CAC fights against AEP mega-merger and for clean air CAC participated in a coalition of environmental and consumer groups led by the Environmental Law & Policy Center (ELPC) and the FERC Sustainable Energy Policy Project to challenge before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) the merger between American Electric Power Co. and Central and South West Corp. (CSW) on the grounds that the combination would have undue market power, a condition which would be exacerbated by AEP’s large inventory of coal plants grandfathered under the Clean Air Act. During the reporting period, the CAC assisted ELPC in preparing discovery, testimony and briefs in the case. CAC cosponsored testimony by Bruce Biewald showing the anti-competitive effects resulting from AEP’s grandfathered coal plants. It served as the primary document manager in the case. CAC also secured a grant of $35,000 from the Indiana Utility Ratepayer Trust to help defray the costs of this litigation for both itself and ELPC. Unfortunately, all major parties except one small group of Transmission Dependent Utilities (TDU’s) and the ELPC-led coalition settled with the petitioners and the presiding Administrative Law Judge ruled in Nov., 1999 that the AEP-CSW combination did not have market power and thus did not reach the issue of AEP's grandfathered coal plants. No appeal to the full Commission is planned due to a low likelihood of success given the withdrawal of opposition to the merger by other parties and the possibility of undermining the favorable precedent set on the grandfathering issue in the Northern States Power-Wisconsin Electric Power merger case. Using its own funds, CAC also opposed the merger before the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC), challenging the merits of a settlement between the merging companies and Trial Staff, as well as the IURC’s authority to pre-approve ratemaking treatment for a merger which the Commission lacked jurisdiction because it was consummated at the holding company level. An appeal of the jurisdictional issues is planned. Go to Environmental Issues Index
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