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Commitments and Contingencies (Exelon, Generation, ComEd, PECO and BGE)
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2013
Commitments And Contingencies Tables Disclosure [Line Items]  
Commitments and Contingencies (Exelon, Generation, ComEd, PECO and BGE)

22. Commitments and Contingencies (Exelon, Generation, ComEd, PECO and BGE)

 

Nuclear Insurance

 

Generation is subject to liability, property damage and other risks associated with major incidents at any of its nuclear stations, including the CENG nuclear stations. Generation has reduced its financial exposure to these risks through insurance and other industry risk-sharing provisions.

 

The Price-Anderson Act was enacted to ensure the availability of funds for public liability claims arising from an incident at any of the U.S. licensed nuclear facilities and also to limit the liability of nuclear reactor owners for such claims from any single incident. As of December 31, 2013, the current liability limit per incident was $13.6 billion and is subject to change to account for the effects of inflation and changes in the number of licensed reactors. An inflation adjustment must be made at least once every 5 years and the last inflation adjustment was made effective September 10, 2013. In accordance with the Price-Anderson Act, Generation maintains financial protection at levels equal to the amount of liability insurance available from private sources through the purchase of private nuclear energy liability insurance for public liability claims that could arise in the event of an incident. As of January 1, 2013, the amount of nuclear energy liability insurance purchased is $375 million for each operating site. Additionally, the Price-Anderson Act requires a second layer of protection through the mandatory participation in a retrospective rating plan for power reactors (currently 104 reactors) resulting in an additional $13.2 billion in funds available for public liability claims. Participation in this secondary financial protection pool requires the operator of each reactor to fund its proportionate share of costs for any single incident that exceeds the primary layer of financial protection. Under the Price-Anderson Act, the maximum assessment in the event of an incident for each nuclear operator, per reactor, per incident (including a 5% surcharge), is $127.3 million, payable at no more than $19 million per reactor per incident per year. Exelon's maximum liability per incident is approximately $2.4 billion.

 

In addition, the U.S. Congress could impose revenue-raising measures on the nuclear industry to pay public liability claims exceeding the $13.6 billion limit for a single incident.

 

Generation is required each year to report to the NRC the current levels and sources of property insurance that demonstrates Generation possesses sufficient financial resources to stabilize and decontaminate a reactor and reactor station site in the event of an accident. The property insurance maintained for each facility is currently provided through insurance policies purchased from NEIL, an industry mutual insurance company of which Generation is a member.

 

NEIL may declare distributions to its members as a result of favorable operating experience. In recent years NEIL has made distributions to its members, but Generation cannot predict the level of future distributions or if they will continue at all. NEIL declared a distribution for 2013, of which Generation's portion was $18.5 million. The distribution was recorded as a reduction to Operating and maintenance expense within Exelon and Generation's Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income. No distributions were declared in 2011 or 2012. Premiums paid to NEIL by its members are subject to assessment for adverse loss experience (the retrospective premium obligation). NEIL has never exercised this assessment since its formation in 1973, and while Generation cannot predict the level of future assessments, or if they will be imposed at all, as of December 31, 2013, the current maximum aggregate annual retrospective premium obligation for Generation is approximately $287 million.

 

NEIL provides all risk property damage, decontamination and premature decommissioning insurance for each station for losses resulting from damage to its nuclear plants, either due to accidents or acts of terrorism. As of December 31, 2013, Generation's current limit for this coverage is $2.1 billion. For property limits in excess of the first $1.25 billion of that limit, Generation participates in an $850 million single limit blanket policy shared by all the Generation operating nuclear sites and the Salem and Hope Creek nuclear sites. This blanket limit is not subject to automatic reinstatement in the event of a loss. In the event of an accident, insurance proceeds must first be used for reactor stabilization and site decontamination. If the decision is made to decommission the facility, a portion of the insurance proceeds will be allocated to a fund, which Generation is required by the NRC to maintain, to provide for decommissioning the facility. In the event of an insured loss, Generation is unable to predict the timing of the availability of insurance proceeds to Generation and the amount of such proceeds that would be available. Under the terms of the various insurance agreements, Generation could be assessed up to $229 million per year for losses incurred at any plant insured by the insurance company (the retrospective premium obligation). In the event that one or more acts of terrorism cause accidental property damage within a twelve-month period from the first accidental property damage under one or more policies for all insured plants, the maximum recovery for all losses by all insureds will be an aggregate of $3.2 billion plus such additional amounts as the insurer may recover for all such losses from reinsurance, indemnity and any other source, applicable to such losses. The $3.2 billion maximum recovery limit is not applicable, however, in the event of a “certified act of terrorism” as defined in the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002, as amended by the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007. The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act expires on December 31, 2014.

 

Additionally, NEIL provides replacement power cost insurance in the event of a major accidental outage at an insured nuclear station. The premium for this coverage is subject to assessment for adverse loss experience. Generation's maximum share of any assessment is $58 million per year (the retrospective premium obligation). Recovery under this insurance for terrorist acts is subject to the $3.2 billion aggregate limit and secondary to the property insurance described above. This limit would not apply in cases of certified acts of terrorism under the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002, as amended by the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007, as described above.

