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Enron Mail |
Enron Still Target in California Amid Other Problems (Update1) 2001-10-26 16:15 (New York) Enron Still Target in California Amid Other Problems (Update1) (Updates with closing share price in last paragraph.) Sacramento, California, Oct. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Enron Corp., facing an inquiry by federal securities regulators into partnerships run by the former chief financial officer, remains a target of investigations and lawsuits in California. California lawmakers and regulators have accused power providers of manipulating the state's energy market to raise prices. Enron, the biggest energy trader, and other power sellers have denied the charges repeatedly. Next month, a California Senate committee investigating the power market plans to hold a hearing to determine if Enron and other generators are complying with subpoenas for trading documents. Enron has been filing documents in Sacramento, California. ``They are still putting documents in their depository, and I don't think they've completed that process,'' said Alexandra Montgomery, a consultant to the committee. It ``remains to be seen'' whether Enron is complying with its subpoena, she said. The suits and inquiries came after wholesale power prices in California soared, leaving the state's two largest utilities insolvent. Under California's plan to open its electricity market to competition, the utilities of PG&E Corp. and Edison International weren't allowed to pass rising costs to customers. ``I know that we're doing our best to comply with what the committee is asking for,'' Enron spokesman Mark Palmer. ``We are putting documents in the depository, and we're looking forward to a speedy resolution.'' Shares of Houston-based Enron have fallen by more than half since Oct. 16. The company ousted Andrew Fastow as the chief financial officer Wednesday amid a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry into a partnership he ran that cost Enron $35 million. Grand Jury Enron also is one of the companies being investigated for civil and criminal violations by California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, who convened a grand jury in June. Lockyer has been criticized by Enron officials for telling the Wall Street Journal in May that he would like to put Enron Chairman Kenneth Lay in ``an 8 x 10 cell that he could share with a tattooed dude who says `Hi my name is Spike, honey.' '' Lockyer later apologized for the remark. The attorney general's investigation is proceeding, Lockyer spokeswoman Sandra Michioku said. Michioku said she didn't know when civil or criminal charges against Enron or other power providers might be filed. ``Our investigation is still being pursued,'' she said. ``We had to go to court to get Enron to turn over documents, so that slowed things down a bit.'' Enron's Palmer said he didn't know the status of the attorney general's investigation. ``I think the attorney general demonstrated his willingness to take a fair and impartial look a long time ago when he made his vulgar and unfounded remarks about our chairman,'' Palmer said. More Lawsuits Enron, along with other major power providers such as Duke Energy Corp. and Dynegy Inc., face at least five lawsuits alleging they manipulated California energy prices in violation of antitrust laws. The cases, which include separate complaints filed by the City of San Francisco, California Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante and various consumers, currently are in state courts awaiting a coordination proceeding, said Michael Aguirre, a lawyer representing Bustamante. The lawsuits should be assigned to a judge by the end of next month, he said. If the complaints succeed, the companies might be ordered to repay profits from any illegal activities and pay fines, including triple damages. Enron's stock fell 95 cents, or 5.8 percent, to $15.40, declining for the eighth day in a row. The shares have fallen 80 percent in the past 12 months. --Daniel Taub in Los Angeles, (323) 801-1261 or
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