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Sightings from The Catbird Seat
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November 16, 2006
Targa Resources Files Partnership IPO
Targa Resources Files for IPO of Limited Partnership;
Plans to Offer 16.8 Million Units
HOUSTON (AP) -- Natural gas processor Targa Resources Inc. on Thursday said it filed for an initial public offering of 16.8 million limited partner units for Targa Resources Partners LP.
The company selected Citigroup as its underwriter and granted the banker the option to purchase up to an additional 2.5 million units to cover overallotments.
The company said it plans to use proceeds from the offering to pay off credit debt.
The offering, including the underwriter's option, represents about 61.4 percent of the outstanding equity of the partnership. Targa Resources will indirectly own the remaining equity stake.
The company applied for listing on the Nasdaq under the symbol "NGLS."
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/061116/targa_resources_ipo.html?.v=1
November 19, 2006
IPO REPORT
Dow Jones Newswire
Earlier Thursday, Targa Resources Partners LP filed to raise up to $405.7 million in an IPO with underwriters and Goldman Sachs.
The Houston-based natural-gas partnership is a unit of Targa Resources Inc. Targa was formed in 2004 by its management team and Warburg Pincus LLC.
In April 2004, Targa purchased certain midstream natural-gas operations from ConocoPhillips (COP) for $247 million.
And in October, 2005, Targa purchased all of the midstream assets of Dynegy Inc. (DYN) and its affiliates for approximately $2.5 billion.
Targa Resources plans to trade on the Nasdaq under "NGLS."
November 3, 2006
Corruption - A $6 Million Gift
To Oil Company
In years past this alone would have been a major story and the corruption involved would not be tolerated. But this year it's just one more thing - a relatively small thing. We all know what is behind it - payments from lobbyists. The people involved will be leaving the government soon to "work" at the oil companies for unusually high pay. Gov't drops demand for Chevron royalty,
The department's Minerals Management Service had maintained that Chevron owed an additional $6 million for gas it took under federal leases in the Gulf between 1996 and 2002 and sold to Dynegy Inc., a company Chevron partially owns.
Essentially, the government argued that Chevron undervalued the gas it sold to Dynegy. Chevron paid royalties based on a price that didn't represent fair market value, the government auditors said.
But last summer, the government quietly rescinded its demand for the additional royalties. That decision was reported Tuesday by the New York Times, based on documents the newspaper obtained through a freedom of information request.
The story comes on the same day as a larger story about the Republican Congress getting rid of the only agency conducting ANY oversight of Iraq spending. This is just two stories about corruption today. There will be two more tomorrow and the day after...
Posted by Dave Johnson at November 3, 2006 9:25 PM
www.seeingtheforest.com/archives/2006/11/corruption_a_6.htm
September 25, 2006
Former Dynegy Accountant Re-Sentenced
to Less Time
By Brenda Sapino Jeffreys, Texas Lawyer
On Sept. 22, U.S. District Judge Sim Lake of Houston re-sentenced former Dynegy Inc. accountant Jamie Olis to six years in prison.
The 72-month prison term is 75 percent less than Olis' original sentence of 24 years in prison.
In 2003, Olis was convicted of securities fraud, mail and wire fraud, and conspiracy in connection with a transaction known as Project Alpha. Using mandatory sentencing guidelines, Lake sentenced Olis in 2004 to 292 months in prison, and Olis began serving his sentence in May 2004.
Olis' appeal has been highly watched not only for the length of his sentence in comparison to other recent, high-profile white-collar crime sentences, but because he was sentenced prior to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in United States v. Booker. In Booker, the Supreme Court held that sentencing guidelines are advisory instead of mandatory, and sentences must be "reasonable."
In October 2005, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision in Olis' appeal, affirming his conviction, but ordering Lake to re-sentence him on the ground that prosecutors had not established beyond a reasonable doubt that Lake would have sentenced Olis to 24 years in prison under Booker's overall standard of reasonableness. The 5th Circuit found that in applying the sentencing guidelines to Olis' sentence, Lake overstated the loss caused by Olis' crimes.
Olis' attorney, David Gerger, of David Gerger & Associates in Houston, says, "We're grateful for the reduction and this case shows the need for our independent judiciary."
Don DeGabrielle, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Texas, says he was surprised by the sentencing reduction.
"I know the judge gave a very thorough and thoughtful consideration to the sentence he imposed," DeGabrielle says.
During a half-hour sentencing hearing last Friday, Lake pegged the loss caused by Olis at $79 million, which was the amount of tax savings Dynegy received through Project Alpha.
"The court concludes that $79 million is a reasonably certain estimate of the pecuniary harm that the defendant intended to result from his offense," Lake writes in a 33-page Memorandum Opinion he issued after the hearing.
Based primarily on that $79 million loss, Lake found that the guidelines would call for a prison sentence of 151 to 188 months. At the original sentencing, Lake found that the guidelines called for a sentence ranging from 292 to 365 months.
