Public Service Enterprise Group

Online Trading Hubs: Interviews With CEOs

Is the value in commodities, or in managing the supply chain?

1. The original consortium of 15 energy companies, announced March 29, 2000, included American Electric Power, Cinergy, consolidated Edison Inc., Duke Enbergy, Edison International, Entergy, Exelon, firstEnergy Corp., FPL Group, PG&E Corp., Public Service Enterprise Group, Reliant Energy, Sempra Energy, Southern Company, and TXU.

News Digest

Mergers & Acquisitions

CP&L + Florida Progress. Carolina Power & Light announced Aug. 23 that it would purchase Florida Progress Corp. for $5.3 billion in a combination that would create the nation's ninth-largest utility in terms of generating capacity, with $6.7 billion in annual revenues and 2.5 million customers in three states. CP&L would pay a premium (between 16.5 percent and 21 percent) over the pre-announcement share price of FP stock.

News Digest

POWER PLANT SALE. Central Maine Power Co. has agreed to

sell its hydroelectric, fossil and biomass power plants totaling 1,185-MW of generating capacity to FPL Group, the holding company of Florida Power and Light. The sale price of $846 million exceeds book value and could permit up to a 10-percent rate cut for customers by the end of the year.

OHIO/TEXAS DEAL. Ohio-based American Electric Power

Co. and Texas-based Central and South West Corp. on Dec.

Far From Closure: No Consensus Yet on Accounting Proposal for Decommissioning

In aiming to make financial statements more meaningful, will FASB instead make them indecipherable?

By mid-summer, a total of 123 companies had cranked out some 574 pages of comments, detailing exactly what they thought of the accounting rules proposed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to cover the closure or removal of certain long-lived assets. %n1%n The FASB's"Exposure Draft," issued early last year, had requested comments on eight issues. The respondents answered as requested, but also raised a host of new questions.

People

Edison International elected former U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher to its board and its utility company's board, Southern California Edison. Christopher was elected chair of the executive committees of both boards. Howard P. Allen retired as chair and CEO.

John T. Coughlin, former Wisconsin Public Service commissioner, was elected chair of the PJM Interconnection L.L.C.

Former U.S. Department of State Legal Adviser Conrad K. Harper was elected to the board of both Public Service Enterprise Group Inc., and Public Service Electric and Gas Co.

People

Dennis L. Haider succeeded the retiring R.J. White as president of Prairielands Energy Marketing, Inc. Haider moved over from v.p.-operations for the Williston Basin Interstate Pipeline Co., another unit of MDU Resources Group Inc. Prairielands became a subsidiary of Williston Basin when Haider took over as president.

In a related development, Ronald G. Skarphol, a special projects manager of Montana-Dakota Utilities Co., takes White's place as v.p.-marketing and business development. Montana-Dakota is another MDU division.

Enron's End Run

Marriage of convenience eyes retail market.

By Richard S. Green and J. Michael Parish

Enron's proposed entry into the electric energy business is a "wake-up call." Open competition will continue to accelerate, and new, aggressive players will seek ways to become involved as the energy and energy services businesses converge.

A combined Enron/Portland General Corp.

Mailbag

Salt River Project has appointed Capitol Hill veteran Renee Eastman manager of federal affairs. Eastman previously served four years as a representative for Sun Company, the nation's largest independent oil refiner and marketer.

Peter M. Schwolsky, former executive v.p. at New Jersey Resources Corp., has joined Columbia Gas System as senior v.p. He will become chief legal officer of the corporation later this year.

People

Philip R. Sharp, former 10-term congressman from Indiana, has been named director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. Sharp assumes the position on July 1, succeeding Charles Royer, former mayor of Seattle, WA.

NICOR Inc. has elected Thomas L. Fisher, currently president and COO, to the additional position of CEO. Fisher will continue as president and CEO of Northern Illinois Gas Co., the company's largest subsidiary.

Charles W.