96-28602. Rocky Mountain Natural Gas Company; Notice for Declaratory Order

[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 217 (Thursday, November 7, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Page 57666]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-28602]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. GP97-1-000]


Rocky Mountain Natural Gas Company; Notice for Declaratory Order

November 1, 1996.
    Take notice that on October 25, 1996, pursuant to Rule 207(a)(2) of 
the Rules of Practice and Procedure of the Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 18 CFR Sec. 385.207(a)(2), Rocky Mountain Natural Gas 
Company (Rocky Mountain) filed a petition for a declaratory order 
resolving certain issues arising under the Natural Gas Policy Act of 
1978 (NGPA), 15 U.S.C. Secs. 3301 et seq., the Natural Gas Wellhead 
Decontrol Act of 1989, Public Law No. 101-60, 103 Stat. 157 (1989) and 
the Natural Gas Act, 15 U.S.C. Secs. 717 et seq. (Gas Act).
    Rocky Mountain states that the issues are rooted in a protracted 
dispute between Rocky Mountain and Jack J. Grynberg (Grynberg), a 
producer of natural gas in Colorado. Rocky Mountain states that it has 
filed this petition in an effort to resolve the dispute with Grynberg.
    Rocky Mountain states that the petition for declaratory order 
raises three main issues: (1) Whether a contract agreement to pay the 
NGPA section 102 price must be both voluntary and executed after the 
passage of the Decontrol Act to trigger decontrol under section 2(a) of 
Decontrol Act, and whether a contract executed pursuant to an order of 
the Colorado Court of Appeals interpreting a 1984 settlement between 
Rocky Mountain and Grynberg would fulfill these criteria; (2) whether, 
if such a contract would be operative to trigger decontrol and qualify 
the gas produced from the subject wells for the NGPA section 102 price, 
the wells may now qualify for a still higher NGPA section 107 price, 
even though qualification procedures for section 107 well category 
determinations have been repealed; (3) whether the Commission's April 
2, 1996 order granting retroactive abandonment to wells that had been 
committed to interstate commerce (and eligible for only NGPA section 
104 prices) requires Rocky Mountain to pay the NGPA section 105 
intrastate price only from date of the order, or retroactively; and if 
retroactively, when does the section 105 obligation arise?
    Rocky Mountain requests that the Commission issue a declaratory 
order holding that (1) early decontrol under Section 2(a) of the 
Decontrol Act is not triggered by an involuntary contract; (2) Grynberg 
is not entitled to section 107 pricing for any of his wells; and (3) 
Rocky Mountain was not obligated to pay Grynberg section 105 prices 
until the Commission issued its most recent orders on remand.
    Any person desiring to be heard or to protest said filing should 
file a motion to intervene or protest with the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426 in 
accordance with Section 385.211 and 385.214 of the Commission's 
Regulations. All such motions or protests must be filed on or before 
November 29, 1996. Protests will be considered by the Commission in 
determining the appropriate action to be taken, but will not serve to 
make protestants parties to the proceeding. Any person wishing to 
become a party must file a motion to intervene. Copies of this filing 
are on file with the Commission and are available for public inspection 
in the Public Reference Room.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-28602 Filed 11-6-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M