 

NEIL requires its members to maintain an investment grade credit rating or to ensure collectability of their annual retrospective premium obligation by providing a financial guarantee, letter of credit, deposit premium, or some other means of assurance.

 

For its insured losses, Generation is self-insured to the extent that losses are within the policy deductible or exceed the amount of insurance maintained. Uninsured losses and other expenses, to the extent not recoverable from insurers or the nuclear industry, could also be borne by Generation. Any such losses could have a material adverse effect on Exelon's and Generation's financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

 

Spent Nuclear Fuel Obligation

 

Under the NWPA, the DOE is responsible for the development of a geologic repository for and the disposal of SNF and high-level radioactive waste. As required by the NWPA, Generation is a party to contracts with the DOE (Standard Contracts) to provide for disposal of SNF from Generation's nuclear generating stations. In accordance with the NWPA and the Standard Contracts, Generation pays the DOE one mill ($0.001) per kWh of net nuclear generation for the cost of SNF disposal. This fee may be adjusted prospectively in order to ensure full cost recovery. The NWPA and the Standard Contracts required the DOE to begin taking possession of SNF generated by nuclear generating units by no later than January 31, 1998. The DOE, however, failed to meet that deadline and its performance will be delayed significantly. On November 19, 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ordered the DOE to submit to Congress a proposal to reduce the current SNF disposal fee to zero, unless and until there is a viable disposal program. On January 3, 2014, the DOE filed a petition for rehearing. On the same date, as ordered by the court, the DOE submitted a proposal to Congress to reduce the current SNF disposal fee to zero, subject to any further judicial decision. The DOE's submitted proposal becomes effective after the 90-days of continuous session of the Congress unless there is Congressional action contrary to the DOE proposal. However, if the court grants the petition for rehearing, the proposal to eliminate the fee (and the review period) will be held in suspense until after the court rules. Until such time as a new fee structure is in effect, Generation must continue to pay the current SNF disposal fees.

 

The 2010 Federal budget (which became effective October 1, 2009) eliminated almost all funding for the creation of the Yucca Mountain repository while the Obama administration devised a new strategy for long-term SNF management. A Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) on America's Nuclear Future, appointed by the U.S. Energy Secretary, released a report on January 26, 2012, detailing comprehensive recommendations for creating a safe, long-term solution for managing and disposing of the nation's spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste.

 

In early 2013, the DOE issued an updated “Strategy for the Management and Disposal of Used Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste” in response to the BRC recommendations. This strategy included a consolidated interim storage facility that is planned to be operational in 2025.

 

Generation uses the 2025 date as the assumed date for when the DOE will begin accepting SNF for purposes of determining nuclear decommissioning asset retirement obligations. The extended delay in SNF acceptance by the DOE has led to Generation's adoption of dry cask storage at its Dresden, Clinton, Limerick, Oyster Creek, Peach Bottom, Byron, Braidwood, LaSalle and Quad Cities stations.

 

In August 2004, Generation and the DOJ, in close consultation with the DOE, reached a settlement under which the government agreed to reimburse Generation, subject to certain damage limitations based on the extent of the government's breach, for costs associated with storage of SNF at Generation's nuclear stations pending the DOE's fulfillment of its obligations. Generation submits annual reimbursement requests to the DOE for costs associated with the storage of SNF. In all cases, reimbursement requests are made only after costs are incurred and only for costs resulting from DOE delays in accepting the SNF.

 

Under the settlement agreement, Generation has received cash reimbursements for costs incurred through April 30, 2013, totaling approximately $712 million ($601 million after considering amounts due to co-owners of certain nuclear stations and to the former owner of Oyster Creek). As of December 31, 2013, the amount of SNF storage costs for which reimbursement will be requested from the DOE under the settlement agreement is $71 million, which is recorded within Accounts receivable, other. Of this amount, $18 million represents amounts owed to the co-owners of the Peach Bottom and Quad Cities generating facilities.

 

CENG entered into settlement agreements with the DOE during 2011 and 2012 to recover damages caused by the DOE's failure to comply with legal and contractual obligations to dispose of spent nuclear fuel related to the Ginna, Calvert Cliffs and Nine Mile Point nuclear power plants. At December 31, 2012, Generation had approximately $22 million recorded as a receivable from CENG with respect to costs incurred by Constellation prior to the formation of the CENG joint venture for the Nine Mile Point and Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plants.  CENG received the funds for the Nine Mile Point and Calvert Cliffs settlement from the DOE in January 2013 and February 2013, respectively, and remitted the $22 million to Generation. 

