text_combined: el paso statement california situation case already seen el paso addresses california energy situation february 26 2001 houston feb 26 prnewswire el paso corporation nyse epg reaffirmed today continuing commitment work parties involved help improve california energy situation surprised see continuing misinformation media concerning el paso involvement california said norma dunn senior vice president corporate communications external affairs el paso corporation would like take opportunity clarify record significant increase electricity demand time available power supplies short caused sharp climb price power turn increased price natural gas used generate electricity high natural gas prices therefore effect rather cause power shortage allegations natural gas prices deliberately manipulated withholding capacity el paso natural gas pipeline overlook critical facts demonstrably untrue possible holder capacity el paso natural gas pipeline cause significant increase california gas prices refusing use capacity el paso natural gas pipeline required law post availability unused capacity public bulletin board obligated sell capacity published tariff rate found reasonable federal energy regulatory commission capacity held el paso merchant energy el paso natural gas pipeline used made available use others serve california western markets allegations conspiracy 1996 limit new interstate pipeline capacity california absolutely refuted facts one challenge facts show new pipelines considered 1990 either built viable projects lacked sufficient customer support justify construction example despite years marketing efforts tenneco single potential customer could induced make sort binding commitment required proposed altamont project proceed reason alone ultimately dropped 1996 according estimates one two billion cubic feet per day bcf excess natural gas transportation capacity existing interstate pipelines serving california indeed misplaced reliance continuing availability excess capacity prompted california public utilities commission encourage pg e socal edison socal gas beginning 1996 continuing 1998 relinquish 1 5 bcf firm transportation capacity el paso natural gas pipeline processes way assess present demand support new interstate pipeline capacity california el paso intends part help satisfy whatever needs may established today recently last year periods significant quantities unused capacity available el paso natural gas pipeline necessary meet demands time notwithstanding availability capacity used shippers california fill state natural gas storage facilities future use california taken advantage opportunity 2000 store volumes natural gas stored 1999 reliance spot market would reduced steep rise prices california border could substantially mitigated avoided widely recognized california energy crisis caused inability supply power available california keep pace state economy increased demand combination factors caused sharp increase power prices first construction new power plants california slow difficult heavily regulated process result growing demand far outstripped state generating capabilities second unfavorable precipitation increased state demand caused hydroelectric power normally relied california become unavailable third increased demand power western united states drove prices california pay state generators fourth state policies deregulated wholesale power prices capped rates paid consumers leaving demand unrestrained preventing utilities recovering costs fifth rate caps prevented utilities passing increased costs consumers utilities creditworthiness impaired causing supplemental power needed peak periods become difficult expensive purchase sixth early greater normal use peaking units plants designed operate peak demand conditions necessitated unscheduled maintenance rendering unavailable critical times seventh final months 2000 power plants forced shut increased usage exhausted air emissions credits eighth warm summer followed early onset cold weather drove demand power finally increased power costs california could substantially mitigated long term power contracts less reliance volatile short term power market california currently difficult position opportunity refine regulatory model craft long term energy policy said dunn el paso one largest suppliers energy california 50 years actively participating parties california part long term stable solution california energy needs el paso corporation largest broadly based natural gas company world spans energy value chain wellhead electron enterprise value excess 50 billion el paso leader every phase natural gas industry company owns operates significant portion north american natural gas delivery grid operates fastest growing sophisticated energy merchant group nation third largest natural gas producer el paso leader risk management techniques focused maximizing shareholder value transforming existing markets speeding development new markets visit el paso www epenergy com cautionary statement regarding forward looking statements release includes forward looking statements projections made reliance safe harbor provisions private securities litigation reform act 1995 company made every reasonable effort ensure information assumptions statements projections based current reasonable complete however variety factors could cause actual results differ materially projections anticipated results expectations expressed release company makes statements projections good faith neither company management guarantee anticipated future results achieved reference made company affiliates securities exchange commission filings additional important factors may affect actual results bob brooks gpcm natural gas market forecasting system http gpcm rbac com