'Abusive' JPMorgan group in Philly refinery deal
FERC says JP Morgan Ventures Energy Corp., which will buy and sell fuel to Carlyle's ex-Sunoco refinery in South Philly, collected 'at least $73 million in improper payments' at other sites
'Abusive' JPMorgan group in Philly refinery deal
Joseph N. DiStefano
"J.P. Morgan Ventures Energy Corporation, will supply the refinery with crude and non-crude feedstocks on a just-in-time basis and will purchase refined products from the refinery for offtake," Carlyle Group said Monday in agreeing to rebuild Sunoco's former Philadelphia refinery, with help from $25 million in grants from PA taxpayers, plus tax breaks.
Meanwhile, the feds are closing in: "The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission sued JPMorgan on July 2 to release 25 e-mails in an investigation of possible manipulation of power markets in California and the Midwest by J.P. Morgan Ventures Energy Corp.," says Bloomberg LP here.
FERC "opened the probe in August after complaints from California and Midwest grid operators that JPMorgan’s bidding practices were abusive, according to the agency’s initial court filing," writes Bloomberg's Tom Schoenberg.
“We believe we have complied in all respects with the law, as well as FERC rules and applicable tariffs, governing this market,” JPM spokeswoman Jennifer Zuccarelli told the reporter. “This investigation is ongoing and that no conclusions have been reached or findings adjudicated.” (Zuccarelli tells me the FERC complaint won't affect the Philadelphia deal.)
FERC "said JPMorgan’s bidding techniques in California and the Midwest resulted in at least $73 million in improper payments. It accused the bank of improperly using attorney-client privilege to withhold or redact 53 e-mails subpoenaed in April. The company has since released 28 of the e-mails.
"The regulator is examining efforts by Houston-based J.P. Morgan Ventures to extract excessive payments or above-market prices from and Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator Inc. and California ISO, Thomas Olson, a lawyer in the FERC investigating division, said in a court document.
"The judge said the parties should meet and file a brief on July 10 advising whether they would consent to having the case handled by a magistrate judge with any appeals taken directly to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington."
Besides supplying Carlyle with crude oil and with buyers for refined product, JPM is helping finance the deal for the ex-Sunoco plant. -- Case is Federal Energy Regulatory Commission v. J.P. Morgan Ventures Energy Corp., 12-mc-352, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia (Washington).
Widespread criminal actions within JP MOrgan should reveal a clear pattern of a corrupt organization. As such, repeated breaking the law needs a proper response. From the London Whale trades and their losses showing not a hedge but an investment play, continuing to illegally gamble with the taxpayers dollars, to energy market manipulation reminding us of ENRON, can the government not afford to launch a full scale grand jury investigation into corrupt, illegal and practices that threaten the economy as a whole, AGAIN? Not 4 years since the Lehman Brothers crash?
If so-called conservatives could muster any consistency in their ideological "beliefs", they'd be just as anxious to apply the responsibilities and punishments of the individual to the corporation as they are to bestow those individual rights. Which means real jail time for all top level executives, and in the case of BP and Halliburton - who murdered men - complete dissolution and execution of the company, Now that's justice.— CiceroSpuriousDeodatus- Why the hell are we dealing with these criminals? Why are they even legally allowed to be making deals? Not only should everyone at J.P. Morgan have lost their license to deal in the financial market, they all should be sitting in prison with every ill-gotten penny they have stolen seized to repay for their crimes.— Blanketman
- Big business with little competition = more gouging.— meteo30
