Energy Central Direct - 2/20/02

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Energy Central Direct

Wednesday, February 20, 2002

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THESE ARTICLES BROUGHT TO YOU BY
	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: http://www.itron.com

	What are the experts saying about Excelergy's new trading and risk management solution? Here's what one leading consultant wrote: "I'm excited with the Excelergy technology, and I believe it really fills a void in the market. There is a genuine need for a product that focuses on flexible transaction management combined with real-time interfaces to other market players. And the recently announced partnership with [enterprise risk management provider] Algorithmics is genius." Interested in learning more about how your company can minimize risk while maximizing margins in your trading and generation operations? Then please contact Kellee.McGolpin@excelergy.com or 781-372-5133. http://www.excelergy.com


Top Stories
	Group Challenges Wisconsin Energy Corp.'s $3 Billion Plan for Power Plants By Lee Hawkins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Feb. 19 - A Madison-based group that represents large businesses is challenging an aspect of Wisconsin Energy Corp.'s $3 billion plan to build new power plants that would add 2,800 megawatts of electric capacity in Wisconsin.
	AES to shed assets to raise up to $1.5 billion NEW YORK, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Independent power producer AES Corp. on Tuesday said it would shed assets in a restructuring aimed at raising up to $1.5 billion in cash to soothe investor concerns about its ability to service debt.
	With Reforms in Tatters, Mexican President Raises Price of Power By Jenalia Moreno, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 19 - Millions of Mexicans breathed a collective sigh of relief last month when Congress turned back President Vicente Fox's proposal to impose a 15 percent tax on food and medicine.
	As rains resume, Brazil ends energy rationing Feb 19, 2002 - Associated Press - As summer rains fill depleted reservoirs, Brazil's government announced the end of energy rationing and said there would be no shortage of power at least through next year.

Enron Debacle

Employees Committee Could Alter Dynamic of Enron's Efforts to Rebuild

By Eric Berger, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 19 - During another withering hearing in a New York bankruptcy court last week, in a rare personal moment, Enron's lead attorney explained what he tells those who ask how the case is going:

Advocates Say Energy Regulatory Commission Members Unfairly Tarnished by Enron

By Frank Reeves, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Feb. 19 - Patrick Wood and Nora Brownell, President Bush's appointees to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, haven't been getting the best press lately.

Florida Is Rejected As Lead Enron Plaintiff

By Helen Huntley, St. Petersburg Times, Fla., Feb. 19 - A federal judge has bluntly questioned Florida's effort to sue Enron and its accountants for securities fraud in the loss of more than $300-million from the state's pension funds.

E-mail from Chicago to Houston Could Hold Key to Enron Shredding

By Cam Simpson, Chicago Tribune, Feb. 19 - It didn't carry a computer virus that wiped out every Enron file, but an extraordinary e-mail from Chicago to Houston may have produced similar results.

Rivals Battled Enron In Energy Lobbying

Feb 19, 2002 - washingtonpost.com - Just weeks after Enron Corp. Chairman Kenneth L. Lay wrote checks for $175,000 to the Republican Party in April 2000, executives and lobbyists from one of his arch rivals hosted a fundraiser in Alabama for Sen. Frank H. Murkowski (R-Alaska), then chairman of the Senate Energy Committee.

Senators, Former Employees Still Upset about Enron Debacle

By Jerry Zremski, The Buffalo News, N.Y., Feb. 18 - Senators pushed the weight of the world onto Kenneth L. Lay's shoulders Tuesday, saying he shares the blame for the loss of his employees' jobs and retirement savings, not to mention the energy crisis in California and the corruption of the American political system.

European Traders Take Bonuses in Wake of Enron's Collapse

Daily Mail, London, Feb. 18 - A hundred traders shared bonus bonanzas of UKpound 24 million to help close the books at the European operations of US energy giant Enron, which collapsed under debts of UKpound 20 billion.

Denver-Area Experts Offer Scenarios on Where Enron Scandal May Lead

By Tom McGhee, The Denver Post, Feb. 18 - Top Enron executives could find themselves stripped of their fortunes and reading stock reports behind bars, some Denver-area experts say.

Former Enron Workers Look for Life after Company Collapse

By Bill Murphy, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 18 - They were the best, the brightest, the cream of the crop.

Andersen Almost Ready to Wrap Up Its Own Investigation into Enron Case

By Delroy Alexander, Chicago Tribune, Feb. 19 - Faced with speculation about a promised internal report into how its employees went about destroying documents relating to client Enron Corp., accounting giant Andersen and its law firm were hurriedly putting the finishing touches to their investigation Monday.

