.?
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [SMTP:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, November 27, 2000 8:52 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: lunch
Virginia:
Hope you had a great holiday!
Pick a day for lunch (not today) and let me know.
Fran's daughter Cole just got engaged. She's 23 years old. I thought
that's how old we were!
Sara
Notice Regarding Entry of Orders and Instructions: Please
do not transmit orders and/or instructions regarding your
PaineWebber account(s) by e-mail. Orders and/or instructions
transmitted by e-mail will not be accepted by PaineWebber and
PaineWebber will not be responsible for carrying out such orders
and/or instructions. Notice Regarding Privacy and Confidentiality:
PaineWebber reserves the right to monitor and review the content of
all e-mail communications sent and/or received by its employees. | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Hey Tim -
Thanks for the note - I needed a smile today. I've been extremely busy and
am leaving this afternoon for another trip to our London office. Were you
able to make any headway with the Bank regarding the NY house? I just
wondered if Greg had been able to help at all.
Mark | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Sure.
From: Kay Mann @ ENRON 09/11/2000 02:24 PM
To: Ben F Jacoby/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Re: Change Order #3
Thanks. I suspect I'll be in the loop on this one way or the other. Do you
want me to send you emails so you know what's up?
Kay
Ben F Jacoby@ECT
09/11/2000 12:48 PM
Sent by: Ben Jacoby@ECT
To: Kay Mann/Corp/Enron@ENRON
cc:
Subject: Re: Change Order #3
Kay:
This needs to be handeled by Chris Calger's group. I think Bill Williams is
his point person (Chris will sign it, though).
Regards,
Ben
From: Kay Mann @ ENRON 09/11/2000 12:27 PM
To: Ben Jacoby/HOU/ECT@ECT, Sheila Tweed/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc:
Subject: Change Order #3
---------------------- Forwarded by Kay Mann/Corp/Enron on 09/11/2000 12:27
PM ---------------------------
"Shoemaker, Kent (GEAE)" <[email protected]> on 09/08/2000 04:25:33 PM
To: "Johnson, Lee L (PS, SSEP)" <[email protected]>,
"'[email protected]'" <[email protected]>, "'[email protected]'"
<[email protected]>
cc:
Subject: Change Order #3
Lee, Chris and Kay:
Attached is a draft of the Change Order #3 for the Las Vegas Cogen project.
Kay, I will be in Houston on Monday through Wednesday afternoon, but will be
busy most of Tuesday. Lee had hoped that we could get together, or at least
talk, about this and the facility agreement and payment for Change Order #2.
How is your late Monday afternoon looking?
Kent
<<Amendment Number 3.doc>> | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
BREAKING NEWS from CNN.com
-- "Significant new phase" involving combat forces under way in Afghanistan, senior administration official tells CNN. Details soon.
Watch CNN or log on to http://CNN.com /AOL Keyword: CNN for the latest news.
**********************************************************************
Watch CNN for the latest developments as America Strikes Back
including morning updates with Paula Zahn and an in-depth special
each weeknight at 10 p.m. ET with Aaron Brown
**********************************************************************
To unsubscribe from CNN.com's Breaking News E-Mail Alert, log on to:
http://cnn.com/EMAIL/breakingnews.html
Subscribe to CNN.com's daily news overview, weekly political review
or any CNN.com e-mail product at http://CNN.com/email
(c) 2001 Cable News Network, Inc.
An AOL Time Warner Company
CNN Interactive email id:393520070224403 | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
----- Original Message -----
From: <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>;
<[email protected]>; <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>;
<[email protected]>; <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, May 28, 2001 9:06 PM
Subject: Fwd: find out if your underpaid
>
>
Return-path: <[email protected]>
From: [email protected]
Full-name: Jbogies
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 15:13:24 EDT
Subject: Fwd: find out if your underpaid
To: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="part2_64.e83c9cc.28415a54_boundary"
X-Mailer: AOL 6.0 for Windows US sub 10523
Return-path: <[email protected]>
From: [email protected]
Full-name: Realwlb
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Date: Sat, 26 May 2001 09:24:22 EDT
Subject: find out if your underpaid
To: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="part3_64.e83c9cc.28410886_boundary"
X-Mailer: AOL 6.0 for Windows US sub 10520
http://www.dallasnews.com/popup/arodpay.htm | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Red Herring values the opinions of our customers. Therefore, we would really
appreciate your help in determining our new tagline.
Our current tagline - The Business of Technology - is felt to be somewhat
limiting now that "the business of technology" has assumed great importance
across all areas of business.
Therefore, please click on the survey link
http://www1.comcntr.com:8080/scripts/qcweb.dll?starthtml&orion&rhc7232&suz0301
2
and let us know your opinion. The survey should only take a few minutes of
your time, and would be incredibly valuable to us.
Thanks in advance for your support and participation.
Sincerely,
Red Herring Communications
www.redherring.com | {
"pile_set_name": "Enron Emails"
} |
Subsets and Splits