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Capitalization
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2011
Capitalization  
Capitalization

9  Capitalization

We detail in the table below our total capitalization, which includes long-term debt, common stock, noncontrolling interests, and preference stock, as of December 31, 2011 and 2010.

At December 31,
  2011
  2010
 
   
 
  (In millions)
 

Long-Term Debt

             

Long-term debt of Constellation Energy

             

8.625% Series A Junior Subordinated Debentures, due June 15, 2063

  $ 450.0   $ 450.0  

7.00% Fixed-Rate Notes, due April 1, 2012

        213.5  

4.55% Fixed-Rate Notes, due June 15, 2015

    550.0     550.0  

5.15% Fixed-Rate Notes, due December 1, 2020

    550.0     550.0  

7.60% Fixed-Rate Notes, due April 1, 2032

    700.0     700.0  

Fair Value of Interest Rate Swaps

    44.1     36.2  
   

Total long-term debt of Constellation Energy

    2,294.1     2,499.7  
   

Long-term debt of nonregulated businesses

             

Tax-exempt debt transferred from BGE effective July 1, 2000

             

4.10% Pollution control loan, due July 1, 2014

    20.0     20.0  

Tax-exempt variable rate notes, due April 1, 2024

    75.0     75.0  

7.3% Fixed Rate Note, due June 1, 2012

    1.6     1.7  

Upstream Gas Property asset-based lending agreement due July 16, 2016

    83.0     18.0  

Secured Solar Credit Lending Agreement due July 7, 2014

    130.0      

Sacramento Solar Project Financing Agreement due December 31, 2030

    40.7      

Denver International Airport Solar Loan Agreement due June 30, 2031

    7.5      

Holyoke Solar, LLC Loan Agreement due December 31, 2031

    11.0      
   

Total long-term debt of nonregulated businesses

    368.8     114.7  
   

Other long-term debt of BGE

             

3.50% Notes, due November 15, 2021

    300.0      

6.125% Notes, due July 1, 2013

    400.0     400.0  

5.90% Notes, due October 1, 2016

    300.0     300.0  

5.20% Notes, due June 15, 2033

    200.0     200.0  

6.35% Notes, due October 1, 2036

    400.0     400.0  

Medium-term notes, Series E

    109.6     131.5  
   

Total other long-term debt of BGE

    1,709.6     1,431.5  
   

6.20% deferrable interest subordinated debentures due October 15, 2043 to BGE wholly owned BGE Capital Trust II relating to trust preferred securities

    257.7     257.7  

Rate stabilization bonds

    394.6     454.4  

Unamortized discount and premium

    (5.1 )   (3.9 )

Current portion of long-term debt

    (174.9 )   (305.3 )
   

Total long-term debt

  $ 4,844.8   $ 4,448.8  
   

Equity:

             

Noncontrolling Interests

 
$

116.9
 
$

88.8
 

BGE Preference Stock

             

Cumulative preference stock not subject to mandatory redemption, 6,500,000 shares authorized 7.125%, 1993 Series, 400,000 shares outstanding, callable at $100.71 per share until June 30, 2012, and at lesser amounts thereafter

    40.0     40.0  

6.97%, 1993 Series, 500,000 shares outstanding, callable at $100.70 per share until September 30, 2012, and at lesser amounts thereafter

    50.0     50.0  

6.70%, 1993 Series, 400,000 shares outstanding, callable at $100.67 per share until December 31, 2012, and at lesser amounts thereafter

    40.0     40.0  

6.99%, 1995 Series, 600,000 shares outstanding, callable at $101.40 per share until September 30, 2012, and at lesser amounts thereafter

    60.0     60.0  
   

Total BGE preference stock not subject to mandatory redemption

    190.0     190.0  
   

Common Shareholders' Equity

             

Common stock without par value, 600,000,000 shares authorized; 201,686,291 and 199,788,658 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2011 and 2010, respectively. (At December 31, 2011, 10,143,863 shares were reserved for the long-term incentive plans, 8,542,059 shares were reserved for the shareholder investment plan, and 1,223,050 shares were reserved for the employee savings plan.)

