Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)

FERC OK's Affiliate Resale

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has conditionally allowed QST Energy Trading, Inc., a subsidiary of Central Illinois Light Co. to make sales to nonaffiliates as well as to an affiliate, QST Energy, Inc. (FERC Docket No. ER96-553-000). In turn, QST Energy would sell power in Illinois to customers located outside the service territory of Central Illinois.

FERC: "High-Low" Gas Pricing Prevents Gaming

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved Texas Eastern Transmission Corp.'s (TET) proposed revisions of its monthly imbalance cash-out mechanism (Docket No. RP96-142-000).

TET had asserted in February that its monthly imbalance mechanism enabled shippers to game the cash-out mechanism during the recent rapid and large price fluctuations in the spot gas market.

Perspective

Since the federal Court of Appeals decision in the Calvert Cliffs case over 25 years ago, no power plant may be built without a thorough socioeconomic impact statement. Yet, schemes to alter the entire supply system of a state - or even the nation - are currently proposed with only cursory attention to socioeconomic consequences.

Frontlines

I don't know about you, but the Internet is driving me carzy. Every week I discover a half-dozen new home pages to add to my reading list. Some may view NetscapeÔ as an investment play. I see it as drama.

As a magazine editor (em someone who gets paid to follow the news (em I feel guilty if I don't click on every link and download every file. I call it the "obligation to surf." And the problem grows worse as more government agencies post their decisions online.

Deregulating Retail Energy Services: First and Subsequent Steps

One popular model in electric utility restructuring assumes a fully competitive merchant segment providing retail energy services. These "retail energy service companies," or RESCOs, would offer services described as heating, cooling, ventilation, lighting, drive power, information, and communications.

MidAmerican Gets Market-Based Rates

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has conditionally approved market-based rates for power sales by MidAmerican Energy Co., finding a lack of generation market dominance (Docket No. ER96-719-000).

In 1994, the FERC granted MidAmerican's affiliate power marketer, InterCoast Power Marketing Co., authority to sell power at market-based rates, conditioned on the submission by Iowa-Illinois Gas & Electric Co. (MidAmerica's predecessor in interest) of a tariff providing comparable transmission service.

Mojave Cancels Troubled Northward Expansion

Although the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a December 1995 order (Docket No. CP93-258-007) giving Mojave Pipeline Co. a green light to expand into California, the planned Northward Expansion Facilities have been tabled. The reason: A three-year delay caused by jurisdictional disputes between the FERC and the California Public Utilities Commission, as well as problems involving the FERC's contract-demand reduction policy, caused Mojave to lose its projected customer base.

FERC Scrutinizes Hydro Preference Sales

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has set for hearing a complaint by the Municipal Electric Utilities Association of New York (MEUA) against one of its members (the Town of Massena) and the New York Power Authority (NYPA). The complaint alleges that NYPA improperly agreed to sell low-cost hydroelectric power to an industrial customer, violating the Niagara Redevelopment Act as well as a FERC license assigning statutory preference to municipal utilities (Docket No.

FERC Modifies Offshore Pipeline Policies

A new policy at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) makes water depth a factor in deciding whether an offshore facility is primarily a gatherer rather than a transporter of natural gas (Docket No. RM96-5-000). The Natural Gas Act (NGA) requires the FERC to regulate transportation and wholesale transactions, but exempts gathering and production. Under the new policy, a facility that operates in depths of 200 meters or more will be considered a gatherer. The FERC hopes to encourage exploration and development of deep water reserves on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

Columbia Gas System Expands into New Era

Columbia Gas Transmission Corp. and Columbia Gulf Transmission Co., the interstate natural gas pipeline subsidiaries of The Columbia Gas System, Inc., have a new chief executive officer (CEO), Catherine Good Abbott, as well as plans for an ambitious expansion. The project and the CEO mark the beginning of a new era for a once-troubled pipeline system that recently emerged from bankruptcy.