Democratic National Chairman Has Two Enron-Type Skeletons Lurking

By Ralph Z. Hallow, The Washington Times, Feb. 18 - Democratic National Chairman Terrance M. McAuliffe, who has been trying to tie the Enron debacle to the Bush administration, has two Enrons in his closet.

House Democratic Whip Pelosi Ties Enron to Picking Regulatory Chief

By Joyce Howard Price, The Washington Times, Feb. 17 - House Democratic Whip Nancy Pelosi said yesterday that she suspects Enron was involved in choosing the chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Jarvis Entertainment wants to buy Enron subsidiary

HOUSTON, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Jarvis Entertainment Group, Inc., an Internet technology and entertainment holding company, said on Tuesday it has initiated an offer to buy Enron Broadband Services from the bankrupt energy giant Enron Corp.

Canada reviews policy to avoid Enron replica

OTTAWA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The Canadian government has begun examining financial and accounting regulations to make sure no replica of the Enron debacle occurs in Canada, cabinet ministers said on Tuesday.

Enron Scandal Not Funny to Accountants

By John Taylor, Omaha World-Herald, Neb., Feb. 18 - Did'ja hear the joke about the Arthur Andersen accounting firm and its audit of Enron Corp.?

FEATURE-Do-good mutual funds did not escape Enron fall

By Martha Slud, NEW YORK, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The Pax World Balanced fund, which prides itself on its ethics, is one of the biggest mutual funds that promotes investing in good corporate citizens.

Enron Scandal Will Touch Everyone

Feb 19 - Dayton Daily News - Americans who aren't employees or shareholders of Enron Corp. may think the massive corporate scandal doesn't touch them.

Enron Witness Is Genuine Hero, Oklahoma Family Says

By Adam Wilmoth, The Daily Oklahoman, Feb. 16 - Enron's collapse has affected thousands of people worldwide, but few were paying more attention to Thursday's congressional oversight committee hearing than Edmond resident Julie Reagan.

Enron's Collapse to Affect Accounting Rules for Tech Companies

By David A. Sylvester, San Jose Mercury News, Calif., Feb. 18 - The Enron scandal is sparking a broad reform movement to tighten financial and accounting practices -- and some of the key benefits won by Silicon Valley technology industries during the 1990s are caught in the crossfire.

National Energy Policy

Agencies Told to Save All Records from Energy Task Force

By Bennett Roth, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 17 - The Bush administration said Saturday that it had ordered agencies to preserve all records pertaining to Vice President Dick Cheney's energy task force in response to an admonition from a federal judge.

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Mergers, Acquisitions & Divestitures

Reliance seeks BG joint bid for Enron India-source

AHMEDABAD, India, Feb 19 (Reuters) - British oil and gas major BG Group Plc has been asked to join Reliance Industries Ltd, the flagship of India's powerful Reliance Group, in bidding for bankrupt Enron Corp's $2.9 billion power project near Bombay, an industry source said on Tuesday.

Potential Buyer Would Expand North Tonawanda, N.Y., Power Company, Greenhouse

By Bill Michelmore, The Buffalo News, N.Y., Feb. 18 - Fortistar, a White Plains-based power producer, is proposing to buy Oxbow Power of North Tonawanda and a nearby tomato greenhouse and is studying expansion at both sites that could create 15 new jobs.

Omaha, Neb.-Area Telecommunications Firm Sells Off Utility Business

By Virgil Larson, Omaha World-Herald, Neb., Feb. 18 - Touch America Holdings Inc. on Friday became a stand-alone telecommunications company with the sale of the utility business that was once its parent.

E.ON sees SEC approval for Powergen deal by April

DUESSELDORF, Germany, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Germany's E.ON expects its bid for UK rival Powergen to be approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by April at the latest, E.ON's chief executive said on Tuesday.

Germany Utility Appeals Deal Block

Feb 19 - Associated Press - German utility conglomerate E.On said Tuesday it has sought government approval for its acquisition of a 25.5 percent stake in Ruhrgas AG, the nation's main natural gas distributor, despite opposition from German antitrust authorities.

Communications Firm Finds Austin, Texas, Buyer for Beleaguered Internet Unit

By Tom Fowler, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 19 - Reliant Energy Communications is selling its Internet and data communications business to an Austin-based Internet service provider for an undisclosed price.

Rates

Rate freeze, job cuts set for Hydro; PUC move prompts action

Feb 18 - Bangor Daily News Bangor, ME - Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. is preparing to cut costs by 20 percent, eliminate some jobs and freeze its rates in response to criticism from the Maine Public Utilities Commission that the company has sought too many rate increases in recent years.

