Not earth-shattering, but a straw in the wind:
Federal Crt Dismisses Mkt Manipulation Suit Vs 8 Elec Cos
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
LOS ANGELES -- The U.S. District Court of Southern California Monday dismissed a lawsuit against nine electricity suppliers that sought monetary damages for excess power prices caused by alleged market manipulation, according to a copy of court documents seen by Dow Jones Newswires.
The lawsuit was filed last July by the Snohomish County Public Utility District in Washington State against Reliant Resources, Inc. (RRI), PG&E Corp (PCG) unit PG&E Energy Trading, Duke Energy Corp (DUK), Williams Companies (WMB), Xcel Energy, Inc (XEL), Dynegy Inc (DYN), Sempra (SRE), Mirant Corp (MIR) and BC Hydro unit Powerex.
Snohomish accused the power suppliers of conspiring to manipulate power markets by fixing prices and withholding electricity supply, thus driving up electricity prices.
In his order dismissing the case, U.S. District Judge Robert Whaley said the issue of whether and how market manipulation affected rates should be determined by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Snohomish also has complaints pending at FERC, which regulates wholesale power rates.
"Both the monetary and injunctive relief Plaintiff seeks here present direct and specific conflicts with FERC's regulatory authority," Whaley wrote.
Whaley's decision bodes well for other lawsuits pending before the Southern District of California, as well as similar cases pending in the Northern District, said Reliant spokesman Richard Wheatley.
"A similar motion to dismiss is currently pending before Judge (Vaughn) Walker, the judge who is considering the Northern California class action cases," Wheatley said. "We are gratified by Judge Whaley's decision that FERC is the proper authority to deal with these issues."
The Snohomish utility plans to appeal Whaley's decision at the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, said Eric Christensen, associate general counsel for Snohomish County PUD.
A FERC judge issued a ruling last month upholding a disputed contract between Snohomish County PUD and Morgan Stanley (MWD). The decision must be approved by the commission before it's effective.
Snohomish is currently in settlement talks with American Electric Power Co (AEP) over another disputed electric contract, Christensen said.
-By Jessica Berthold, Dow Jones Newswires; 323-658-3872;
jessica.berthold@dowjones.com |
