Ontario should open power market
National Post 04/05/01

California lawmakers want windfall profits tax on energy companies
Houston Chronicle, 04/05/01

SURVEY - SITE FEED - WORLD PULP AND PAPER: Online trading gets the cold 
shoulder The industry seems to be taking a cautious attitude towards the web 
Financial Times; Apr 5, 2001

COMPANIES & FINANCE UK: BG to get Pounds 51m from Enron NEWS DIGEST 
Financial Times; Apr 5, 2001

COMPANIES & FINANCE THE AMERICAS: Duke outlines its Dollars 1bn Europe plan 
Financial Times; Apr 5, 2001

UK: UPDATE 1-Britain gears up for offshore wind power.
Reuters English News Service, 04/05/01

INDIA: Enron issues arbitration notice to India govt.
Reuters English News Service, 04/05/01

FDI proposals worth Rs 545 crore cleared
The Economic Times, 04/05/01

Law Lords order Enron to pay pounds 100m over pipeline
The Daily Telegraph, 04/05/01

Merger Increases Value of King of Prussia, Pa., Video-Conferencing Company
KRTBN Knight-Ridder Tribune Business News: The Philadelphia Inquirer - 
Pennsylvania, 04/05/01

Bandwidth Mkt: Price Adjustments Fail To Spur Action
Dow Jones Energy Service, 04/04/01


Financial Post: Editorial
Ontario should open power market
Kenneth L. Lay
National Post

04/05/2001
National Post
National
C19
(c) National Post 2001. All Rights Reserved.

In the face of the California crisis, it is all the more important for 
legislators and policymakers -- and for the public generally -- to remember 
why a competitive market structure is so important for electricity consumers. 
The time is right to leave behind the central planning, socialized risk 
structure that resulted in the billions of dollars of stranded costs and 
stranded debt left to consumers in many regions of North America (not just 
Ontario) by poor management, bad planning and enormous cost overruns. That 
can't happen again, and will not happen again in a competitive open market.
In a restructured and competitive electricity market, the risk and cost of 
new investment in generation will be borne by investors and shareholders 
rather than by ratepayers. This protects consumers from bearing the cost of 
bad decisions. 
Last week, the government and Ontario Power Generation (OPG) announced an end 
to the freeze of Ontario's bulk power rates that has been in place for about 
eight years. That will represent an increase of 12% to 15% in bulk power 
rates. It was explained on the basis of the need to pay for the mistakes of 
the past. At Enron, we cannot think of any other jurisdiction in North 
America where a price freeze has been in place for that length of time. 
In future, a competitive market can deliver lower prices than a regulated 
structure can. This is borne out by the experience in Pennsylvania, England 
and other European markets. Pennsylvania estimates that consumers have saved 
US$3-billion over the past three years. In England's first year of customer 
choice (June, 1999 -- June, 2000) consumers saved in excess of 
(ps)299-million ($673-million). In Germany, industrial prices have fallen by 
over 50% since 1995. In Finland, industrial prices have fallen over 23% since 
1995. 
Competition gives customers choice, which gives suppliers and retailers a 
strong incentive to improve customer service, lower prices and develop 
demand-side (load management) solutions. 
This leaves the issue of timing for the opening of the market. 
The Electricity Market Readiness Plan adopted by the Ontario Energy Board and 
the Independent Market Operator targets the systems, processes and other 
requirements of the wholesale and retail markets to be ready for a market 
opening in October/November, 2001. This represents a realistic and achievable 
approach to market opening. 
We see real benefits to opening the market this fall, rather than waiting 
until 2002. Major institutions are gearing up for a market opening later this 
year, and the momentum is ours to lose. Indeed, many participants, including 
large industrial customers, have already entered into the commercial 
arrangements necessary for market opening and the post-market opening period 
in the expectation of market opening later this year. Those commercial 
arrangements with respect to power procurement, power supply, risk 
management, and settlement and dispatch services have helped and are helping 
industrial consumers lock in prices. 
Opening the market in the fall will preserve those arrangements for which 
parties have bargained, leaving just those consumers who have chosen to enter 
the market unhedged, and giving them seven or eight months to experience the 
operation of the market prior to the summer of 2002. 
This was a key consideration in the decision to open the New York market in 
November, 1999, rather than the spring of the following year. Remember that, 
although Ontario's demand traditionally peaks in the winter, we would expect 
prices to peak in the summer months. Moreover, because the summer is the 
period of peak demand across the Eastern interconnect as a whole, the summer 
months generally see relatively more operational/transmission related 
constraints than the winter. 
A fall opening will also enhance the efforts to "decontrol" or divest OPG 
assets. Those entities which might have an interest in acquiring OPG assets 
will, for valuation purposes, want to have as much information as possible 
about pricing in the Ontario market. Opening in the fall will give those 
entities a longer period of time over which to observe the way the 
price-setting mechanisms in the Ontario market actually operate. 
Accordingly, opening in the fall will help reduce uncertainty over the 
valuation of Ontario Power Generation assets. This would mean that the 
decontrol initiative will attract more potential buyers, and that those 
buyers will pay more than they otherwise would in the face of uncertainty. 
Focusing on getting the market open this fall will help maintain the 
commitment of those, like Enron, who have already devoted significant 
resources and capital to the market, while attracting more new players, 
sooner, into the province. 
The Ontario government should have confidence that the best way forward is to 
proceed with the implementation of that plan and with the opening of the 
Ontario wholesale and retail markets in the fall of 2001. The case for open 
markets is strong.

