Eschaton

California gets big victory.

In the first major settlement to come out of the California energy deregulation debacle, the Williams Companies agreed yesterday to pay more than $400 million to settle accusations that it helped drive up prices and overcharged customers during the state's electric power crisis.

Williams, one of the nation's biggest suppliers of electricity and natural gas, said it would settle a broad set of civil claims with three West Coast states — California, Oregon and Washington — and also resolve class-action lawsuits. As part of the settlement, California said it would not seek customer refunds.

Williams also agreed to restructure a 10-year, $4.3 billion power contract it signed with California at the height of the energy crisis last year, when power prices were soaring.