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A settlement, which would resolve several complaints at FERC against Dynegy Marketing and Trade, LLC and Illinois Power Marketing Company (“Dynegy”), would allocate $33 million of the settlement payment to Ameren Illinois, with such $33 million then distributed by Ameren Illinois to only Ameren Illinois’s default supply customers

The settlement, described as uncontested, would resolve all allegations that Dynegy Marketing and Trade, LLC and Illinois Power Marketing Company (“Dynegy”) engaged in market manipulation and/or unlawfully exercised market power during the MISO 2015/16 capacity auction for Zone 4

The settlement would specifically resolve complaints filed by Public Citizen, Inc., Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, and Southwestern Electric Cooperative, Inc. (“Complainants”)

Southwestern Electric Cooperative, Inc., Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA), and Illinois Industrial Energy Consumers (IIEC) would also receive proceeds from the settlement

Signatories to the settlement include Dynegy, all of the Complainants, IMEA, IIEC, and also the Midcontinent ISO

The settlement provides that Dynegy takes no position on the allocation of the amount to be paid under the settlement

Specifically, Dynegy would pay $38 million in total under the settlement, with such payment allocated as follows:

• $33,530,000 would be allocated to Ameren Illinois Company d/b/a Ameren Illinois, “to be further distributed by Ameren Illinois to its default supply customers in accordance with its applicable retail tariff,” (based on the 2,104.8 MW of capacity Ameren Illinois default customers purchased in Zone 4 of the Auction)

• $2,000,000 would be allocated to IIEC for distribution to its members that paid the MISO capacity charge resulting from the 2015/16 Zone 4 Auction

• $1,140,000 would be allocated to Southwestern

• $1,330,000 would be allocated to IMEA

The settlement provides that, “The above-noted allocations are based on the extent to which each of the recipients was a net buyer (purchasing more capacity than it sold, if any) in the 2015/16 Zone 4 Auction or, in the case of IIEC, a representative of its member customers of Ameren Illinois that paid the capacity charge resulting from that Auction, and identified themselves and provided information, either via complaint or through the settlement process in these proceedings to demonstrate that they are entitled to a share of the Settlement Amount.”

As previously reported, the Complainants had alleged that, in the MISO 2015/16 capacity auction for Zone 4, Dynegy engaged in illegal market manipulation of and/or unlawfully exercised market power in the auction with the effect that the capacity charges established in the 2015/16 auction resulted in an unjust, unreasonable and unduly discriminatory rate of $150/MW-day in Zone 4.

Dynegy disputed, and continues to dispute, Complainants’ allegations and the allegations contained in a report from FERC Enforcement Staff which was issued after the case had been remanded to FERC

“Dynegy denied, and continues to deny, all of the allegations asserted against it in this proceeding, including but not limited to allegations concerning market manipulation and market power,” the settlement states

The settlement states that the $38 million payment was calculated on a “black-box basis”, but notes that, given that the auction occurred in 2015, the settling parties, “included significant discussion of interest and the time value of money,” in reaching the settlement amount

“[D]ue to the principle of the time value of money, the length of time since the monies at issue were collected (starting over ten years ago), and the Settling Parties’ agreement that the Settlement Amount agreed-to herein will not be subject to additional interest as a non-precedential compromise to achieve settlement, the Settling Parties respectfully request that the Commission act expeditiously to approve the Settlement,” settling parties said