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 







April 5, 2001
Houston  Chronicle
California lawmakers want windfall profits tax on energy companies 
Reuters News Service 
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A coalition of California lawmakers Wednesday 
introduced a bill that would slap a windfall profits tax on power generators 
they claim have made a killing from the state's unfolding power crisis. 
"This says to the large generators who are gouging us that we are going to 
set a reasonable rate of return, and reasonable profits, and anything beyond 
that would be returned to the state of California," said Assembly member Dion 
Aroner. 
"They've been gouging us, and it is time to gouge them. We're sick of paying 
these outrageous bills to the Texans." 
A spokesman for Gov. Gray Davis, who has been scrambling to address his 
state's escalating energy emergency, said he would have no comment on the 
bill until it reached his desk. 
Aroner said the bill, proposed by a coalition of Democratic women, calls for 
the state to establish a formula to determine "reasonable" profits for 
generators and tax back anything over that amount. 
Major power generators, many of them based in Texas, have reported sharply 
higher earnings as wholesale power prices skyrocketed in the Western U.S. 
spot market. Last year at this time, prices were $30 to $40 per megawatt hour 
of electricity. This year, that same electricity costs between $300 and $400. 
Those high prices, combined with a botched 1996 state deregulation effort 
that kept caps on consumer rates, have pushed California's two largest 
utilities close to bankruptcy, forced the state into the energy-buying 
business and led to several days of rolling blackouts from San Diego to the 
Oregon border. 
Richard Wheatley, a spokesman for Houston-based Reliant Energy, said any 
windfall profit tax was a terrible idea. 
"We would oppose any such form of legislation," Wheatley said. "It does 
nothing to solve the fundamental problem that confronts California consumers 
-- namely, the lack of adequate power supplies." 
Wheatley said the proposed tax also could exacerbate the situation by 
removing incentives for power producers to build plants and bring more power 
on line through investing in upgrades of aging facilities. 
Enron Corp. and other power sellers continued to reap the benefits of 
California's electricity shortage in the first quarter, with some bringing in 
record profits, analysts said Wednesday. 
Earnings at Houston-based Enron rose about 13 percent, analysts estimated. 






