Articles by Risk Staff
A clear answer to credit problems
US firm PA Consulting is working with a number of major US energy companies to set up a one-off trade netting scheme. Kevin Foster investigates the proposals
Scaling the credit cliff
How are designers of credit risk software reacting to the new credit realities of the energy trading sector? Kevin Foster talks to some leading companies to find out
People swaps
Chappel replaces McCarthy as Williams CFO US energy major Williams has hired Donald Chappel (pictured) as senior vice-presidentand chief financial officer (CFO). He succeeds Jack McCarthy, who retired atthe end of 2002 after 10 years as CFO. Before this…
Cross-border conundrums
Analysts at rating agency Standard & Poor’s Lee Munden and Paul Lund look at the future of cross-border trading in Europe, given the credit crises of 2002
Power asset prices plummet
The energy price boom may be over, but bargain hunters beware: the predicted sale of US generation assets is yet to occur. Kevin Foster reports
Petrochemicals firms take a stand against oil price volatility
Many petrochemicals firms are seeking to reduce price volatility through hedging, given that the cost of crude oil is strongly influencing the price of petrochemical products. GlobalView Software looks at the figures behind the trend
How to spot a VaR cheat
Traders can use weaknesses in VaR measurement to make it appear that they are not taking any risks. Brett Humphreys exposes how easily this can be done
A formula for high prices
The US chemical industry is crying foul over spiralling natural gas prices, but there are measures they can take to protect themselves, as Kevin Foster discovers
Speculate away
A new report argues that speculative trading in the crude oil markets contributes far less to volatility than its critics suggest. Kevin Foster looks at the arguments
Wanted: cash for new lines
Can Ferc’s standard market design encourage much-needed investment in the US power grid and develop a merchant model for transmission assets? By Kevin Foster
Tough talk on derivatives
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Ferc are getting tough in throwing fines around. Is this a ploy to avoid being lumbered with further over-the-counter regulatory responsibilities? Some market participants certainly think so. By Paul Lyon
Carbon across Europe
Pan-European emissions trading is a step closer after agreement of an EU directive. Atle Christiansen and Kristian Tangen of Point Carbon look at the consequences
The LMP supermodel
With Ferc’s standard market design (SMD) seeking a shift from zonal power pricing to nodal pricing, the concept of locational marginal pricing (LMP) has become a key policy issue. Henwood Energy’s Vikram Janardhan proposes 10 key modelling features to…
A Spanish power struggle
A takeover bid by gas distributor Gas Natural for power utility Iberdrola may provide the impetus for much-needed competition in the Spanish energy market. But the bid has upset many traditional links in politics, finance and business. By Maria Kielmas
Applying modern portfolio theory to optimal gas purchasing
Yijun Du and Xiaorui Hu present a general framework for applying modern portfolio theory to optimal natural gas procurements. They show that successful natural gas procurement involves determining the optimal allocation between fixed-price and floating…