Sept. 4 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman today defended the reliability of market data supplied to the Energy Information Administration and said he was unaware of a probe of participants providing false information.

The Wall Street Journal reported today that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is examining whether certain players provided false data to the EIA, the statistical arm of the Energy Department, to benefit their trading positions. Bodman spoke to reporters after giving a speech in Washington.

The agency would not confirm or deny the investigation. Earlier this year the commission took the unusual step of announcing a nationwide investigation into the trading, purchase, shipping and storage of crude oil.

``The CFTC has already announced one enforcement action in the crude oil markets that resulted from the agency's nationwide crude oil investigation and these investigative efforts are ongoing,'' Ianthe Zabel, an agency spokeswoman, said in an e- mail. ``Ensuring the integrity of the futures markets is critical, particularly in the energy sector given the impact energy prices have on all consumers.''

The commission has been under pressure from Congress to stiffen oversight of markets amid record prices. Crude oil futures contracts touched an all- time high of $147.27 a barrel on July. They have since declined 26 percent, trading at $108.86 a barrel at 11:08 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

EIA Response

A spokesman for the Energy Information Administration said the EIA has shared information with the regulator, without specifying individual company data.

``We believe our data is reliable,'' said Jonathan Cogan, a spokesman for the agency. The EIA gets its data from bulk terminals, refineries and pipelines, he said.

``Although we don't do a physical audit of the inventory data we are collecting data on the supply, we are able to do edit checks and follow up on data that is anomalous,'' Cogan said in an interview. ``We do not have the capacity to do a physical inventory audit.''

The EIA prepares the weekly petroleum status report, which includes inventories, based on company submissions as of 7 a.m. the preceding Friday. Companies are required by law to provide the data.

To contact the reporter on this story: Tina Seeley in Washington at tseeley@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: September 4, 2008 12:17 EDT