		

		
		

		
		SURVEY - SITE FEED - WORLD PULP AND PAPER: Online trading gets the cold 
shoulder The industry seems to be taking a cautious attitude towards the web 
Financial Times; Apr 5, 2001
By NICHOLAS GEORGE

		World Pulp and Paper survey 
		THE INTERNET by Nicholas George 
		It has been billed as the marriage of the old and new economies, but, so far, 
the union of the internet and the pulp and paper industry has been marked by 
suspicion rather than harmony. 
		Only 18 months ago, it seemed that newly-started dotcoms were stumbling over 
each other to set up online marketplaces, which, they claimed, would 
revolutionise the industry. Technologies and target groups differed slightly, 
but the message being preached was largely the same. 
		Buying and selling pulp and paper products had, for too long, been 
characterised by inefficiencies and high costs. 
		For an industry whose products have become global commodities, the internet 
could give the flexibility and price transparency producers and consumers 
deserve. 
		Yet, far from embracing the new breed of online marketplaces, the paper 
producers' reaction has ranged from caution to outright distrust. 
		According to Jorma Saarikorpi, head of e-business at papermaker UPM-Kymmene, 
neither customers nor producers have much to gain from third party 
marketplaces. Moreover, the concept of an open marketplace is ill-suited to 
the businesses' structure. "If you think about the customer relationships in 
the industry, it is big suppliers and big customers and the number of 
suppliers and customers are decreasing all the time," he says. 
		Such scepticism has made it tough going for the dotcoms, and some of the 
smaller projects, such as AccessPaper.com, have fallen by the wayside. 
		AccessPaper blamed its failure on boom conditions in the industry, which 
meant producers had no incentive to look for new sales channels. 
		"We are not synchronised with the market or the players in the market," says 
Michael Palm, a co-founder. "At present, the current sales channels are 
screaming for products, and sales staff just do not want to hear of new 
channels." 
		But even the bigger and better funded start-ups have had to adapt to the 
negative reaction of the industry. For example, the European-based PaperX.com 
now focuses much less on its marketplace functions and more on its ability to 
offer software solutions to forest product companies setting up their own 
sites. 
		Bengt Roselund, project leader of Papinet, the European industry's own 
internet initiative, says the marketplaces "scared the producers away when 
they said they wanted a commission of 2-3 per cent on each trade. That is an 
enormous amount of money". 
		He adds: "The marketplaces realised they had done the wrong thing, but the 
damage was done and the industry does not trust them. That's a pity because 
the marketplaces could have played a role." 
		Papinet was set up to standardise the terms used in electronic trading 
messages. 
		Although it was started in Europe, it is now attempting to create a more 
global standard. By doing so, it aims to cut the cost and complexity of 
e-commerce. This is vital if e-commerce is to gain wide scale acceptance, 
says Mr Roselund. 
		In the US, the independent marketplace, PaperExchange, also has to compete 
against industry-backed rivals. However, Bob Brenner, chief executive, is 
convinced his company has a role. The problem, he believes, has been that the 
industry has misunderstood what the internet marketplaces are for. They are 
not an alternative for traditional long-term customer relationship, but a 
channel for a certain type of product or inventory, he says. 
		Mr Brenner points out that 10 per cent of pulp and paper sales are already 
being conducted on the spot market, a market that is often expensive for 
producers to use. 
		PaperExchange, which has now launched in Europe, had trading levels of nearly 
42,000 tonnes last year. 
		"Twelve months ago, people were experimenting, while six months ago they were 
using the site as a way to move extra product. Now, people are thinking of it 
as a channel for selling, or as a part of their sourcing strategy," says Mr 
Brenner. 
		Other companies also see the advantages of an internet market. Enron, which 
has been offering risk management products to the pulp, paper and wood 
industry since 1997, expanded its Clickpaper.com site to Europe in January. 
		So far, the industry has preferred to find its own solutions by modernising 
its existing electronic links with customers. Outsiders, in the form of 
third-party marketplaces, still have their work cut out to convince 
management they really do have a big role to play. 
		March 1 2001 
		Copyright: The Financial Times Limited

		
		

		
		
		
		
		COMPANIES & FINANCE UK: BG to get Pounds 51m from Enron NEWS DIGEST 
Financial Times; Apr 5, 2001
By DAVID BUCHAN