    3,292.2     3,231.7  

Retained earnings

    4,738.0     5,270.8  

Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income:

             

Hedging instruments

    (404.0 )   (228.7 )

Available-for-sale securities

    38.9     34.5  

Defined benefit plans

    (558.3 )   (481.1 )

Foreign currency translation and other

    (12.9 )   2.0  
   

Total accumulated other comprehensive loss

    (936.3 )   (673.3 )
   

Total common shareholders' equity

    7,093.9     7,829.2  
   

Total Equity

    7,400.8     8,108.0  
   

Total Capitalization

  $ 12,245.6   $ 12,556.8  
   

BGE Common Shareholder Equity

At December 31,
  2011
  2010
 
   
 
  (In millions)
 

Common Stock

  $ 1,293.1   $ 1,293.1  

Retained Earnings

    817.0     779.5  

Accumulated other comprehensive income

    0.6     0.6  
   

Total BGE common shareholder equity

  $ 2,110.7   $ 2,073.2  
   

Long-term Debt

        Long-term debt matures in one year or more from the date of issuance. The long-term debt of Constellation Energy and BGE do not contain material adverse change clauses. We detail our long-term debt in the table above.

Constellation Energy

5.15% Notes due December 1, 2020

In December 2010, we issued $550 million of 5.15% Notes due December 1, 2020. Interest is payable semi-annually on June 1 and December 1, beginning June 1, 2011. At any time prior to September 1, 2020, we may redeem some or all of the notes at a price equal to the greater of 100% of the principal amount of the notes outstanding to be redeemed and the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest on the notes being redeemed, discounted to the redemption date on a semi-annual basis at the Treasury rate plus 30 basis points, plus accrued interest. After September 1, 2020, we may redeem some or all of the notes at a price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the notes outstanding to be redeemed plus accrued interest on the principal amount being redeemed to the redemption date.

        Additionally, in December 2010, we issued a notice to redeem $213.5 million of our 7.00% Notes, which represented the remaining outstanding 7.00% Notes due April 1, 2012. As such, we classified these notes as "Current portion of long-term debt" in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. In January 2011, we redeemed these notes with part of the proceeds from the issuance of the $550 million 5.15% Notes, terminated the associated interest rate swaps, and recognized a pre-tax loss of approximately $5 million on this transaction.

        During February 2011, we entered into interest rate swaps qualifying as fair value hedges related to $350 million of our fixed rate debt maturing in 2015. We also entered into $150 million of interest rate swaps related to our fixed rate debt maturing in 2020 that do not qualify as fair value hedges, and will be marked to market through earnings. These swaps effectively converted $500 million notional amount of fixed rate debt to floating rate for the term of the swaps.

        We discuss our interest rate swaps in Note 13.

Secured Solar Credit Lending Agreement

In July 2011, a subsidiary of Constellation Energy entered into a three-year senior secured credit facility that is designed to support the growth of our solar operations. The amount committed under the facility is $150 million, which may be increased up to $200 million at the subsidiary's request with additional commitments by the lenders. At December 31, 2011, we had borrowed $130.0 million. Borrowings incur interest at a variable rate payable quarterly and are secured by the equity interests in the subsidiary and the entities that own the solar projects as well as the assets of the subsidiary and the projects' entities. The obligations of our subsidiary are guaranteed by Constellation Energy and the projects' entities. The Constellation Energy guarantee will terminate upon the subsidiary obtaining a stand-alone investment grade credit rating or the satisfaction of a number of conditions, at which time the financing will become nonrecourse to Constellation Energy.

Sacramento Solar Project Financing

In July 2011, a subsidiary of Constellation Energy entered into a $40.7 million nonrecourse project financing to fund construction of our 30MW solar facility in Sacramento, California. Borrowings will incur interest at a variable rate, payable quarterly, and are secured by the equity interests and assets of the subsidiary. The construction borrowings are expected to convert into a 19-year nonrecourse variable note in the first quarter of 2012. The subsidiary also executed interest rate swaps for a notional amount of $30.6 million in order to convert the variable interest payments to fixed payments on the $40.7 million facility amount. We discuss our use of derivative instruments, including interest rate swaps, to manage our interest rate risk in more detail in Note 13.

