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Rather them than us

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Illinois

* Illinois utilities produce far more electricity than Illinoisans consume, so this looks like a great idea if some of our electricity gets exported. Not so great for Ohio, but whatevs. It’s much better than an Illinois ratepayer subsidy…

Stymied so far in its bid to win power-plant subsidies in Illinois, Chicago-based Exelon is mounting an audacious campaign to upend a more successful subsidy effort by FirstEnergy in its home state of Ohio.

Last month, Exelon offered to undercut the eight-year power-purchase contract Ohio utility regulators appear poised to hand FirstEnergy to keep open two financially struggling power plants.

Exelon filed Dec. 30 with the Ohio Public Utilities Commission to provide the same 3,000 megawatts generated by FirstEnergy’s Davis-Besse nuclear station on the Lake Erie shore and its massive W.H. Sammis coal-fired plant along the Ohio River at a cost that Exelon said would save Ohio ratepayers $2 billion over eight years.

Akron-based FirstEnergy didn’t take kindly to the intervention by a peer company finding itself in the same straits thanks to rock-bottom wholesale power prices that are rendering some older, base-load plants unprofitable.

“Exelon lobbied for regulated rate recovery for its nuclear plants in Illinois,” FirstEnergy spokesman Douglas Colafella wrote in an email. “This effort was unsuccessful, so now Exelon is trying to make its Illinois plants profitable at the expense of Ohio jobs.”

Exelon pulls no punches in its filing. Calling FirstEnergy’s deal “grossly lopsided,” Exelon wrote that opening the eight-year contract to competitive bids would “wash away the stain of this affiliate backroom deal.”

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 11:21 am

Comments

Exelon- Double Standards ‘R Us.

Comment by Anon221 Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 11:41 am
Great idea! Good for Exelon.

Comment by Tone Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 11:57 am
Actual competition in the power business? I’m shocked!

Comment by Out Here In The Middle Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 12:11 pm
==“wash away the stain of this affiliate backroom deal.”==

Man they have stones to say something like that. The king of backroom deals finds religion!

Comment by Abe the Babe Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 12:21 pm
Do they think policymakers can’t hear their condemnations of bailouts and subsidies just because they say it in Ohio?

Comment by BEST Dave Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 2:25 pm
I think its a good thing when Illinois can export goods and services and benefit with the jobs here in the state. I see the same guy on here about every three months - when Exelon reports earnings or a new article comes out - who claims to for Better Energy Solutions for Tomorrow but hasn’t said exactly what that is yet. Who still complains about Exelon even when it’s about something that’s a net benefit to the state of Illinois. Makes you wonder who he is lobbying for because it’s not the people of Illinois.

Comment by Hot to Trot Thursday, Jan 7, 16 @ 4:14 pm