A PYMNTS Company

US: Court reversal means energy cos to face buyers again

By  |  April 15, 2013

A US Court of Appeals in San Francisco has reversed a lower court’s previous ruling that dismissed allegations against several electric companies, reinstating a group of lawsuits accused of price-fixing during California’s energy crisis. Duke Energy Corp., CMS Energy Corp., and other giants in the energy market were freed from allegations that they manipulated prices from 2000 to 2002. The case has been revived, however, as the appeals court has ruled that the US Natural Gas Act does not block state-law antitrust lawsuits concerning energy prices initiated by the buyers of that natural gas. The Act gives the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission jurisdiction over some pricing policies. The consumers argue that the companies reported false data to trade publications which used that data to calculate price indexes used to determine some contracts between buyers and sellers of natural gas.

    Get the Full Story

    Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content — no additional logins required.

    yesSubscribe to our daily newsletter, PYMNTS Today.

    By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

    Full Content: Bloomberg

    We’d love to be your preferred source for news.

    Please add us to your preferred sources list so our news, data and interviews show up in your feed. Thanks!

    Add as Preferred Source

    Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.