        In addition to this facility, this subsidiary entered into a treasury grant bridge loan for $26.0 million and an equity bridge loan for $27.9 million. Both loans will be utilized to fund construction. The equity bridge loan is expected to be repaid in the first quarter of 2012 and the treasury grant is expected to be repaid in the second quarter of 2012.

Other Solar Project Financings

During 2011, we borrowed the following amounts under solar project loan agreements:

  • $7.5 million due June 30, 2031 related to a solar project at the Denver International Airport, and
    $11.0 million due December 31, 2031 related to a solar project in Holyoke, Massachusetts.

Upstream Gas Property Asset-Based Lending Agreement

In July 2009, we entered into a three year asset-based lending agreement associated with certain upstream gas properties that we own. In July 2011, we amended and extended this lending agreement. The borrowing base committed under the facility was increased to $150 million and can increase to a total of $500 million if the assets support a higher borrowing base and we are able to obtain additional commitments from lenders. The facility now expires in July 2016. Borrowings under this facility are secured by the upstream gas properties, and the lenders do not have recourse against Constellation Energy in the event of a default. At December 31, 2011, we had borrowed $83.0 million under the facility with interest payable quarterly. The facility includes a provision that requires our entities that own the upstream gas properties subject to the agreement to maintain a current ratio of one-to-one. As of December 31, 2011, we are compliant with this provision.

BGE

3.50% Notes due November 15, 2021

In November 2011, BGE issued $300 million of 3.50% Notes due November 15, 2021. Interest is payable semi-annually on May 15 and November 15, beginning May 15, 2012. At any time prior to August 15, 2021, BGE may redeem some or all of the notes at a price equal to the greater of 100% of the principal amount of the notes outstanding to be redeemed and the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest on the notes being redeemed, discounted to the redemption date on a semi-annual basis at the Treasury rate plus 25 basis points, plus accrued interest. After August 15, 2021, BGE may redeem some or all of the notes at a price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the notes outstanding to be redeemed plus accrued interest on the principal amount being redeemed to the redemption date.

Secured Indenture

BGE entered into a secured indenture in July 2009. The secured indenture creates a first priority lien on substantially all of BGE's electric utility distribution equipment and fixtures and on BGE's franchises, permits, and licenses that are transferable and necessary for the operation of the equipment and fixtures. As of December 31, 2011, BGE has not issued any secured bonds under this indenture.

BGE's Rate Stabilization Bonds

In June 2007, BondCo, a subsidiary of BGE, issued an aggregate principal amount of $623.2 million of rate stabilization bonds to recover deferred power purchase costs. We discuss BondCo in more detail in Note 4. Below are the details of the rate stabilization bonds at December 31, 2011:

Principal
  Interest Rate
  Scheduled
Maturity Date

 

$55.4

    5.47 % October 2012

220.0

    5.72   April 2016

119.2

    5.82   April 2017

        The bonds are secured primarily by a usage-based, non-bypassable charge payable by all of BGE's residential electric customers over a ten year period. The charges will be adjusted semi-annually to ensure that the aggregate charges collected are sufficient to pay principal and interest on the bonds, as well as certain on-going costs of administering and servicing the bonds. BondCo cannot use the charges collected to satisfy any other obligations. BondCo's assets are not assets of any affiliate and are not available to pay creditors of any affiliate of BondCo. If BondCo is unable to make principal and interest payments on the bonds, neither Constellation Energy, nor BGE, are required to make the payments on behalf of BondCo.

BGE's Other Long-Term Debt

On July 1, 2000, BGE transferred $278.0 million of tax-exempt debt to our Generation business related to the transferred generating assets. At December 31, 2011, BGE remains contingently liable for the $20 million outstanding balance of this debt.

        BGE's fixed-rate medium-term note, series E, outstanding at December 31, 2011 has a weighted average interest rate of 6.75%, maturing in 2012.