In the original sentencing, Lake found the conspiracy caused a loss of $105 million to one shareholder, the University of California Retirement System.
But Lake concluded in his Sept. 22 opinion that a sentence within the guidelines range would not be reasonable and a nonguideline sentence of 72 months is appropriate.
In looking at factors outside the sentencing guidelines, Lake found that Olis did not have ultimate authority at Dynegy to approve the Project Alpha deal, and he did not prepare the deal documents. Lake also found that the purpose of the conspiracy was not to defraud Dynegy or enrich Olis.
He also found that a lengthy sentence is not necessary to deter Olis or others from future criminal conduct.
January 25, 2006
Offshore Drilling Controversy
by: Tuquyen Mach (tmach@wmbb.com), News 13
PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL - Many thought the idea of drilling in the Gulf of Mexico off florida was no longer up for discussion.
But now, the interior secretary is working on a plan that would give pro-drilling Alabama and Louisiana authority over portions of the Gulf south of the Panhandle where drilling is currently prohibited.
The six million acres under discussion, called Lease Sale Area 181, is a little more than 130 miles from Panama City.
Florida's U.S. senators and 14 of the state's 25 House members say they are opposed to offshore drilling.
In a letter sent to the Secretary of the Interior, Gale Norton, the lawmakers stress that the administrative boundary change was published without notice or opportunity for public comment.
They also say that anytime such changes are being considered, lawmakers should be made aware of the full impact, including how it will affect our environment, economy, and national security.
Panama City Beach attracts about six million visitors a year, and with 14,000 local jobs dependent on the tourism industry, anything that affects the World's Most Beautiful Beaches is bound to cause controversy.
The possibility of drilling in the Gulf is causing concern for business owners on Panama City Beach.
John Gheesling's family has been in the hotel business in Panama City Beach for fifty years. He says he finds this latest move to get offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico upsetting.
"It seems like the government, the federal government is trying to do itself what it could not get accomplished at the state and local level. For them to dismiss Florida lawmakers' concerns saying that they don't really understand what's going on is misleading," says Gheesling, owner of Bikini Beach Resort.
Gheesling says he's glad state leaders are standing up to protect what makes the area so special.
"We have very limited natural resources left. Our pristine beaches and coastline that we spend millions of dollars every few years to re-nourish is at stake here. Why we would want to jeopardize that is beyond me," he says.
Others agree.
“Louisiana has offshore drilling, but they don't really have beaches there to sacrifice if they have an accident, so I'd really like to keep our beaches free and clear," says Kevin Brackins, General Manager of the Chateau Motel.
He says he's worried about negative effects from an active hurricane season if drilling were allowed.
"A lot of the hurricanes seem to track up this way and almost seem to blow up right onto our beaches so I don't think many tourists would like to come down and see a semi-submersible oil rig washed up on the beach," says Brackins.
The Tourist Development Council passed a resolution against offshore oil drilling in October.
The resolution reads: "The Tourism Development Council and the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau do not support Government initiatives related to exploration and offshore drilling for oil and gas supplies in the Gulf of Mexico off the Florida Coast.
July 28, 2003
SEC Settles Enforcement Proceedings against J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup
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The Securities and Exchange Commission today instituted and settled enforcement proceedings against two major financial institutions, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup, Inc., for their roles in Enron Corp.’s manipulation of its financial statements.
Each institution helped Enron mislead its investors by characterizing what were essentially loan proceeds as cash from operating activities.
The proceeding against Citigroup also resolves the Commission’s charges stemming from the assistance Citigroup provided Dynegy Inc. in manipulating that company’s financial statements through similar conduct....
“These two cases serve as yet another reminder that you can’t turn a blind eye to the consequences of your actions – if you know or have reason to know that you are helping a company mislead its investors, you are in violation of the federal securities laws,” said Stephen M. Cutler, Director of SEC’s Enforcement Division....
The Commission brought its Enron-related actions in coordination with the New York County District Attorney’s Office, which, also today, entered into settlement agreements with J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup....
The Commission’s investigations relating to Enron and Dynegy are continuing.
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MORE TO COME
FOR MORE UNDERGROUND DIGGINGS,
SNEAK TO
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THE SECRET NESTS
PART IV - THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY
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BIRDS THAT DRINK FROM CESSPOOLS
CONFESSIONS OF A WHISTLEBLOWER
DIRTY MONEY, DIRTY POLITICS & BISHOP ESTATE
HUD: THE HOUSING & URBAN DISASTER
NESTS OF THE INSURANCE VAMPIRES
UNDERGROUND AT PARKER DRILLING COMPANY
MARSH & McLENNAN’S PUTNAM INVESTMENTS
OFFICE OF THE U.S. TRUSTEE vs. HARMON
TRANSYLVANIA TRAVELERS IN ST. PAUL
WHO'S GUARDING THE HEN HOUSE ???
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Last update August 30, 2007, by The Catbird