The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) said on July 15 an Administrative Law Judge will determine whether units and traders at French energy company Total, now TotalEnergies SE, manipulated the natural gas market in 2009-12.
The case, which has dragged on for years, is the biggest of FERC’s ongoing disputes over alleged power and gas market manipulation, some of which started over a decade ago.
Officials at TotalEnergies were not immediately available for comment.
In 2015, FERC alleged Total made intentionally losing trades—known as “uneconomic” trading—in order to affect index prices in the U.S. Southwest on at least 38 occasions between June 2009 and June 2012. Those losses would be offset by larger gains on other related positions, FERC said.
It was one of a series of so-called “loss leader” or leveraged trading strategies that FERC has pursued over the past decade where traders lose money in one market to benefit larger positions in a benchmark or other financial index.
Other similar cases involved units of JPMorgan Chase & Co., which paid a $285 million fine in 2013, Barclays Plc, which paid a $70 million fine in 2017, and BP Plc, which paid about $24 million this year but was still challenging the fine.
FERC issued a show cause order on April 28, 2016, directing Total Gas & Power North America to explain why it should not pay civil penalties of $213.6 million and disgorge $9.2 million in unjust profits, plus interest, resulting from the alleged manipulation.
The order also directed gas traders Aaron Hall and Therese Tran to explain why they should not pay civil penalties of $1 million and $2 million, respectively.
Total agreed to pay $3.6 million to settle similar charges of alleged manipulation by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission in 2015.
Recommended Reading
On The Market This Week (Jan. 20, 2025)
2025-01-24 - Here is a roundup of marketed oil and gas interests in the Delaware Basin, Midcontinent and Bakken from select sellers.
Diversified to Acquire Maverick, Enter Permian Basin in $1.3B Deal
2025-01-27 - Diversified Energy will acquire EIG’s Maverick Natural Resources, adding acreage that offsets Diversified’s core Western Anadarko position and Permian Basin assets in the northern Delaware.
Nabors SPAC, e2Companies $1B Merger to Take On-Site Powergen Public
2025-02-12 - Nabors Industries’ blank check company will merge with e2Companies at a time when oilfield service companies are increasingly seeking on-site power solutions for E&Ps in the oil patch.
Enverus Acquires Pearl Street Technologies to Help Bolster Grid
2025-03-13 - The acquisition of the spinout from Carnegie Mellon University strengthens Enverus’ suite of offerings as it expands deeper into power and energy transition solutions, the company says.
TotalEnergies Grows Renewables Portfolio with Project Acquisitions
2025-04-03 - TotalEnergies has entered into deals with RES, VSB Group and SN Power for assets in North America, Africa and Europe.
Comments
Add new comment
This conversation is moderated according to Hart Energy community rules. Please read the rules before joining the discussion. If you’re experiencing any technical problems, please contact our customer care team.