Enron Failure

The Enron Company began in 1985 when, Internorth, a pipeline company based in Omaha Nebraska, bought Houston-based Houston Natural Gas. At the time the distribution chain of natural gas was highly regulated by the government. Enron and other companies rallied against this and soon the distribution was deregulated. As this was taken place slowly, the natural gas market became more efficient, but also much less predictable. Because of the market instability, the producers and the utility …

…of the Enron affair. Large companies, including GE, already have delivered more disclosure; corporate boards, and their audit committees in particular, are paying closer attention to accounting issues and the choices of auditors; accounting firms have tightened up on their audits; financial analysts and credit rating agencies, chastened by their past performance, have become more discriminating; and the SEC is apparently doing the best it can with limited resources to scrutinize corporate financial possible problems.