		BG to get Pounds 51m from Enron 
		BG, the gas group, said yesterday it would receive Pounds 51m from Enron's 
Teeside Gas subsidiary after the House of Lords ruled in its favour in a 
dispute over unpaid gas transit fees and interest. 
		The dispute centred on a 1990 contract by Teeside Gas to reserve capacity in 
the Central Area Transmission System, owned 51 per cent by BG. In 1993 the 
CATS pipeline was completed and Teeside Gas started making payments even 
though it had no need for capacity at that time. In 1995 it stopped payments 
and reclaimed past payments, at which the owners of CATS - chiefly BG, BP 
Amoco and Amerada Hess - took it to court. 
		The UK court of appeal ruled in Teeside's favour in 1999, but this was 
yesterday overturned by the House of Lords. BG's share of the House of Lords 
award will be Pounds 34m in back-payment, plus Pounds 17m in interest. David 
Buchan 
		Copyright: The Financial Times Limited

		
		

		
		
		
		
		COMPANIES & FINANCE THE AMERICAS: Duke outlines its Dollars 1bn Europe plan 
Financial Times; Apr 5, 2001
By MATTHEW JONES

		Duke Energy, the US power and gas group, is aiming to spend up to Dollars 1bn 
this year on European generation assets. 
		The plans, outlined by the company yesterday, are part of a group-wide 
strategy to move into deregulating energy markets. They mark a relatively 
late entrance into Europe compared with other US energy companies such as 
Enron. 
		Bruce Williamson, president of Duke Energy International, said the group was 
looking to secure between 1,000MW and 2,000MW of generation capacity to 
underpin a large increase in its electricity trading. The company plans to do 
this either by entering into long-term agreements with generators or by 
buying flexible coal or gas-fired power stations. 
		"Our aim is to spend between Dollars 500m and Dollars 1bn in Europe in the 
next 12 months," he said. 
		Duke is one of the largest US power generators and energy traders with assets 
worth Dollars 58bn and a market capitalisation of Dollars 28bn. 
		It currently trades natural gas in the UK, Belgium, Germany and the 
Netherlands but only trades electricity in Italy. 
		Mr Williamson said the group wanted to extend its power trading activities 
across all five countries and was talking seriously to "between five and a 
dozen" companies about generation plant deals. 
		Its first move would be in the UK, where it would aim to secure at least 
500MW by the middle of the year. Analysts cited TXU, Edison Mission Energy 
and Innogy as possible sellers of plant. 
		Duke is focusing the rest of its international expansion on Australia, New 
Zealand and Brazil. The group is aiming to double its investment in these 
countries in the next two to three years, representing a total spend of about 
Dollars 3bn. www.ft.com/utilities 
		Copyright: The Financial Times Limited
		
		




UK: UPDATE 1-Britain gears up for offshore wind power.
By Andrew Callus

04/05/2001
Reuters English News Service
(C) Reuters Limited 2001.

