Case No. RF272-94830
April 04, 2001
DECISION AND ORDER
OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Application for Refund
Names of Petitioner: Kellogg Company
Date of Filing: August 5, 1993
Case Number: RF272-94830
This Decision and Order will consider an Application for Refund that was submitted by Kellogg Company (Kellogg), a purchaser of refined petroleum products during the period August 19, 1973, through January 27, 1981 (the crude oil price control period). Kellogg has requested a refund from crude oil monies available for disbursement by the Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) of the Department of Energy (DOE) pursuant to the OHA's authority under 10 C.F.R. Part 205, Subpart V.
This refund proceeding was instituted to allow purchasers of refined petroleum products during the price control period to apply to the OHA for a refund from crude oil overcharge funds collected by the DOE. Statement of Modified Restitutionary Policy in Crude Oil Cases, 51 Fed. Reg. 27899 (August 4, 1986). We 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 crude oil price control period. E.g., Berry Holding Co., 16 DOE ¶ 85,405 (1987); A. Tarricone, Inc., 15 DOE ¶ 85,495 (1987); Mountain Fuel Supply Co., 14 DOE ¶ 85,475 (1986).
The refund procedures set forth in these cases specify that in order to receive a refund, an applicant generally must (1) document its purchase volumes and (2) show that it was injured by alleged crude oil 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 not covered by the DOE's or its predecessors' price controls are presumed to have been injured. Generally, a claimant is eligible for a refund equal to the number of gallons it purchased multiplied by $0.0016. We derived this 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).
Kellogg has submitted all of the information required of crude oil applicants.(1) We have thoroughly examined this information, and we conclude that the volume claimed accurately reflects Kelloggs purchases. We will therefore approve Kelloggs claim based on the volume set forth in the Application.
Kellogg purchased its refined petroleum products for use in a business that is unrelated to the petroleum industry and did not resell those products. It is therefore an end-user of refined petroleum products and is presumed to have been injured by the crude oil overcharges. Accordingly, Kellogg is entitled to receive its full allocable shares of the crude oil monies. Kelloggs approved volume is 68,054,572 gallons, and the refund granted is $108,887.
The final deadline for the crude oil proceeding was June 30, 1995. It is the current policy of the DOE to pay eligible crude oil refund claimants at the rate of $0.0016 per gallon. We will decide after the resolution of a few outstanding enforcement proceedings whether sufficient funds are available for additional refunds.
It Is Therefore Ordered That:
(1) The Application for Refund filed by Kellogg Company (Case No. RF272-94830) for all available crude oil overcharge funds is hereby approved as set forth in Paragraph (2) below.
(2) 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 $108,887 from the DOE deposit fund escrow account maintained at the Department of the Treasury denominated Crude Tracking-Claimants IV, Account No. 999DOE010Z to Kellogg Company at the following address: Legal Department, One Kellogg Square, Battle Creek, MI, 49016-3599.
(3) To facilitate the payment of future refunds, Kellogg 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.
(4) The determination made in this Decision and Order is based upon the presumed validity of the statements and documentary material submitted by the applicant. This Decision and Order may be revoked or modified at any time upon a determination that the basis underlying the refund application is incorrect.
(5) This is a final Order of the Department of Energy.
George B. Breznay
Director
Office of Hearings and Appeals
Date: April 04, 2001
(1) Interested parties were provided with an opportunity to submit comments regarding individual crude oil refund applications. No such comments were filed with respect to this application.