BGE Deferrable Interest Subordinated Debentures

On November 21, 2003, BGE Capital Trust II (BGE Trust II), a Delaware statutory trust established by BGE, issued 10,000,000 Trust Preferred Securities for $250 million ($25 liquidation amount per preferred security) with a distribution rate of 6.20%.

        BGE Trust II used the net proceeds from the issuance of common securities to BGE and the Trust Preferred Securities to purchase a series of 6.20% Deferrable Interest Subordinated Debentures due October 15, 2043 (6.20% debentures) from BGE in the aggregate principal amount of $257.7 million with the same terms as the Trust Preferred Securities. BGE Trust II must redeem the Trust Preferred Securities at $25 per preferred security plus accrued but unpaid distributions when the 6.20% debentures are paid at maturity or upon any earlier redemption. BGE has the option to redeem the 6.20% debentures at any time in the future when certain tax or other events occur.

        BGE Trust II will use the interest paid on the 6.20% debentures to make distributions on the Trust Preferred Securities. The 6.20% debentures are the only assets of BGE Trust II.

        BGE fully and unconditionally guarantees the Trust Preferred Securities based on its various obligations relating to the trust agreement, indentures, 6.20% debentures, and the preferred security guarantee agreement.

        For the payment of dividends and in the event of liquidation of BGE, the 6.20% debentures are ranked prior to preference stock and common stock.

Maturities of Long-Term Debt

        As of December 31, 2011, our long-term borrowings mature on the following schedule:

Year
  Constellation
Energy

  Nonregulated
Businesses

  BGE
  Total
 
   
 
  (In millions)
 

2012

  $   $ 2.4   $ 172.5   $ 174.9  

2013

        2.5     466.6     469.1  

2014

        152.5     70.4     222.9  

2015

    594.1     2.6     74.5     671.2  

2016

        84.2     378.9     463.1  

Thereafter

    1,700.0     124.6     1,199.0     3,023.6  
   

Total

  $ 2,294.1   $ 368.8   $ 2,361.9   $ 5,024.8  
   

Weighted-Average Interest Rates for Variable Rate Debt

        Our weighted-average interest rates for variable rate debt outstanding were:

At December 31,
  2011
  2010
 
   

Nonregulated Businesses
(including Constellation Energy)

             

Loans under credit agreements

    2.88 %   4.50 %

Tax-exempt debt

    0.21 %   0.30 %

Fixed-rate debt converted to floating (1)

    1.55 %   1.23 %
(1)
Includes $150 million of floating rate swaps related to fixed rate debt maturing in 2020 for four years of the 10-year term note.

Preference Stock

        Each series of BGE preference stock has no voting power, except for the following:

  • the preference stock has one vote per share on any charter amendment which would create or authorize any shares of stock ranking prior to or on a parity with the preference stock as to either dividends or distribution of assets, or which would substantially adversely affect the contract rights, as expressly set forth in BGE's charter, of the preference stock, each of which requires the affirmative vote of two-thirds of all the shares of preference stock outstanding; and
    whenever BGE fails to pay full dividends on the preference stock and such failure continues for one year, the preference stock shall have one vote per share on all matters, until and unless such dividends shall have been paid in full. Upon liquidation, the holders of the preference stock of each series outstanding are entitled to receive the par amount of their shares and an amount equal to the unpaid accrued dividends.

Dividend Restrictions

Constellation Energy

Constellation Energy pays dividends on its common stock after its Board of Directors declares them. There are no contractual limitations on Constellation Energy paying common stock dividends, unless Constellation Energy elects to defer interest payments on the 8.625% Series A Junior Subordinated Debentures due June 15, 2063, and any deferred interest remains unpaid. The merger agreement with Exelon prohibits us from increasing our common stock dividend without Exelon's consent.

BGE

BGE pays dividends on its common stock after its Board of Directors declares them. However, pursuant to the order issued by the Maryland PSC on October 30, 2009 in connection with its approval of the transaction with EDF, BGE cannot pay dividends to Constellation Energy if (a) after the dividend payment, BGE's equity ratio would be below 48% as calculated pursuant to the Maryland PSC's ratemaking precedents or (b) BGE's senior unsecured credit rating is rated by two of the three major credit rating agencies below investment grade.