81 FR 52676 - Staff Notice of Alleged Violations

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 153 (August 9, 2016)

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 153 (Tuesday, August 9, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Page 52676]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-18828]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission


Staff Notice of Alleged Violations

    Take notice that in a preliminary, non-public investigation 
pursuant to 18 CFR part 1b, the staff of the Office of Enforcement of 
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) has preliminarily 
determined that National Energy & Trade, L.P. (National Energy) 
violated the Commission's Prohibition of Natural Gas Market 
Manipulation, 18 CFR 1c.1 (2016).
    Staff alleges that National Energy violated 18 CFR 1c.1 by 
fraudulently trading physical basis at Texas Eastern M3 (Tetco M3) 
during the January 2012 bidweek to increase the value of its financial 
basis position. Specifically, staff alleges that National Energy 
accomplished this fraud by selling physical basis at Tetco M3 at 
arbitrarily low prices early in the morning to benefit a large short 
financial basis position acquired before bidweek, a large part of which 
it repurchased after making its physical basis sales. Staff also 
alleges that National Energy violated 18 CFR 1c.1 by fraudulently 
trading physical basis at Henry Hub during the April 2014 bidweek to 
increase the value of its financial exposure. Specifically, staff 
alleges that National Energy accomplished this fraud by trading 
physical basis after the close of the NYMEX solely to benefit National 
Energy's exposure to the Henry Hub Inside FERC index.
    This Notice does not confer a right on third parties to intervene 
in the investigation or any other right with respect to the 
investigation.\1\
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    \1\ Enforcement of Statutes, Regulations, and Orders, 129 FERC ] 
61,247 (2009).

    Dated: August 3, 2016.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-18828 Filed 8-8-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P