Maryland

Energy East Corp., which continues to favor consolidating the New York, New England and Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland independent system operators (ISOs), recently offered a blueprint of ways to improve an ongoing process under which the Northeast ISOs are looking to enhance regional reliability.

The Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland (PJM) IndependentSystem Operator (ISO) has received approval for transmissionfacilities to interconnect over 40 new power generating sources tothe grid. In a meeting Aug. 1, the board of managers of PJMInterconnection approved the remaining elements of what is to bethe first coordinated regional transmission expansion under the PJMISO structure.

Congestion is about a $100 to $200 million problem in thePennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland (PJM) independent system operator(ISO) area, but it is being addressed through a combination ofmanagement and capital improvement steps that include a long listof natural gas-fired new generating plants, according to anexecutive with the PJM ISO’s regional power district, the largestin the nation.

A Maryland-based Internet consulting firm says it plans to askFERC to initiate an inquiry into the impact of the e-commercerevolution on regulated energy industries and vice versa, but firstit wants to get industry input on the issue.

A Maryland-based Internet consulting firm says it plans to askFERC to initiate an inquiry into the impact of the e-commercerevolution on regulated energy industries and vice versa, but firstit wants to get industry input on the issue.

Washington Gas Light Co. announced last week that it has filedfor a five-year rate freeze with the Maryland Public ServiceCommission. Additionally, the filing states that any earnings inexcess of the target return on equity, set at 11.4%, will be sharedequally between Washington Gas and its firm customers. Theeffective date of the proposal is July, 1, 2000, pending commissionapproval.

Old Dominion Electric Cooperative of Glen Allen, VA, issoliciting bids for peaking power for its 12 distributioncooperatives in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia and alternativelyis considering construction of new generation stations.

A wholly owned subsidiary of Potomac Electric Power Co. (Pepco)has purchased the assets and operations of a Maryland-based gasretail marketing firm for an undisclosed amount. The transactiongives Pepco through its subsidiary, Pepco Services, the capabilityto offer for the first time natural gas to its commercial,institutional and industrial customers.