 

The Standard Contracts with the DOE also required the payment to the DOE of a one-time fee applicable to nuclear generation through April 6, 1983. The fee related to the former PECO units has been paid. Pursuant to the Standard Contracts, ComEd previously elected to defer payment of the one-time fee of $277 million for its units (which are now part of Generation), with interest to the date of payment, until just prior to the first delivery of SNF to the DOE. As of December 31, 2013, the unfunded SNF liability for the one-time fee with interest was $1,021 million. Interest accrues at the 13-week Treasury Rate. The 13-week Treasury Rate in effect, for calculation of the interest accrual at December 31, 2013, was 0.051%. The liabilities for SNF disposal costs, including the one-time fee, were transferred to Generation as part of Exelon's 2001 corporate restructuring. The outstanding one-time fee obligations for the Oyster Creek and TMI units remain with the former owners. Clinton has no outstanding obligation. See Note 11 – Fair Value of Assets and Liabilities for additional information.

 

Energy Commitments

 

Generation's customer facing activities include the physical delivery and marketing of power obtained through its generation capacity, and long-, intermediate- and short-term contracts. Generation maintains an effective supply strategy through ownership of generation assets and power purchase and lease agreements. Generation has also contracted for access to additional generation through bilateral long-term PPAs. These agreements are firm commitments related to power generation of specific generation plants and/or are dispatchable in nature. Several of Generation's long-term PPAs, which have been determined to be operating leases, have significant contingent rental payments that are dependent on the future operating characteristics of the associated plants, such as plant availability. Generation recognizes contingent rental expense when it becomes probable of payment. Generation enters into PPAs with the objective of obtaining low-cost energy supply sources to meet its physical delivery obligations to its customers. Generation has also purchased firm transmission rights to ensure that it has reliable transmission capacity to physically move its power supplies to meet customer delivery needs. The primary intent and business objective for the use of its capital assets and contracts is to provide Generation with physical power supply to enable it to deliver energy to meet customer needs. In addition to physical contracts, Generation uses financial contracts for economic hedging purposes and, to a lesser extent, as part of proprietary trading activities.

 

Generation has entered into bilateral long-term contractual obligations for sales of energy to load-serving entities, including electric utilities, municipalities, electric cooperatives and retail load aggregators. Generation also enters into contractual obligations to deliver energy to market participants who primarily focus on the resale of energy products for delivery. Generation provides for delivery of its energy to these customers through firm transmission.

 

As part of reaching a comprehensive agreement with EDF in October 2010, the existing power purchase agreements with CENG were modified to be unit−contingent through the end of their original term in 2014. Under these agreements, CENG has the ability to fix the energy price on a forward basis by entering into monthly energy hedge transactions for a portion of the future sale, while any unhedged portions will be provided at market prices by default. Additionally, beginning in 2015 and continuing to the end of the life of the respective plants, Generation agreed to purchase 50.01% of the nuclear plant output owned by CENG at market prices. Generation discloses in the table below commitments to purchase from CENG at fixed prices. All commitments to purchase at market prices, which include all purchases subsequent to December 31, 2014, are excluded from the table. Generation continues to own a 50.01% membership interest in CENG that is accounted for as an equity method investment. See Note 5 – Investment in Constellation Energy Nuclear Group, LLC and Note 25Related Party Transactions for more details on this arrangement.

 

At December 31, 2013, Generation's short- and long-term commitments, relating to the purchases from unaffiliated utilities and others of energy, capacity and transmission rights, are as indicated in the following tables:

 Net Capacity REC Transmission Rights Purchased Energy  
 Purchases (a)  Purchases (b)  Purchases (c)  from CENG Total
                        
2014 $ 412   $ 117   $ 25   $ 824  $1,378 
2015   367     110     13       490 
2016   284     76     2       362 
2017   223     25     2       250 
2018   112     3     2       117 
Thereafter   414     3     32        449 
                        
Total $ 1,812   $ 334   $ 76   $ 824  $ 3,046 

 

(a)       Net capacity purchases include PPAs and other capacity contracts including those that are accounted for as operating leases. Amounts presented in the commitments represent Generation's expected payments under these arrangements at December 31, 2013, net of fixed capacity payments expected to be received by Generation under contracts to resell such acquired capacity to third parties under long-term capacity sale contracts. Expected payments include certain fixed capacity charges which may be reduced based on plant availability.

(b)       The table excludes renewable energy purchases that are contingent in nature.

(c)       Transmission rights purchases include estimated commitments for additional transmission rights that will be required to fulfill firm sales contracts.

 

ComEd purchases its expected energy requirements through an ICC approved competitive bidding process administered by the IPA and spot market purchases. See Note 3—Regulatory Matters for further information.

 

Since 2009, PECO has entered into contracts through a competitive procurement process in order to meet a portion of its default service customers' electric supply requirements for 2011 through 2016. See Note 3Regulatory Matters for further information regarding the DSP Programs.

