Drummond alleges cold, hard facts in pair of Winter Storm Uri cases

Sunday, April 14, 2024

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COMMENTARY

Symmetry Energy Solutions, Winter Storm Drummond — (Mike Allen)

You could say things are starting to heat up in the world of natural gas marketing.

We all remember the blustery and cold February caused by Winter Storm Uri three years ago, don’t we? Heck, we are reminded of it every month, as Oklahomans are quite literally still paying for it on their electric and gas bills owing to the record-high natural gas price spikes that occurred over a couple of days.

For months, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s office and his trio of contracted law firms have been examining exactly how the price of natural gas spiked to historic levels. This past week, the “first” two lawsuits on the topic were filed against several energy companies on behalf of the Grand River Dam Authority, the state’s public power utility.

Among the claims filed against Symmetry Energy Solutions and Energy Transfer (plus its subsidiaries) is an “unjust enrichment” allegation. If found in favor of the state, those claims would require the companies to pay back part of their profits from the time of the winter storm Drummond is examining.

As the situation unfolds, other companies seem likely to be caught in the path of Winter Storm Drummond, with early predictions anticipating up to 20 inches of legal briefings. NonDoc’s courts-focused reporter, Tristan Loveless, recently appeared on Griffin Communications’ Hot Seat segment with Scott Mitchell to talk about the new litigation and other legal issues.

With the Symmetry Energy Solutions and Energy Transfer facing such extreme conditions, here’s hoping the companies have stocked up on spam and bottled water in case times get tough.