We have not decided "to prevent any regulated utility from completing any 
financial transactions" online.  If we have already satisfactorily concluded 
the necessary due diligence with respect to a particular utility, they will 
be approved.  It is only with respect to those utilities which have not yet 
been researched that we are withholding approval.  The due diligence required 
involves asking the utility for certain information concerning their 
organization and regulatory situation, hiring local counsel in the relevant 
state and having research done into the laws and regulations in place there 
and into any public utility commission orders respecting the particular 
utility in question, and on occasion requesting an opinion letter from the 
utility's counsel.  We usually begin that process only when a trader believes 
there is a likelihood of a sufficient volume of trading with the utility to 
justify the time and expense.  FYI, the due diligence process has in the past 
revealed circumstances which prevented the utility from trading derivatives 
or required actions to authorize such trading which had not been taken.

A recent count showed about 10 executed master agreements and another 30 to 
40 in one stage or another of the due diligence/negotiation process.




Louise Kitchen
10/06/99 02:46 PM
To: Mark E Taylor/HOU/ECT@ECT, Tana Jones/HOU/ECT@ECT
cc: Debbie R Brackett/HOU/ECT@ECT, William S Bradford/HOU/ECT@ECT, David 
Port/LON/ECT@ECT, Bob Shults/HOU/ECT@ECT, David Forster/LON/ECT@ECT 
Subject: Customer Data

On Friday we will be receiving the remaining customer list from credit, due 
to the timescales I am asking for turnaround on the customer matrix and 
master agreement review by the end of play Tuesday 12th October.

Any problems with this please notify me immediately as we are now running up 
against very tight deadlines in terms of getting all of the information in 
the system for the launch schedule.

Thanks

Louise

Mark,
On another note we are requesting a review of the blanket decision which has 
been made to prevent any regulated utility from completing any financial 
transactions, if we are not prepared to do the due diligence on which ones 
can transact and which ones can not - is this our responsibility or theirs?  
ie their decision whether to trade or not.
Louise