 

ComEd is subject to requirements established by the Illinois Settlement Legislation and the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act related to the use of alternative energy resources. PECO is subject to requirements related to the use of alternative energy resources established by the AEPS Act. BGE is subject to requirements established by the Public Utilities Article in Maryland related to the use of alternative energy resources; however, the wholesale suppliers that supply power to BGE through SOS procurement auctions have the obligation, by contract with BGE, to meet the RPS requirement. BGE has entered into contracts with curtailment services providers in accordance with the March 2009 MDPSC order. See Note 3—Regulatory Matters for additional information relating to electric generation procurement, alternative energy resources and energy efficiency programs.

 

ComEd's, PECO's and BGE's electric supply procurement, curtailment services, REC and AEC purchase commitments as of December 31, 2013 are as follows:

 

 

 

    Expiration within
                   2019
 Total  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 and beyond
                     
ComEd                    
Electric supply procurement(a)$ 736 $ 323 $ 136 $ 137 $ 140 $0 $0
Renewable energy and RECs(b)  1,589   72   74   76   77   83   1,207
PECO                    
Electric supply procurement(c)  681   590   91  0  0  0  0
AECs(d)  14   2   2   2   2   2   4
BGE                    
Electric supply procurement(e)  1,256   783   400   73  0  0  0
Curtailment services(f)  132   45   40   34   13  0  0

_________________

  • ComEd entered into various contracts for the procurement of electricity that started to expire in 2012, and will continue to expire through 2017. ComEd is permitted to recover its electric supply procurement costs from retail customers with no mark-up. See Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for additional information.
  • ComEd entered into 20-year contracts for renewable energy and RECs beginning in June 2012. ComEd is permitted to recover its renewable energy and REC costs from retail customers with no mark-up. The annual commitments represent the maximum settlements with suppliers for renewable energy and RECs under the existing contract terms. Pursuant to the ICC's Order on December 19, 2012, ComEd's commitments under the existing long-term contracts were reduced for the June 2013 through May 2014 procurement period. The ICC's December 18, 2013 order approved the reduction of ComEd's commitments under the long-term contracts for the June 2014 through May 2015 procurement period, however the amount of the reduction will not be finalized and approved by the ICC until March 2014. See Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for additional information.
  • PECO entered into various contracts for the procurement of electric supply to serve its default service customers that expire between 2014 and 2015. PECO is permitted to recover its electric supply procurement costs from default service customers with no mark-up in accordance with its PAPUC-approved DSP Programs. See Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for additional information.
  • PECO is subject to requirements related to the use of alternative energy resources established by the AEPS Act. See Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for additional information.
  • BGE entered into various contracts for the procurement of electricity beginning 2013 through 2016. The cost of power under these contracts is recoverable under MDPSC approved fuel clauses. See Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for additional information.
  • BGE has entered into various contracts with curtailment services providers related to transactions in PJM's capacity market. See Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for additional information.

 

Fuel Purchase Obligations

 

In addition to the energy commitments described above, Generation has commitments to purchase fuel supplies for nuclear and fossil generation. PECO and BGE have commitments to purchase natural gas, related transportation, storage capacity and services to serve customers in their gas distribution service territory. As of December 31, 2013, these net commitments were as follows:

 

    Expiration within
                   2019
 Total  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 and beyond
                     
Generation$ 8,490 $ 1,212 $ 1,256 $ 1,040 $ 1,044 $ 763 $ 3,175
PECO  507   179   112   98   37   15   66
BGE  609   129   59   57   57   51   256

    Expiration within
                   2019
 Total  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 and beyond
                     
Exelon$ 262 $ 61 $ 34 $ 32 $ 31 $ 26 $ 78
Generation  504   170   131   45   42   30   86
ComEd (a)  122   88   5   5   5   5   14
PECO (a)  40   30   1   1   1   1   6
BGE (a)  53   44   2   5   2    

_________________

(a)       Purchase obligations include commitments related to smart meter installation. See Note 3 - Regulatory Matters for additional information.

 

Commercial Commitments

 

Exelon's commercial commitments as of December 31, 2013, representing commitments potentially triggered by future events, were as follows:

 

    Expiration within
              2019
  Total 20142015201620172018and beyond
                
Letters of credit (non-debt) (a)$ 1,520$ 1,217$ 298$$ 5$$
Surety bonds (b)  339  301  2  6  4  1  25
Performance guarantees (c)  1,107  350      757
Energy marketing contract               
 guarantees (d)  3,161  3,161     
Lease guarantees (e)  44       44
Nuclear insurance premiums (f)  3,529       3,529
                
Total commercial commitments$ 9,700$ 5,029$ 300$ 6$ 9$ 1$ 4,355

 

(a)       Letters of credit (non-debt) - Exelon and certain of its subsidiaries maintain non-debt letters of credit to provide credit support for certain transactions as requested by third parties.        

(b)       Surety bonds - Guarantees issued related to contract and commercial agreements, excluding bid bonds.

(c)       Performance guarantees - Guarantees issued to ensure performance under specific contracts, including $211 million issued on behalf of CENG nuclear generating facilities for credit support, $200 million of Trust Preferred Securities of ComEd Financing III, $178 million of Trust Preferred Securities of PECO Trust III and IV and $250 million of Trust Preferred Securities of BGE Capital Trust II.