LONDON, April 5 (Reuters) - Britain cleared the way on Thursday for a 1.6 
billion pound ($2.3 billion) offshore wind power investment, the first large 
scale British attempt to tap the clean energy source. 
Built around the windswept UK coastline, 540 sets of blades spinning more 
than 100 metres above the waves should be supplying one percent of Britain's 
energy needs by 2004-2005. The Crown Estate, manager of land and territorial 
waters owned by Britain's Queen, said it was issuing seabed leases to 18 
companies at 13 sites that will produce between 1,000 and 1,500 megawatts of 
power altogether.
The set of projects goes one tenth of the way towards a government plan to 
see 10 percent of the UK's energy needs produced from renewable sources by 
2010, according to the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA), which 
represents most of the businesses involved. 
Offshore wind is more expensive to tap than onshore, but local resistance to 
noise and to the sight of tall land-based turbines has made it an option 
worth exploring. 
The BWEA believes wind energy blowing across the seas around Britain could 
supply its electricity needs three times over, and says wind power onshore 
and offshore already competes effectively with alternatives at between 1.9 
and 3.0 pence per kilowatt hour compared with 1.8-2.2 pence for gas. 
"We don't need subsidies any more. We are price competitive," said a 
spokeswoman for the BWEA. 
The association already backs a pilot offshore wind project at Blyth on 
England's northeast coast that began delivering electricity in December last 
year. 
Companies involved in the projects still have to obtain planning permission 
from the government and other planning bodies, and must gain all consents 
within three years or lose their lease. 
But the UK Department of Trade and Industry aims to set up a "one-stop shop" 
to help them through other planning hurdles. Developers include global energy 
names like Enron and Royal Dutch/Shell , British power and construction 
companies Powergen and AMEC , and smaller specialist companies. 
In all, 540 high-tech windmills producing three megawatts of power each will 
be installed in groups of 30, with the nearest turbine of each sited between 
1.5 and 10 kilometres offshore. 
More than half will be positioned in the Irish Sea along England's northwest 
coast between Liverpool and the Scottish border. 
Others will spring up on the east coast off East Anglia and in the mouth of 
the Thames estuary, further north at Teesside, and in the coastal waters of 
south Wales in the Severn estuary. 
Environmental groups Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth backed the plan, but 
urged the government to catch up with countries like Denmark, where the wind 
industry already employs 14,000 people. 
"After thirty years of opposing industrial abuse of our seas, Greenpeace can 
at last welcome a move to exploit the fantastic renewable energy resources 
off our coastline," said Matthew Spencer, head of Greenpeace's Climate 
Campaign. 
"Let's hope this signals a new commitment to developing Britain's renewable 
energy industry," he said.

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 


INDIA: Enron issues arbitration notice to India govt.

04/05/2001
Reuters English News Service
(C) Reuters Limited 2001.

BOMBAY, April 5 (Reuters) - The Indian unit of Enron Corp has issued a notice 
of arbitration to the Indian government to try to recover 1.02 billion rupees 
($21.88 million) it says is owed for supplying power to the Maharashtra State 
Electricity Board (MSEB). 
The notice means the dispute will be taken to the Court of Arbitration in 
London.
MSEB wanted the power bill offset against a four billion rupee fine it levied 
on Enron's controversial Dabhol Power Co for what it said was the non-supply 
of power for intermittent periods between October and the end of January. 
The Indian government asked the two companies to sort out the dispute before 
it would consider covering any of the payment from central coffers. 
Government officials could not be reached for comment. 
"We strongly believe that the federal government's position is in direct 
conflict with the power purchase agreement as was explained to them in legal 
opinions," a Dabhol statement said. 
"This step was necessary in order to preserve our rights in the project, and 
to ensure that all parties honour their existing contractual obligations," 
Dabhol said. 
The move heightens the confrontation between Enron and India and threatens to 
further damage the country's efforts to attract foreign investment in the 
power sector. 
Dabhol's 2,184 megawatt power station is the biggest power investment in 
India. Critics object to Dabhol charging 7.1 rupees per kilowatt hour for its 
power versus 1.5 rupees charged by other suppliers. 
Dabhol originally sought payment of the 1.02 billion rupees from the 
government in March. The payment covered the supply of electricity during 
December. 
The payment was due from MSEB on January 25 and was the latest default from 
the state electricity board. 
Under a 1996 counter guarantee agreement, the federal government is obliged 
to pay Enron when MSEB defaults. 
Enron invoked the counter guarantee for the first time to cover payment of 
790 million rupees for electricity supply in November. The amount was later 
paid by the Maharashtra state government. 
($=46.6 Indian rupees).

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 

FDI proposals worth Rs 545 crore cleared
Our Bureau

04/05/2001
The Economic Times
Copyright (C) 2001 The Economic Times; Source: World Reporter (TM)

