MOBIL OIL EXPLORATION AND PRODUCING SOUTHEAST, INC. v. F.E.R.C.

No. 86-4940.

885 F.2d 209 (1989)

MOBIL OIL EXPLORATION AND PRODUCING SOUTHEAST, INC., et al., Petitioners, v. FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, Respondent.

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

Dissenting Opinion September 26, 1989.


Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Charles M. Darling, IV, Stephen L. Teichler, Washington, D.C., for Mobil Oil Exploration and Producing Southeast, Inc.

Daniel F. Collins, Fern L. McGovern, Washington, D.C., for ANR Pipeline Co.

David J. Muchow, Roger B. Cooper, American Gas Ass'n, Arlington, Va., for American Gas Association.

Mark C. Darrell, William T. Miller, Susan N. Kelly, Washington, D.C., for American Public Gas Ass'n.

William T. Benham, Chicago, Ill., for Amoco Production Co.

R. Gordon Gooch, Washington, D.C., for Anadarko Petroleum Corp.

Harris S. Wood, Norma J. Rosner, Dallas, Tex., for Arco Oil & Gas Co.

Michael E. Riddick, Platt W. Davis, III, David T. Andril, Washington, D.C., J. David Garrett, Shreveport, La., for Arkla Energy Resources.

Frederick Morning, M. Lisanne Crowedye, Crowell & Moring, Washington, D.C., for Associated Gas Distributors.

Kerry R. Brittain, Ft. Worth, Tex., for Champlin Petroleum Co.

James B. Atkin, David J. Evans, Washington, D.C., for Chevron U.S.A. Inc.

Michael L. Pate, Cities Service Oil & Gas Corp., Tulsa, Okl., for Cities Service Oil & Gas Corp.

Daniel F. Collins, Donald C. Shepler, Fern L. McGovern, Shepler & McGovern, Washington, D.C., for Colorado Interstate Gas Co.

Ernest J. Altgelt, III, Conoco, Inc., Houston, Tex., for Conoco, Inc.

Craig R. Burgraff, Robert P. Haynes, III, Harrisburg, Pa., for Consumer Advocate of Penn.

Richard C. Green, Hogan & Hartson, Washington, D.C., for El Paso Natural Gas Co.

John T. Miller, Jr., Washington, D.C., for Elizabethtown Gas Co.

Douglas W. Rasch, Exxon Corp., Houston, Tex., for Exxon Corp.

Jerome Feit (argued), Sol., F.E.R.C., John Conway, Atty., Washington, D.C., for F.E. R.C.

Robert A. Jablon, Scott H. Strauss, Washington, D.C., for Ft. Pierce Utilities Authority.

Richard M. Merriman, Peyton G. Bownan, III, Reid & Priest, Washington, D.C., for Gen. Service Customer Group.

Robert C. Platt, Washington, D.C., for Independent Petroleum Ass'n.

John H. Cheatham, III, Edward B. Myers, Washington, D.C., for Interstate Natural Gas.

J. Richard Tiano, John Myler, Mary Ann Walker, Washington, D.C., Robert C. McHugh, Thomas J. Carroll, III, KN Energy, Inc., Lakewood, Colo., for KN Energy, Inc.

David P. Mudrick, David Black, John K. Rosenberg, Martin J. Bregman, Kansas Power & Light Co., Topeka, Kan., William T. Harkaway, Harvey L. Reiter, Washington, D.C., for Kansas Power & Light Co.

Kenneth J. Neises, Laclede Gas Co., St. Louis, Mo., for Laclede Gas Co.

George H. Rothschild, Jr., Marathon Oil Co., Houston, Tex., Kevin M. Sweeney, Washington, D.C., for Marathon Oil Co.

Thomas C. Gorak, Baltimore, Md., for Maryland People's Counsel.

Glenn W. Letham, Kenneth M. Albert, Washington, D.C., for Memphis Light, Gas, etc.

Jeffrey M. Petrash, James H. Holt, Washington, D.C., for Michigan Consol. Gas Co.

James C. Mordy, Morrison, Hecker, Curtis, Kuder & Parrish, Kansas City, Mo., for Midwest Energy, Inc.

Christopher K. Sandberg, St. Paul, Minn., for Minnesota Dept. of Public Services.

John Wyeth Griggs, Birch, Horton, Bittner, Pestinger & Anderson, Washington, D.C., Andrew J. Snider, Asst. Gen. Counsel, Jefferson City, Mo., for Missouri Public Service Com'n.

Kevin M. Sweeney, Carroll L. Gilliam, J. Paul Douglas, Washington, D.C., Robert D. Hawroth, Jay G. Martin, Houston, Tex., for Mobil Oil Corp., et al.

