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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 22, 2002)
Page A6 _________ (E e ^ í l o r t l a n ú ( f t h s e r u e r ________________________________ I B usiness Documents Allege Energy Price Fixing May 22,2002 Why Deadly Force? PGE-parent Enron accused in Portland operation Gates, Jackson Tackle Digital Divide Microsoft founder Bill Gates (from right) joins Rev. Jesse Jackson of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and Tavis Smiley, talk show host and community advocate, during a recent conference to address issues related to people who are underserved and disenfranchised by high technology. The meeting in San Diego was the third annual Digital Connections conference hosted by Jackson and the Silicon Valley Project of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. White House Praises Tri-Met Switch T r i- M e t’s e n v iro n m e n ta lly friendly switch tore-refined motoroil for its bus fleet was recently featured by the White House in “Closing the Circle News," a quarterly publication on the environment. Tri-Met is switching its entire fleet of 670 buses to re-refined motor oil after testing the product for a year. In doing so, Tri-Met joins a few major transit agencies in the country at the forefront of this conservation effort. Re-refining oil is better for the en vironment because it can be re-re- fined again and again, using fewer natural resources. The product takes less energy than producing and refin ing crude oil. C apturing and re-refining used oil also keeps improperly discarded m otor oil from entering rivers, stream s, lakes and ground water supplies. In July 2000, Tri-Met began testing re-refined oil in about one-third of its bus fleet and found no significant engine-wear differences among the buses. (AP) — State attorneys gen eral in Oregon, California and Washington have sent congres sional investigators newly uncov ered Enron documents outlining corporate schemes to drive up power prices. The documents were handwrit ten notes found in Enron’s Port land office. Enron owns Portland General Electric. The notes were taken in Octo ber 2001 by Tim Belden, head of Enron’s West Coast trading op erations, during Enron meetings to prepare for investigations. He discusses energy plans with names such as “Get Shorty,” “Fat Boy” and “Death Star.” Investigators said Enron used these plans to create phantom congestion and engage in fake sales to drive up energy prices throughout California. The memos said traders coined such colorful terms for trading strategies that sought to maximize profits in California’s newly de regulated electricity markets. Describing “Death Star,” the lawyers wrote: “The net effect of these transactions is that Enron gets paid for moving energy to relieve congestion without actu ally moving any energy or reliev ing any congestion.” A latermemo challenged the accuracy of the first report and Enron lawyers have said they don’t know which is right. California officials have said for 18 months that Enron and other energy companies took unfair advantage of California’s deregu lation by manipulating power sup- plies to force prices to all-time highs. W holesale power rates in creased tenfold. Enron Calls Off PGE Sale (AP) — Enron Corp, said Thursday it has agreed to call off the sale o f Portland General Electric, a $1.8 billion deal that was struck ju st w eeks before the H ouston-based en ergy giant collapsed in bankruptcy last D e cember. Enron had planned to sell PGE, the largest and oldest utility in O regon, to N orthw est N atural Gas Co. Both PGE and NW N atural are based in Portland, with headquarters just blocks apart. A PGE spokesm an said that abandoning the deal gives the Oregon utility a better chance of becom ing part o f a restructured Enron. “W e think w e’re a strong com pany w ith a prom ising future, no m atter w hat com pany ow ns us,” said Scott Simms. NW Natural Chairman Richard Reiten said the Enron collapse posed too many problems. “The agreem ent signed last O ctober, be fore E nron’s problem s began, simply doesn’t work given the com plexities o f the situa tion,” Reiten said. Stephen F. C ooper, Enron interim CEO, agreed the bankruptcy spoiled the deal. “A lthough we had hoped to com plete the sale to NW N atural, it was not possible to fully satisfy the term s,” C ooper said. i continued X from Front “Homicide is scrutinized more than any other crime or investigation,” he said, “and officers involved are scruti nized the most. Police p sychologist Dr. David Corey spoke o f the dev astating impact on officers in volved in shootings, upon their p ersonal and p ro fessio n al lives. “This is a situation most of ficers don’t want to find them selves in,” he said. By the end of the eight-hour seminar, the media for once seemed at a loss for words. Perhaps they were so swayed by the policies o f the depart ment that there was no longer a need for questions. Or maybe the fatigue of police work kept their mouths to a murmur. A fte rw a rd , p a rtic ip a n ts were presented with a Certifi cate of Achievement, and a Portland Police photographer took a group photo. As the local jo u rn alists bunched together for the shot, one of them asked, “W hat are they going to do with a picture of us?” A photographer in the front row chimed back, “T hey’ll probably throw darts at it.”