NEW DELHI 
FORTY four FDI proposals involving a total inflow of Rs 545 crore, including 
those of Eli Lilly Ranbaxy to buy out Ranbaxys holding of 50 per cent in the 
joint venture, Abbott Equity Holding of the UK, General Electrical 
International and Indian Infrastructure Equipments were cleared by Commerce 
and Industry minister Murasoli Maran on Wednesday.
Eli Lilly will buy out Ranbaxys 50 per cent stake for Rs 79.9 crore and thus 
convert the JV into 100 per cent subsidiary. 
General Electric International has been permitted to set up a 100 per cent 
subsidiary to venture into infrastructure and information technology enabled 
services, telecommunications and internet. The company will invest Rs 47 
crore in the project. 
Abbot Equity Holding Ltd has been allowed to bring in Rs 106.27 crore to pick 
up 20 per cent stake in project to manufacture pharmaceutical formulations. 
Indian Infrastructure Equipments has been permitted to issue 49.8 per cent 
equity stake worth Rs 24.91 crore and FCCBs worth Rs 97.29 crore. 
Compaq Computer of Mauritius will bring in Rs 18.5 crore for 7.88 per cent 
stake in an e-commerce venture. 
Berjaya Vacation Club Berhad of Malaysia has been allowed to set up a 100 per 
cent subsidiary with investment worth Rs 70.5 crore to operate hotels and 
resorts, providing holiday accommodation and other tourism related services. 
Enron GmbH of Germanys plan to enter the wind energy business with a 100 per 
cent subsidiary involving investment of Rs 9.4 crore has also been cleared. 
Astra Pharmaceuticals of Sweden has been allowed to increase holding in IDL 
to 56.49 per cent from the existing level of 51.5 per cent. The Swedish 
company will bring Rs 16.75 to acquire additional stake. 
Other proposals cleared today include those of Schenectady (India) Holdings 
to ease foreign holding in one project from 80 per cent to 94.97 per cent, 
and in another from 58.37 per cent to 80.66 per cent, Blaser Swisslube of 
Switzerland to set up 100 per cent subsidiary with investment of Rs 4.60 
crore to import and distribute cutting fluids, and Danisco Ingredients 
(India) to increase foreign equity to 100 per cent from the existing level of 
74 per cent. 
Danisco will buy out its Indian partners for Rs 10 crore.

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 


Law Lords order Enron to pay pounds 100m over pipeline
Sophie Barker

04/05/2001
The Daily Telegraph
Copyright (C) 2001 The Daily Telegraph; Source: World Reporter (TM)

ENRON, the American oil company, was yesterday forced to pay out around 
pounds 100m to the shareholders in a North Sea pipeline, led by BG, after the 
House of Lords overturned a previous Court of Appeal decision over 
transportation payments. 
The dispute between Enron and shareholders in the Central Area Transmission 
Systems (CATS) dates back to 1995, when Enron's Teesside Gas Transportation 
subsidiary stopped payments to the pipeline, which transports gas from 
central North Sea fields.
Enron's Teesside subsidiary had previously signed an agreement with the CATS 
shareholders for certain pipeline transportation rights. 
The CATS shareholders claimed payments were due once the pipeline was 
completed, but Enron claimed that CATS was not available for use. 
BG will receive around pounds 35m plus pounds 17m in interest, in line with 
its 51.18pc stake in CATS. 
BG declined to comment, while Enron expressed its "disappointment" but said 
that the payment "would not materially impact earnings".

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 


Merger Increases Value of King of Prussia, Pa., Video-Conferencing Company
Patricia Horn

04/05/2001
KRTBN Knight-Ridder Tribune Business News: The Philadelphia Inquirer - 
Pennsylvania
Copyright (C) 2001 KRTBN Knight Ridder Tribune Business News; Source: World 
Reporter (TM)

