California officials have been pursuing refunds from Enron in proceedings at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, but the lawsuit would mark the first time the state has taken Enron to court over its trading practices in California.

The FERC proceedings seek to recover money the state claims it overpaid Enron and other energy producers. The lawsuit would seek separate damages to compensate the state for Enron's alleged market manipulation. "It'd be a different pot of money," said Lockyer spokesman Tom Dresslar.

Enron officials had no comment on the pending suit in California.

It's hard to say what practical impact the suit would have. Enron has been languishing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court following revelations of billions of dollars in accounting fraud.

The allegations of market manipulation surfaced in a series of company memos outlining exotic gaming strategies, bearing code names "Death Star" and "Fat Boy," which created artificial shortages throughout California's overwhelmed electricity market in 2000 and 2001, drove up prices and fattened Enron's wallet.

The suit "is basically accusing them of violating our state laws with regard to commodities fraud and unfair competition," Dresslar said. He said the case will be filed in state court in a month.

Anger at Enron resurfaced with the disclosure two weeks ago of transcripts of phone calls showing Enron traders bragging about profiting at California's expense. In one call, an employee asked a colleague about money "you guys stole from those poor grandmothers in California."

Those conversations took on new life this week when the audiotapes were broadcast on CBS News. Dresslar said the conversations "add to the evidence that will be brought forth. We had a lot of evidence, and this is another indication that Enron was not only stealing money from California, but taking great glee in doing so."