(d)       Energy marketing contract guarantees - Guarantees issued to ensure performance under energy commodity contracts. Amount includes approximately $3 billion of guarantees previously issued by Constellation on behalf of its Generation and NewEnergy business to allow it the flexibility needed to conduct business with counterparties without having to post other forms of collateral. The majority of these guarantees contain evergreen provisions that require the guarantee to remain in effect until cancelled. Exelon's estimated net exposure for obligations under commercial transactions covered by these guarantees is approximately $463 million at December 31, 2013, which represents the total amount Exelon could be required to fund based on December 31, 2013 market prices.

(e)       Lease guarantees - Guarantees issued to ensure payments on building leases.

(f)       Nuclear insurance premiums - Represents the maximum amount that Generation would be required to pay for retrospective premiums in the event of nuclear disaster at any domestic site under the Secondary Financial Protection pool as required under the Price-Anderson Act as well as the current aggregate annual retrospective premium obligation that could be imposed by NEIL. See the Nuclear Insurance section within this note for additional details on Generation's nuclear insurance premiums.

 

 

Generation's commercial commitments as of December 31, 2013, representing commitments potentially triggered by future events, were as follows:

 

    Expiration within
              2019
  Total 20142015201620172018and beyond
                
Letters of credit (non-debt) (a)$ 1,477$ 1,174$ 298$$ 5$$
Performance guarantees (b)  357  343      14
Energy marketing contract guarantees (c)  832  832     
Nuclear insurance premiums (d)  3,529       3,529
                
Total commercial commitments$ 6,195$ 2,349$ 298$$ 5$$ 3,543

 

(a)       Letters of credit (non-debt) - Non-debt letters of credit maintained to provide credit support for certain transactions as requested by third parties.

(b)       Performance guarantees - Guarantees issued to ensure performance under specific contracts including $211 million issued on behalf of CENG nuclear generating facilities for credit support.

(c)       Energy marketing contract guarantees - Guarantees issued to ensure performance under energy commodity contracts. Amount includes approximately $749 million of guarantees previously issued by Constellation on behalf of its Generation and NewEnergy business to allow it the flexibility needed to conduct business with counterparties without having to post other forms of collateral. The majority of these guarantees contain evergreen provisions that require the guarantee to remain in effect until cancelled. Generation's estimated net exposure for obligations under commercial transactions covered by these guarantees is approximately $0.2 billion at December 31, 2013, which represents the total amount Generation could be required to fund based on December 31, 2013 market prices.

(d)        Nuclear insurance premiums - Represents the maximum amount that Generation would be required to pay for retrospective premiums in the event of nuclear disaster at any domestic site under the Secondary Financial Protection pool as required under the Price-Anderson Act as well as the current aggregate annual retrospective premium obligation that could be imposed by NEIL. See Nuclear Insurance section within this note for additional details on Generation's nuclear insurance premiums.

 

ComEd's commercial commitments as of December 31, 2013, representing commitments potentially triggered by future events, were as follows:

 

     Expiration within
                    2019
  Total  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 and beyond
                      
Letters of credit (non-debt) (a)$ 19 $ 19 $ $ $ $ $
Surety bonds (b)  9   9          
Performance guarantees (c)  200             200
                      
Total commercial commitments$ 228 $ 28 $ $ $ $ $ 200

 

(a)       Letters of credit (non-debt) - ComEd maintains non-debt letters of credit to provide credit support for certain transactions as requested by third parties.

(b)       Surety bonds - Guarantees issued related to contract and commercial agreements, excluding bid bonds.

(c)       Performance guarantees - Reflects full and unconditional guarantee of Trust Preferred Securities of ComEd Financing III which is a 100% owned finance subsidiary of ComEd.

 

PECO's commercial commitments as of December 31, 2013, representing commitments potentially triggered by future events, were as follows:

 

     Expiration within
                    2019
  Total  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 and beyond
                      
Letters of credit (non-debt) (a)$ 22 $ 22 $ $ $ $ $
Surety bonds (b)  3   3          
Performance guarantees(c)  178             178
                      
Total commercial commitments$ 203 $ 25 $ $ $ $ $ 178

 

(a)       Letters of credit (non-debt) - PECO maintains non-debt letters of credit to provide credit support for certain transactions as requested by third parties.

(b)       Surety bonds - Guarantees issued related to contract and commercial agreements, excluding bid bonds.

(c)       Performance guarantees - Reflects full and unconditional guarantee of Trust Preferred Securities of PECO Trust III and IV, which are 100% owned finance subsidiaries of PECO.

