Case Nos. RF272-57035 & RF272-98742

September 19, 1997

DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Applications for Refund

Names of Petitioners: Moore Planting Company, Inc.

Parker Transfer

Dates of Filings: May 20, 1988

July 5, 1994

Case Numbers: RF272-57035

RF272-98742

This Decision and Order will consider the Applications for Refund filed by two claimants that purchased refined petroleum products during the period August 19, 1973, through January 27, 1981 (the crude oil price control period). Each applicant has requested a refund from crude oil monies available for disbursement by the Office of Hearings and Appeals of the Department of Energy under 10 C.F.R. Part 205, Subpart V. We have established refund procedures for these funds, which have been made available through consent orders entered into by the DOE and numerous firms that sold crude oil during the price control period. E.g., Berry Holding Co., 16 DOE ¶ 85,405 (1987) (Berry); A. Tarricone, Inc., 15 DOE ¶ 85,495 (1987); Mountain Fuel Supply Co., 14 DOE ¶ 85,475 (1986).

In order to receive a refund for crude oil overcharges, an applicant generally must: (1) document its purchase volumes; and (2) show that it was injured as a result of the alleged overcharges. However, as we discussed in City of Columbus, Georgia, 16 DOE ¶ 85,550 (1987), applicants who were end-users of petroleum products and whose businesses were unrelated to the petroleum industry are presumed to have absorbed the crude oil overcharges, and generally need not submit proof of injury to receive a refund in the Subpart V proceeding. See also Berry.

In general, a claimant is eligible for a refund equal to the number of gallons it purchased multiplied by $0.0016 per gallon, the volumetric refund amount currently available. We derived the volumetric refund amount by dividing the total crude oil refund monies currently available by the total U.S. consumption of petroleum products during the period of crude oil price controls (2,020,997,335,000 gallons).

Each of the applicants considered in this Decision and Order is an end-user. Each bought petroleum products to operate its business. Each applicant has derived its purchase volume claim by using actual records or a reasonable estimation technique. We have carefully reviewed the information submitted by the applicants, and have determined that the information provided by the applicants sufficiently supports their requests for refunds.

One application considered in this Decision was filed on behalf of Parker Transfer, Case No. RF272-98742. The owners of Parker Transfer were Wesley Parker and his wife, Virginia Parker. Mr. Parker passed away in 1983, leaving his wife the remainder of his shares of the business. The company dissolved in 1986, leaving Mrs. Parker as the sole owner. We therefore will direct that the refund be granted in Virginia Parker’s name.

Since the applicants who are granted refunds in this Decision are end-users of refined petroleum products, they are presumed injured by the crude oil overcharges and are entitled to receive their full allocable share of the crude oil monies. The refund amounts are calculated by multiplying the approved purchase volumes by the volumetric refund amount of $0.0016 per gallon. Moore Planting Company, Inc., Case No. RF272-57035, purchased 4,123,519 gallons of crude oil products and is therefore being granted a refund of $6,598. Parker Transfer purchased 7,463,269 gallons and is therefore being granted a refund of $11,941. The total volume for which refunds are approved in this Decision is 11,586,788 gallons, and the sum of the refunds granted is $18,539.

One of the applicants, Moore Planting Company, Inc., filed its application through Federal Action, a private filing service. However, the refund check will be sent to this applicant directly for the reason described in Crude Oil Supplemental Refund Distribution, 26 DOE ¶ 85,039 (1997). The other applicant, Parker Transfer, filed its application through Wilson, Keller & Associates, another private filing service. In accordance with Parker Transfer’s request, its refund check will be made payable to the applicant “or Wilson, Keller & Associates” and be sent to Wilson, Keller & Associates.

The final deadline for the crude oil refund proceeding was June 30, 1995. It is the current policy of the DOE to pay crude oil refund claimants at the current rate of $0.0016 per gallon. We will decide whether sufficient crude oil overcharge funds are available for additional refunds for these and other successful applicants when we are better able to determine how much additional money will be collected from firms that have either outstanding obligations to the DOE or enforcement cases currently in litigation.

It Is Therefore Ordered That:

(1) The Application for Refund filed by Moore Planting Company, Inc. on May 20, 1988, Case No. RF272-57035, is hereby approved as set forth in Paragraph (3) below.

(2) The Application for Refund filed by Parker Transfer on July 5, 1994, Case No. RF272-98742, is hereby approved as set forth in Paragraph (3) below.

(3) The Director of Special Accounts and Payroll, Office of Departmental Accounting and Financial Systems Development, Office of the Controller, of the Department of Energy shall take appropriate action to disburse $6,598 from the escrow account maintained at the Department of the Treasury denominated Crude Tracking-Claimants IV, Account No. 999DOE010Z, to:

Moore Planting Company, Inc.

c/o Dorothy Moore

P.O. Box 209

Cary, Mississippi 39054

and $11,941 from the same account to:

Virginia Parker OR Wilson,Keller & Associates

P.O. Box 221145

Memphis, TN 38122

(4) To facilitate the payment of future refunds, each applicant shall notify the Office of Hearings and Appeals in the event that there is a change in its address, or if an address correction is necessary. Such notification shall be sent to:

Director of Management Information

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Department of Energy

1000 Independence Avenue, S.W.

Washington, D.C. 20585-0107

(5) The determinations made in this Decision and Order are based upon the presumed validity of the statements and documentary material submitted by the applicants. This Decision and Order may be revoked or modified at any time upon a determination that the basis underlying a refund application is incorrect.

(6) This is a final Order of the Department of Energy.

George B. Breznay

Director

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Date: September 19, 1997