Paul E. Goldstein, Paul W. Malloy, Jerome Mrawca, Andrea Studzinski, Lombard, Ill., for Natural Gas Pipeline Co. and United Gas Pipe Line Co.

George J. Meiburger, Peter C. Lesch, Frank X. Kelly, Gallagher, Boland, Meiburger & Brosnan, Washington, D.C., for Northern Natural Gas Co.

Gene R. Sommers, Minneapolis, Minn., for Northern States Power Co.

Thomas C. Gorak, Md. Office of People's Counsel, Baltimore, Md., for Nat. Ass'n. of State Utility Consumer Avo.

John H. Cary, Northwest Central Pipeline Corp., Tulsa, Okl., for Northwest Central Pipeline Corp.

Margaret Ann Samuels, Anne L. Hammerstein, Office of Consumers' Counsel, Columbus, Ohio, for Office of Consumers' Counsel, State of Ohio.

Lindsey How-Downing, Steven F. Greenwald, San Francisco, Cal., for Pacific Gas & Electric Co.

Raymond N. Shibley, Brian D. O'Neill, Washington, D.C., for Panhandle Eastern Pipeline & Truckline Gas.

Richard E. Powers, Jr., Charles E. Suffling, John M. Hopper, Jr., Washington, D.C., for Pennzoil Co.

Thomas M. Patrick, Chicago, Ill., for Peoples Gas Light & Coke Co.

John L. Williford, Larry Pain, Jennifer A. Cates, Attorneys, Phillips Petroleum Co., Bartlesville, Okl., for Phillips Petroleum Co., et al.

Eugene R. Elrod, Donald H. Smith, Washington, D.C., Robert A. Miller, Jr., Plains Petroleum Co., Lakewood, Colo., for Plains Petroleum Co.

Edward J. Grenier, Jr., Gail S. Gilman, Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan, Washington, D.C., for Process Gas Consumers, et al.

John P. Gregg, Washington, D.C., for Public Service Com'n of Dist. of Columbia.

Richard A. Solomon, David D'Alessandro, Wilner & Scheiner, Washington, D.C., for Public Service Com'n of N.Y.

James R. Lacey, Newark, N.J., for Public Service Elec. & Gas Co.

Janice E. Kerr, J. Calvin Simpson, Michael B. Day, San Francisco, Cal., for Public Utilities Com'n of Cal.

Thomas G. Johnson, Gen. Atty., c/o Shell Oil Co., Houston, Tex., for Shell Offshore, Inc. & Shell Western E & P, Inc.

Glen J. Sullivan, David L. Huard, Douglas Ken Porter, E.R. Island, Los Angeles, Cal., for Southern Cal. Gas Co.

William I. Harkaway, Steven J. Kalish, Washington, D.C., for Southwest Gas Corp.

Don L. Keskey, Henry J. Boynton, Asst. Attys. Gen., Lansing, Mich., for State of Mich. and Michigan Pub. Serv. Com'n.

Charles L. Spann, Dallas, Tex., for Sun Exploration & Prod. Co.

Robert W. Gee, Phyllis G. Rainey, Attys., Tenneco Oil Co., Houston, Tex., for Tenneco Oil Co.

Vincent F. Ewell, Jr., Houston, Tex., for Tennessee Gas Pipeline.

Robert W. Baker, Tenngasco Corp., Houston, Tex., for Tenngasco Corp.

Ralph J. Pearson, Jr., Karen A. Berndt, Attys., Texaco, Inc., Houston, Tex., for Texaco, Inc.

Judy M. Johnson, Vice Pres. & Gen. Counsel, Texas Eastern Transmission Corp., Houston, Tex., for Texas Eastern Transmission Corp.

Clayton G. Smith, Atty., Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line, Houston, Tex., Thomas F. Ryan, Jr., Robert G. Hardy, Andrews & Kurth, Washington, D.C., for Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Co.

Morton L. Simons, Simons & Simons, Washington, D.C., for Union Gas Systems, Inc.

Albert Sylvia, III, Los Angeles, Cal., for Union Oil Co. of Cal.

Roberta L. Halladay (argued), Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, Washington, D.C., C. William Cooper, Sewickley, Pa., for United Distribution Companies.

Michael E. Small (argued), Gregory Grady, Washington, D.C., for Williams Natural Gas Co.

Before CLARK, Chief Judge, BROWN, and JOHNSON, Circuit Judges.


JOHNSON, Circuit Judge:*

Petitioners, joint opponents of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Order Nos. 451 and 451-A, seek review by this Court contending that the Commission exceeded the scope of its authority in promulgating those Orders. For the reasons cited herein, we agree and vacate the orders complained of.

I. AN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

The instant controversy finds its genesis in the enactment of the Natural...

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