 

BGE's commercial commitments as of December 31, 2013, representing commitments potentially triggered by future events, were as follows:

 

     Expiration within
                    2019
  Total  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 and beyond
                      
Letters of credit (non-debt) (a)$ 1 $ 1 $ $ $ $ $
Surety bonds (b)  9   9          
Performance guarantees (c)  250             250
                      
Total commercial commitments$ 260 $ 10 $ $ $ $ $ 250

 

  • Letters of credit (non-debt) - BGE maintains non-debt letters of credit to provide credit support for certain transactions as requested by third parties.
  • Surety bond – Guarantees issued related to contract and commercial agreements, excluding bid bonds.
  • Performance guarantee - Reflects full and unconditional guarantee of Trust Preferred Securities of BGE Capital Trust which is an unconsolidated VIE of BGE.

 

Construction Commitments

 

Generation has committed to the construction of the Antelope Valley solar PV facility in Los Angeles County, California. The first portion of the project began operations in December 2012, with six additional blocks coming online in 2013 and an expectation of full commercial operation in the first half of 2014. Generation's estimated remaining commitment for the project is $110 million.

 

On July 3, 2013, Generation executed a Turbine Supply Agreement to expand its Beebe wind project in Michigan. The estimated remaining commitment under the contract is $50 million and achievement of commercial operations is expected in 2014.

 

On July 26, 2013, Generation executed an engineering procurement and construction contract to expand its Perryman, Maryland generation site with 120 MW of new natural gas-fired generation to satisfy certain merger commitments. The estimated remaining commitment under the contract is $80 million and achievement of commercial operation is expected in 2015. See 4 – Merger and Acquisitions for additional information on commitments to develop or assist in development of new generation in Maryland resulting from the merger.

 

       On December 27, 2013, Generated executed a Turbine Supply Agreement for construction of the 32.5MW Fourmile Wind project in western Maryland. The estimated remaining commitment under the contract is $26 million and achievement of commercial operations is expected in 2014. See 4 – Merger and Acquisitions for additional information on commitments to develop or assist in development of new generation in Maryland resulting from the merger.

 

Refer to Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for information on investment programs associated with regulatory mandates, such as ComEd's Infrastructure Investment Plan under EIMA, PECO's Smart Meter Procurement and Installation Plan, and BGE's comprehensive smart grid initiative.

 

 

  • Letters of credit (non-debt) - BGE maintains non-debt letters of credit to provide credit support for certain transactions as requested by third parties.
  • Surety bond – Guarantees issued related to contract and commercial agreements, excluding bid bonds.
  • Performance guarantee - Reflects full and unconditional guarantee of Trust Preferred Securities of BGE Capital Trust which is an unconsolidated VIE of BGE.

 

Construction Commitments

 

Generation has committed to the construction of the Antelope Valley solar PV facility in Los Angeles County, California. The first portion of the project began operations in December 2012, with six additional blocks coming online in 2013 and an expectation of full commercial operation in the first half of 2014. Generation's estimated remaining commitment for the project is $110 million.

 

On July 3, 2013, Generation executed a Turbine Supply Agreement to expand its Beebe wind project in Michigan. The estimated remaining commitment under the contract is $50 million and achievement of commercial operations is expected in 2014.

 

On July 26, 2013, Generation executed an engineering procurement and construction contract to expand its Perryman, Maryland generation site with 120 MW of new natural gas-fired generation to satisfy certain merger commitments. The estimated remaining commitment under the contract is $80 million and achievement of commercial operation is expected in 2015. See 4 – Merger and Acquisitions for additional information on commitments to develop or assist in development of new generation in Maryland resulting from the merger.

 

       On December 27, 2013, Generated executed a Turbine Supply Agreement for construction of the 32.5MW Fourmile Wind project in western Maryland. The estimated remaining commitment under the contract is $26 million and achievement of commercial operations is expected in 2014. See 4 – Merger and Acquisitions for additional information on commitments to develop or assist in development of new generation in Maryland resulting from the merger.

 

Refer to Note 3 – Regulatory Matters for information on investment programs associated with regulatory mandates, such as ComEd's Infrastructure Investment Plan under EIMA, PECO's Smart Meter Procurement and Installation Plan, and BGE's comprehensive smart grid initiative.

 

Constellation Merger Commitments

 

Exelon's commercial and construction commitments shown above do not include the merger commitments made to the State of Maryland in conjunction with the Constellation merger. See Note 4 – Merger and Acquisitions for additional information on the mergers commitments.

Leases

 

Minimum future operating lease payments, including lease payments for vehicles, real estate, computers, rail cars, operating equipment and office equipment, as of December 31, 2013 were:

 

 Exelon  Generation  ComEd (b) PECO (b) BGE (b)(c)
               
2014$ 103 $ 49 $ 13 $ 13 $ 12
2015  91   50   11   3   11
2016  89   49   11   3   9
2017  82   48   7   3   8
2018  63   40   2   3   7
Remaining years  398   336   3     14
               
Total minimum future lease payments$ 826(a)$ 572(a)$ 47 $ 25 $ 61

 

(a)       Excludes Generation's PPAs and other capacity contracts that are accounted for as contingent operating lease payments.