General

Energy Subsidiary to Sponsor Operating System for Schools in Atlanta Area

By Suzanne King, The Kansas City Star, Mo., Feb. 19 - GeKL Technologies, a Kansas City company that has created Internet-based software geared toward helping school districts and other organizations communicate, has landed a deal with a subsidiary of the country's second-largest electric cooperative.

New Technologies/Markets

Bothell, Wash., Firm Receives More Funding for Fuel Cell Development

By Caitlin Cleary, The Seattle Times, Feb. 18 - A Bothell-based start-up is in the thick of what promises to be a hot new industry: fuel cells.

Ford to Produce Power Units

Feb 19 - Associated Press - Ford Motor Co. and Ballard Power Systems Inc. said Tuesday they have entered an agreement to jointly develop commercial power generating products.

Renewables

Meti to Oblige Power Retailers to Sell New Energy

Feb 18, 2002 - Kyodo News - The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) plans to oblige power retailers from fiscal 2003 to sell certain amounts of energy generated by solar, wind and other types of renewable sources, according to a draft bill made available Monday.

Power plants will turn rubbish into energy

Feb 19 - Irish Times - Two new "green" power plants using the gas naturally released from rubbish dumps in Kill and Kilcullen, Co Kildare, are to be built, it was announced yesterday.

Plants

Glendale, Calif., Power Plant May Get $245 Million Upgrade

By Helen Gao, Daily News, Los Angeles, Feb. 19 - With some of the city's generators more than three decades old, officials are considering investing up to $245 million in new equipment to ensure reliable electricity and compliance with air-quality standards.

Energy Efficiency/Conservation

Florida Governor Plugs Home Insulation Plan in Miami Area

By Charles Rabin, The Miami Herald, Feb. 19 - Gov. Jeb Bush visited a Little Havana home Friday to promote "weatherization" -- an insulation process that is said to save low-income families up to 30 percent on their electric bills.

Fuel

Clean-Coal Legislation Is Hot Issue in Indiana

By Gargi Chakrabarty, The Indianapolis Star, Feb. 19 - A bill that would offer financial incentives to electric utilities for adopting clean-coal technology will get a hearing today by the House Rules Committee.

Environmental

Power Firm Gets Kudos, Criticism for Tree Plan in Indiana

By George Stuteville, The Indianapolis Star, Feb. 17 - A power company and a land preservation group, normally on opposite sides of the environmental fence, have found common ground in two of Indiana's oldest state forests.

Nuclear

Fort Worth, Texas, Officials Hesitant about Nuclear Waste Disposal Plan

By Ginger D. Richardson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas, Feb. 17 - Local officials greeted with trepidation President Bush's decision to pursue a nuclear waste dump in Nevada, saying that the plan is fraught with public safety concerns that could affect millions of Texans.

Russian urges labs to back push for nuke power

Feb 19 - Scripps Howard - U.S. and Russian nuclear scientists hope by June to submit a formal appeal to the presidents of both nations asking them to collaboratively jump-start nuclear power.

Secret plan to close Chapelcross early

Feb 18 - Scotland on Sunday - CHAPELCROSS nuclear power station will close next year with the loss of 450 jobs under secret plans presented to the government by its owners.

Anti-Radiation Pill Distributor Relocates to Wilmington, N.C.

By Bonnie Eksten, Morning Star, Wilmington, N.C., Feb. 19 - A desire to live by the water was the motivating force that brought Steven Aukstakalnis and his company, Two Tigers, to the Wilmington area.

Financial

Stock in Britian's Innogy Surges as Suitors Seek a Good Connection

Evening Standard, London, Feb. 18 - Shares in Innogy, the company behind the power household energy brand, soared to a record high today as potential bidders for the business broke cover.

International

Chevron Texaco seeks investments in Korea-official

SEOUL, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Chevron Texaco Corp. is seeking investment opportunities in South Korea ahead of the country's planned privatisation of its gas and power sector, an energy ministry official said on Tuesday, after the U.S. group's vice president Patricia A. Woertz met Shin Kook-hwan, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy.

New hope for Czech deal

Feb 19 - The Herald - Glasgow - ELECTRICITE de France has withdrawn from the bidding for the Czech Republic's energy assets, raising renewed hopes of British Energy (BE) buying the country's two nuclear power stations later this year.

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	RESTRUCTURING TODAY

February 20, 2002

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SoCal Ed makes big step towards reasonable debt

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Conn agencies cite negative impact of default pricing

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