The competition to acquire Constellation Energy Group officially ended Wednesday after global power producing giant Electricite de France (EDF) said it will not revise its current offer, but that it will continue its objective of developing new nuclear plants in the United States.

“Given the current state of financial markets and in particular the difficult credit market for corporates, and after discussions with several potential American partners, EDF has determined that current conditions are not conducive to presenting a new offer for Constellation Energy Group,” EDF said on Wednesday.

After Constellation’s stock price plunged precipitously in mid-September following the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings, with which Constellation had various business relationships, Berkshire Hathaway’s MidAmerican Energy Holdings stepped in quickly with an acquisition bid of $26.50/share, or $4.7 billion (see Daily GPI, Sept. 19). Investor fears had centered on the possibility that the parent of distribution utility Baltimore Gas & Electric and the nation’s largest wholesale power seller could lose its credit lines (see Daily GPI, Sept. 17).

Soon after, EDF made a rival offer to acquire Constellation for $35/share, $8.50/share more than what MidAmerican bid (see Daily GPI, Sept. 23). Despite the higher bid, Constellation accepted MidAmerican Energy’s offer.

On Tuesday MidAmerican and Constellation filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) requesting approval of their merger plan (see Daily GPI, Oct. 15). The companies asked FERC to act on the application by Jan. 15.

As for EDF’s plans in the United States going forward, the company confirmed its objective of developing at least four new nuclear plants in the United States using Evolutionary Power Reactor (EPR) technology. EDF said it is looking to partner with one or several American players and continues to review options. The United States is one of the four target countries identified by EDF for nuclear development

Earlier this month UniStar Nuclear Energy, a joint venture of Constellation and EDF, submitted a combined construction and operating license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a potential new nuclear reactor at the Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station in Scriba, NY (see Power Market Today, Oct. 2).

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