(b) Amounts related to certain real estate leases and railroad licenses effectively have indefinite payment periods. As a result, ComEd, PECO and BGE have excluded these payments from the remaining years, as such amounts would not be meaningful. ComEd's, PECO's and BGE's annual obligation for these arrangements, included in each of the years 2014 - 2018, was $1 million, $3 million and $1 million respectively.

(c)       Includes all future lease payments on a 99 year real estate lease that expires in 2105.

 

The following table presents the Registrants' rental expense under operating leases for the years ended December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011:

 

For the Year Ended December 31,Exelon  Generation (a) ComEd  PECO  BGE
               
2013$ 806 $ 744 $ 15 $ 21 $ 11
2012  930   872   18   27   12
2011  711   659   18   28   15

 

 

(a)       Includes Generation's PPAs and other capacity contracts that are accounted for as operating leases and are reflected as net capacity purchases in the energy commitments table above. These agreements are considered contingent operating lease payments and are not included in the minimum future operating lease payments table above. Payments made under Generation's PPAs and other capacity contracts totaled $694 million, $801 million and $630 million during 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

 

For information regarding capital lease obligations, see Note 13 Debt and Credit Agreements.

 

Indemnifications Related to Sale of Sithe (Exelon and Generation)

 

On January 31, 2005, subsidiaries of Generation completed a series of transactions that resulted in Generation's sale of its investment in Sithe. Specifically, subsidiaries of Generation consummated the acquisition of Reservoir Capital Group's 50% interest in Sithe and subsequently sold 100% of Sithe to Dynegy Inc. (Dynegy).

 

The estimated maximum possible exposure to Exelon related to the guarantees provided as part of the sales transaction to Dynegy was approximately $200 million at December 31, 2013. Generation believes that it is remote that it will be required to make any additional payments under the guarantee, and currently has no recorded liabilities associated with this guarantee. Generation expects that the exposure covered by this guarantee will expire in 2014. The guarantee is included above in the Commercial Commitments table under performance guarantees.

 

Indemnifications Related to Sale of TEG and TEP (Exelon and Generation)

 

On February 9, 2007, Tamuin International Inc. (TII), a wholly owned subsidiary of Generation, sold its 49.5% ownership interests in TEG and TEP to a subsidiary of AES Corporation for $95 million in cash plus certain purchase price adjustments. In connection with the transaction, Generation entered into a guarantee agreement under which Generation guarantees the timely payment of TII's obligations to the subsidiary of AES Corporation pursuant to the terms of the purchase and sale agreement relating to the sale of TII's ownership interests. Generation was required to perform in the event that TII did not pay any obligation covered by the guarantee that was not otherwise subject to a dispute resolution process. Portions of the exposures covered by this guarantee expired in 2008, and the remaining guarantee expired in the third quarter of 2013. Generation was not required to make payments under the guarantee, and therefore, has no further obligation related to this guarantee as of December 31, 2013.

 

Environmental Matters

 

General. The Registrants' operations have in the past, and may in the future, require substantial expenditures in order to comply with environmental laws. Additionally, under Federal and state environmental laws, the Registrants are generally liable for the costs of remediating environmental contamination of property currently or formerly owned by them and of property contaminated by hazardous substances generated by them. The Registrants own or lease a number of real estate parcels, including parcels on which their operations or the operations of others may have resulted in contamination by substances that are considered hazardous under environmental laws. In addition, the Registrants are currently involved in a number of proceedings relating to sites where hazardous substances have been deposited and may be subject to additional proceedings in the future.

 

ComEd, PECO and BGE have identified sites where former MGP activities have or may have resulted in actual site contamination. For many of these sites, ComEd, PECO or BGE is one of several PRPs that may be responsible for ultimate remediation of each location.

 

  • ComEd has identified 42 sites, 16 of which have been approved for cleanup by the Illinois EPA or the U.S. EPA and 26 that are currently under some degree of active study and/or remediation. ComEd expects the majority of the remediation at these sites to continue through at least 2016.

     

  • PECO has identified 26 sites, 16 of which have been approved for cleanup by the PA DEP and 10 that are currently under some degree of active study and/or remediation. PECO expects the majority of the remediation at these sites to continue through at least 2020.

 

  • BGE has identified 13 former gas manufacturing or purification sites that it currently owns or owned at one time through a predecessor's acquisition. Two gas manufacturing sites require some level of remediation and ongoing monitoring under the direction of the MDE. The required costs at these two sites are not considered material. One gas purification site is in the initial stages of investigation at the direction of the MDE.

