March 11, 2014

Wright & Talisman Prevails in Major Pipeline Rate Case

On behalf of clients Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and Tesoro Alaska Company, Wright & Talisman, P.C., along with Alaska co-counsel Brena, Bell, & Clarkson, P.C., prevailed on virtually every issue in FERC Administrative Law Judge Carmen Cintron’s Initial Decision, BP Pipelines (Alaska) Inc., 146 FERC ¶ 63,019 (2014). The decision concerns rates on the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS).

This phase of the TAPS rate proceedings involved multiple parties engaged in concurrent hearings before FERC and the Regulatory Commission of Alaska.  The issues were  complex ratemaking matters, including prudence and other pipeline cost-of-service and rate issues in both jurisdictions.  The hearings involved more than 60 witnesses and spanned many months in both Washington, D.C. and Anchorage, Alaska.  The 541-page Initial Decision, which applies to the FERC-jurisdictional rates, exhaustively reviewed the facts and legal precedent and found for Wright & Talisman’s clients on all major issues.

This decision follows Wright & Talisman’s previous success with co-counsel  Brena, Bell, & Clarkson, P.C  in prior TAPS litigation, prevailing on virtually every issue in FERC’s Opinion No. 502, BP Pipelines (Alaska) Inc., 123 FERC ¶ 61,287 (2008), which  was upheld by the D.C. Circuit.  Flint Hills Resources Alaska, LLC v. FERC, 627 F.3d 881 (D.C. Cir. 2010).

Based in Washington, D.C., Wright & Talisman has been a trusted advisor to energy companies for 65 years.  We provide sophisticated regulatory counsel to a wide range of clients throughout the United States, including several of the most prominent entities in the electric, gas, and oil sectors.  We represent clients before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), various federal and state regulatory agencies, and federal and state courts.

Please contact Joseph Koury (Koury@wrightlaw.com) or Andrew Swers (swers@wrightlaw.com), or call at 202-393-1200 if you have any questions or would like further information regarding our oil & natural gas practice.

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