KeySpan Corporation, National Grid Fail to Reach Settlement Agreement

The New York PSC drafted a revised procedural schedule for KeySpan Corporation (KSE) - National Grid (NGG) merger case, based on the failure of the companies, PSC staff and intervenors to reach a settlement agreement by May 11. The PSC notes the following regarding the negotiations:

The revised schedule is as follows:

As of this update there has been no indication that a settlement agreement is imminent amongst the parties. Thus, the schedule is subject to further revisions if an agreement is not reached very quickly. Obviously, the closing projection must now be moved from the third quarter, to the fourth quarter of this year.

The New Hampshire PUC hearings were scheduled to end May 31. There has been no further hearing date(s) scheduled for the case, so it is presumed that the hearing stage of the review did indeed conclude May 31. The settlement agreement was posted at the PUC on May 17, 2007.

According to the current procedural schedule, post-hearing briefs are due by July 6, 2007. It is expected that the PUC will schedule a target order date on or before July 6.

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