Green Bay, WI-based WPS Resources Corp.’s $1.52 billion acquisition of Chicago-based Peoples Energy Corp. cleared its final hurdle last Thursday as the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) gave its verbal approval to the proposed merger of the companies, which was first announced on July 10, 2006 (see NGI, July 10, 2006; July 17, 2006). The companies said the transaction will close following the commission’s written order, which is expected to be issued Feb. 16. Upon closing, the new company will be known as Integrys Energy Group Inc., and will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TEG. The combined company will have assets of about $10.3 billion and its market capitalization is expected to exceed $4 billion. On the regulated side, the company will have more than 1.6 million natural gas customers and nearly half a million electric customers, with operations in four states: Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota.

Often at odds in the past when utility takeover measures regularly appeared on the municipal ballot, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and the City/County of San Francisco last Tuesday continued their newfound lovefest, joining hands in a new collaborative effort to deliver energy savings/efficiency programs to residential and commercial customers in the utility’s headquarters city. Running through next year, the three-year San Francisco Energy Watch effort will spend up to $11.5 million to achieve millions more dollars in savings, the utility said. Centered in the San Francisco environmental department, the Energy Watch partnership will provide incentive programs, training, education, and technical assistance for small businesses and residential customers. The program goal is to hit 43 million kWh of electricity and 335,000 therms of natural gas equivalent savings PG&E has committed to spend $1 billion on energy efficiency over the three-year period (2006-2008). The utility said it now has partnerships with 22 local and statewide organizations.

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