nuclear-news

On Friday, the District of Columbia’s utility regulators dealt what may end up being a fatal blow to Exelon’s bid to buy local utility Pepco and become the largest utility in the country. Or maybe not. In a complex decision that almost literally gave those of us in the room whiplash, the Public Service Commission:

• Rejected a controversial deal submitted by the corporations and DC’s Mayor, Muriel Bowser, and agreed to by several other parties. To which the whole room cheered.
• And then immediately after, the commission offered amended terms by a 2-1 vote. If all of the parties accept the terms within two weeks, the PSC would automatically approve Exelon’s purchase of Pepco, with no further review or vote required.

This set off a lot of speculation about how quickly or easily the deal would be approved. We are happy to report that hasty judgments that Exelon…