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LCG Publishes 2024 Annual Outlook for Texas Electricity Market (ERCOT)

LCG, October 10, 2023 – LCG Consulting (LCG) has released its annual outlook of the ERCOT wholesale electricity market for 2024, based on the most likely weather, market, transmission, and generator conditions.

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LCG Publishes 2024 Annual Outlook for Texas Electricity Market (ERCOT)

LCG, October 10, 2023 – LCG Consulting (LCG) has released its annual outlook of the ERCOT wholesale electricity market for 2024, based on the most likely weather, market, transmission, and generator conditions.

Read more

Industry News

California Capsule: State SenateCites Enron, Mirant for Contempt

LCG, June 29, 2001A special committee of the California state Senate yesterday voted to cite Enron Corp. and Mirant Corp. for contempt, saying the companies had failed to produce documents subpoenaed earlier this month.

In the movie My Little Chickadee, Mae West who co-starred with W. C. Fields was asked by a judge "Are you trying to show contempt for this court?"

"On the contrary, your honor, I'm trying to hide it," she replied.

Enron and Mirant, along with six other power producers, were ordered by the Senate Rules Committee to turn over documents related to bidding, pricing and other aspects of power sales. The vote to cite the two companies for contempt was taken by the Senate Select Committee to Investigate Market Manipulation.

Enron said its records were in Texas, which is outside the state Senate's jurisdiction, an argument tried first by Reliant Energy Inc., which later agreed to submit more than 1,800 documents. Mirant said it wanted to comply but gathering the documents would take time. The committee saw that as foot dragging and voted to cite the Atlanta-based company.

If the full Senate agrees with the committee's contempt citation, it would be only the second time a private business was held in contempt by the state legislature. In 1929, during a state Senate investigation into price gouging by a company that sold cement to the state, a witness was cited for contempt for failing to answer questions, and was briefly jailed.

Few in the Senate want to put anyone behind bars, but Sen. Joe Dunn, a Santa Ana Democrat, said "Jailing an individual is an option and we're going to preserve all our options." He added the Senate could also fine companies that failed to comply.

The principal architect of California's failed electric deregulation scheme was outraged by Enron's argument. Sen. Steve Peace, a Democrat from Chula Vista, said other legislative investigations have routinely subpoenaed documents from throughout the U.S. and even from foreign countries.

Sen. Debra Bowen, a Marina del Rey Democrat, agreed. "If they've done nothing, if they've got nothing to hide, there's no reason not to comply," she said.

All of the companies hesitate to furnish confidential documents for fear that senators or members of their staff would leak their substance to the press. Though four have agreed to submit the documents, not all have done so. In addition to Reliant's 1,800 documents, the senators have received 18.000 from Dynegy Inc., which agreed to store them in a Sacramento repository as long as the company and the committee agree on how to keep them confidential.

In addition to Reliant, Mirant and Dynegy, documents were subpoenaed from The Williams Coe., AES Corp., Duke Energy Corp. and NRG Energy Inc.

Oil Refineries Exempt from Blackouts
The California Public Utilities Commission voted unanimously yesterday to exempt refineries that produce more than a third of California's gasoline from rolling blackouts this summer, ensuring a stable fuel supply and helping to keep gasoline prices from rising.

The vote affects 13 refineries in the service territories of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and Southern California Edison Co.

The exemptions, which include associated pipelines, were recommended by California Gov. Gray Davis in a letter to the CPUC and were proposed by Commissioner Carl Wood. San Francisco-based Chevron Corp., which produces about 18 percent of the gasoline sold in the state, had told Davis that it would halt production at its California refineries if regulators did not protect it from blackouts.

All of the state's refiners have complained that blackouts would not only interrupt production but could severely damage refinery equipment, costing the refiners hundreds of millions of dollars.

Valero Energy, Tosco, Exxon Mobil and Equilon Enterprises, which together own about 25 percent of the state's refining capacity, petitioned for blackout exemptions at their facilities.

The California Energy Commission supported the move, saying rolling blackouts could cause refineries to lose up to one week of production each time, which could create gasoline shortages and boost prices at the pump during the height of the summer driving season.

Pat Robertson's Power Plant Nixed
The California Energy Commission last night rejected an application by television bible thumper Pat Robertson to build a power plant in the Los Angeles working class suburb of Santa Fe Springs.

Cenco Electric Co., a newly formed subsidiary of a petroleum refining company owned by Robertson's Christian Coalition, had applied to build a 40 megawatt to 75 megawatt power plant on the site of a refinery it owns in the Latino community.

Civil rights activists and Hispanic groups had opposed the plant on the grounds that it would be too close to a school and residential areas. The Energy Commission staff said the proposed plant would not be eligible for "fast track" approval under Davis' emergency power orders.

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