EXHIBIT NO. 99.1
[NORTHERN BORDER PARTNERS, L.P. LOGO] News 13710 FNB Parkway
Release Omaha, NE 68154-5200
For Further Information
Contact:
Media Contact:
Martha Sumner-Kenny
(402) 492-3401
Investor Contact:
Ellen Konsdorf
Lisa Couillard
(877) 208-7318
NORTHERN BORDER PARTNERS, L.P.'S
DISTRIBUTIONS AUTHORIZED UNDER PUHCA
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, March 10, 2004
OMAHA - Northern Border Partners, L.P. (NYSE - NBP) today announced
that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) granted Enron's request on
behalf of NBP to allow NBP to declare and pay distributions. NBP also will be
able to invest as much as an additional $1 billion in energy assets, and to
issue and sell debt and equity securities without further authorization from the
SEC. The approval is part of an SEC order issued yesterday, after Enron
registered as a holding company under the Public Utility Holding Company Act of
1935 (PUHCA).
The authorizations are effective until the earlier of the
deregistration of Enron under PUHCA or July 31, 2005.
"This SEC action minimizes the potential for Northern Border's business
to be adversely impacted by Enron's regulation under PUHCA," said Bill Cordes,
chairman and chief executive officer of Northern Border Partners.
For additional information please refer to the Management's Discussion
and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations section of our
quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for
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the periods ended March 31, 2003, June 30, 2003, and September 30, 2003 and in
our 8-Ks filed April 17, 2003, December 31, 2003, January 16, 2004 and
February 9, 2004. The SEC order discussed above is available at www.sec.gov.
Northern Border Partners, L.P. is a publicly traded partnership formed
to own, operate and acquire a diversified portfolio of energy assets. The
Partnership owns and manages natural gas pipelines and is engaged in the
gathering and processing of natural gas. More information can be found at
http://www.northernborderpartners.com.
This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934. Although Northern Border Partners, L.P. believes that its
expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that
such expectations will be achieved. Important factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements
include natural gas development in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin; our
ability to settle with the Fort Peck Tribes on rights-of-way and tax issues and
to recover the associated costs in pipeline rates; the rate of development, gas
quality, and competitive conditions in gas fields near the Partnership's natural
gas gathering systems in the Powder River and Williston Basins and its
investments in the Powder River and Wind River Basins; regulatory actions and
receipt of expected regulatory clearances; renewal of the coal slurry
transportation contract under favorable terms; competitive conditions in the
overall natural gas and electricity markets; performance of contractual
obligations by the shippers; prices of natural gas and natural gas liquids;
developments in the voluntary petition for bankruptcy including Enron's
formation of CrossCountry Energy, of which Northern Plains Natural Gas Company
and Pan Border Gas Company would be a part; regulation under the Public Utility
Holding Company Act of 1935, including the inability to or a delay in obtaining
requisite approvals for activities not pre-approved or exempted; actions by
rating agencies; our ability to renegotiate gathering contracts with producers;
our ability to complete acquisitions or growth projects and their future
performance; our ability to control operating costs; and conditions in the
capital markets and our ability to access the capital markets.
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