NEWS RELEASE

Office of External Communications

Houston, TX 77204-5017 Fax: 713.743.8199

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 15, 2004

Contact: Angie Joe
713.743.8153 (office)
713.617.7138 (pager)
ajoe@uh.edu
COMPLIANCE REGULATIONS FOR PUBLIC ENERGY COMPANIES
FOCUS OF UPCOMING UH-GEMI CONFERENCE

Energy corporations are faced with a growing number of regulations from governing bodies including the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Congress and the Security Exchange Commission (SEC).

“With so many agencies and so many rules, keeping current can prove quite daunting,” Jeff Graefe, director of operations for the University of Houston’s Global Energy Management Institute (UH-GEMI), said. “To help clarify things, UH-GEMI has organized discussions about these challenges.”

Experts will address these issues during a UH-GEMI conference Oct. 22.

Executives, planning and operation managers, financial professionals, attorneys and project managers will attend “Challenges Facing Public Energy Companies” in the Shamrock Ballroom at the University Hilton. Cost is $145. To register, go to www.uhgemi.org/registration. Reporters covering the event may attend at no charge.

Speakers are Phil Innes, Greg Hill, Charles Parker and Kenneth Dennard.

Innes is a managing director in FTI Consulting’s Forensic and Litigation practice. He has more than 19 years of broad business experience in energy, intellectual property, litigation and other types of disputes.

Hill is a partner in Locke Liddell & Sapp’s Corporate/Securities, Oil, Gas & Energy, and Healthcare practice. He has significant experience in corporate governance matters, including advice on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and representation of boards of directors, audit committees and special committees.

Parker, a Locke Liddell & Sapp partner in the area of commercial and securities litigation, specializes in SEC enforcement actions; shareholder’s rights; class actions; derivative bond transactions; claims against broker/dealers; trade secrets and professional liability litigation.

Dennard is the founder and managing partner of Dennard Rupp Gray & Easterly. He has 15 years of senior management investor relations experience, including both in-house and third party representation for public companies.

Three hours of continuing education credits are available.

WHAT: “Challenges Facing Public Energy Companies”
WHO: UH-GEMI
WHEN: Friday, Oct. 22
8:40 a.m. “Internal Investigations – How to relate to internal audits,” Phil Innes
9: 20 a.m. “Crisis Management – What to Do When Things Go Wrong,” Greg Hill
10 a.m. “Dealing with the SEC, Ethical Dilemmas, Avoiding Criminal Liability,” Charles Parker
10:30 a.m. “Turning Regulations into Shareholder Value,” Kenneth Dennard
WHERE: University of Houston Hilton, Shamrock Ballroom

For more information about UH visit the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.