V-Span Inc., a King of Prussia provider of video-conferencing services, has 
reached an agreement to acquire Peer Digital Inc., of Boulder, Colo., in a 
merger that the companies say will position V-Span as one of the industry's 
top companies. 
The companies expect the merger to close in two weeks. The headquarters will 
remain in King of Prussia.
The companies, both founded in 1995, declined to put a value on the 
stock-for-stock deal but said the combined company would have annual revenues 
of around $42 million. About two-thirds of that would come from V-Span, and 
one-third from Peer Digital. 
Elliot Gold, publisher of TeleSpan, a teleconferencing industry newsletter 
that predicted the merger last month, estimated that V-Span paid $20 million 
to $28 million for Peer Digital. 
The merger will allow the combined company to become profitable more quickly, 
J. Kenyon Hayward, V-Span's founder and chief executive officer, said. 
Executives for the two companies, however, declined to predict when the 
merged entity might gain profitability. 
V-Span said it raised $28 million last year from investors including Goldman 
Sachs & Co., Comcast Interactive Capital, Motorola Inc. and Enron Corp. 
The merger positions V-Span as one of the largest five companies in the world 
that sell video-conferencing from multiple locations, Gold said. The 
industry, while still small at around $250 million in annual sales, is 
growing by about 35 percent per year, he said. 
"I think [Peer Digital] started looking at the competition and realized ... 
they would be stronger" if they merged, Gold said. "Both were growing nicely, 
but V-Span was growing faster." 
Peer Digital had struggled in sales but has superior teleconferencing 
infrastructure and technology, said Gold, while V-Span excelled at sales but 
"was having a problem with the infrastructure." 
The combined company would have about 325 employees. Executives would not 
comment on whether consolidation would lead to layoffs. 
"This is a growing business, and we expect to expand worldwide," said John D. 
Field, Peer Digital's chief executive, who will become V-Span's president. 
"We expect to see more offices added. 
"We all believe this is a great consolidation of a major piece of the 
industry," Field said. "And we intend to be one of the leaders in 
consolidating this industry." 
But Gold said V-Span could "end up on the other end of the Pac-Man battle." 
"There is consolidation in the industry on a global basis ... and there are 
several companies, such as Genesys Conferencing, that have been acquiring 
companies like mad," he said. "I think there is a reasonable chance that 
V-Span will be acquired over time. They are positioning themselves to be 
acquired."

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 


Bandwidth Mkt: Price Adjustments Fail To Spur Action

04/04/2001
Dow Jones Energy Service
(Copyright (c) 2001, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)

HOUSTON -(Dow Jones)- Bandwidth traders adjusted prices Wednesday trying to 
spur trades but didn't get any results. 
Prices moved higher for several contracts covering bandwidth this year in the 
eastern half of the country. Lower prices were quoted for one route this year 
in the western half of the country and for other contracts covering bandwidth 
next year.
For OC3 bandwidth between Seattle and Los Angeles for calendar year 2002, the 
bid was $.0015 a DS0 mile a month, down $.0005/DS0 mile/month from Tuesday's 
price. 
The offer on that contract moved higher for bandwidth delivered to Enron 
Corp. (ENE) pooling points and lower for bandwidth delivered to LighTrade 
pooling points, traders said. 
The offer was $.003/DSO mile/month for delivery to Enron pooling points, up 
$.0004/DS0 mile/month from Tuesday. 
The offer for delivery to LighTrade Inc. pooling points fell to $.0021/DS0 
mile/month, down $.0005/DSO mile/month from Tuesday. 
The variations were based on differing views held by market-makers using the 
pooling points. 
One trader attributed the lack of buyers in the West to falling prices. 
"Everybody thinks the price is going to go down and nobody wants to be long," 
he said. 
Another trader agreed that prices are expected to fall, but rejected the idea 
buyers fear being stuck with over-priced capacity. 
In Eastern markets, prices generally rose Wednesday for contracts with 
delivery dates this year. Those increases were seen in the New 
York-Washington, D.C.; New York-Chicago and New York-Dallas markets. 
Sellers are seeking higher prices because buyers are running out of time to 
get deals done on contracts that include bandwidth for June. There's less 
than two months left for provisioning circuits for June. 
In most of those same markets, prices fell on contracts with delivery dates 
in calendar year 2002. 
The exception was the market for OC3 bandwidth for calendar year 2002 between 
New York and Washington, D.C. The bid remained at $.0021/DS0 mile/month while 
the offer moved to $.0047/DS0 mile/month, up $.0015/DS0 mile/month. 
-By Michael Rieke, Dow Jones Newswires, 713-547-9207, michael.rieke@wsj.com 
and Erwin Seba, Dow Jones Newswires, 713-547-9214 erwin.seba@dowjones.com

Copyright , 2000 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.