 

ComEd, pursuant to an ICC order, and PECO, pursuant to settlements of natural gas distribution rate cases with the PAPUC, are currently recovering environmental remediation costs of former MGP facility sites through customer rates. BGE is authorized to and is currently recovering environmental costs for the remediation of former MGP facility sites from customers; however, while BGE does not have a rider for MGP clean-up costs, BGE has historically received recovery of actual clean-up costs in distribution rates. ComEd, PECO and BGE have recorded regulatory assets for the recovery of these costs. During the third quarter of 2013, ComEd and PECO completed an annual study of their future estimated MGP remediation requirements. The results of these studies indicated that additional remediation would be required at certain sites; accordingly, ComEd and PECO increased their reserves and regulatory assets by less than $1 million and $6 million, respectively. BGE assessed its currently and formerly owned gas manufacturing and purification sites quarterly in 2013 and determined that a loss was not probable at ten of its sites as of December 31, 2013. As discussed above, the remediation costs at two of BGE's MGP sites are not considered material. Furthermore, an estimate of a range of possible loss, if any, related to BGE's gas purification site under investigation cannot be determined as of December 31, 2013 given that the site is in the early stages of investigation and the extent of contamination is currently unknown. See Note 3 — Regulatory Matters for additional information regarding the associated regulatory assets.

        

The historical nature of the MGP sites and the fact that many of the sites have been buried and built over, impacts the ability to determine a precise estimate of the ultimate costs prior to initial sampling and determination of the exact scope and method of remedial action. Management determines its best estimate of remediation costs based on probabilistic modeling and deterministic estimates using all available information at the time of each study and the remediation standards currently required by the U.S. EPA. Prior to completion of any significant clean up, each site remediation plan is approved by the appropriate state environmental agency.

 

 

As of December 31, 2013 and 2012, the Registrants have accrued the following undiscounted amounts for environmental liabilities in other current liabilities and other deferred credits and other liabilities within their respective Consolidated Balance Sheets:

 

 Total environmental investigation Portion of total related to MGP
December 31, 2013and remediation reserve  investigation and remediation
          
Exelon $ 338   $ 273 
Generation   56    0 
ComEd   234     229 
PECO   47     44 
BGE   1    0 
          
 Total environmental investigation Portion of total related to MGP
December 31, 2012and remediation reserve  investigation and remediation
          
Exelon $ 351   $ 298 
Generation   42    0 
ComEd   261     254 
PECO   47     44 
BGE   1    0 

 

The Registrants cannot reasonably estimate whether they will incur other significant liabilities for additional investigation and remediation costs at these or additional sites identified by the Registrants, environmental agencies or others, or whether such costs will be recoverable from third parties, including customers.  

 

Water Quality

 

Section 316(b) of the Clean Water Act.    Section 316(b) requires that the cooling water intake structures at electric power plants reflect the best technology available to minimize adverse environmental impacts, and is implemented through state-level NPDES permit programs. All of Generation's and CENG's power generation facilities with cooling water systems are subject to the regulations. Facilities without closed-cycle recirculating systems (e.g., cooling towers) are potentially most affected by changes to the existing regulations. For Generation, those facilities are Clinton, Dresden, Eddystone, Fairless Hills, Gould Street, Handley, Mountain Creek, Mystic 7, Oyster Creek, Peach Bottom, Quad Cities, Riverside, Salem and Schuylkill. For CENG, those facilities are Calvert Cliffs, Nine Mile Point Unit 1 and R.E. Ginna.

 

On March 28, 2011, the U.S. EPA issued the proposed regulation under Section 316(b). The proposal does not require closed-cycle cooling (e.g., cooling towers) as the best technology available to address impingement and entrainment. The proposal provides the state permitting agency with discretion to determine the best technology available to limit entrainment (drawing aquatic life into the plants cooling system) mortality, including application of a cost-benefit test and the consideration of a number of site-specific factors. After consideration of these factors, the state permitting agency may require closed cycle cooling, an alternate technology, or determine that the current technology is the best available. The proposed rule also imposes limits on impingement (trapping aquatic life on screens) mortality, which likely will be accomplished by the installation of screens or another technology at the intake. Exelon filed comments on the proposed regulation on August 18, 2011, stating its support for a number of its provisions (e.g., cooling towers not required as best technology available, and the use of site-specific and cost benefit analysis) while also noting a number of technical provisions that require revision to take into account existing unit operations and practices within the industry.

 

In June 2012, the U.S. EPA published two Notices of Data Availability (NODA) seeking public comment on alternate compliance technologies for impingement and the use of a public opinion survey to calculate the so-called “non-use” benefits of the rule. Exelon filed comments for each NODA, supporting the additional flexibility afforded by the impingement NODA, and opposing the NODA relating to calculation of non-use benefits due to its inaccurate and unreliable methodologies that would artificially inflate the benefits of proposed technologies that would otherwise not be cost-effective. On June 27, 2013, the U.S. EPA agreed to amend the court approved Settlement Agreement to extend the deadline to issue a final rule until November 4, 2013 and on October 30, 2013 the U.S. EPA invoked the force majeure provision of the Settlement Agreement to extend the final rule deadline until January 14, 2014 due to the early October 2013 federal government shutdown. The U.S. EPA and the plaintiffs have again agreed to extend the date for issuance of the final rule until April 17, 2014. Until the rule is finalized, the state permitting agencies will continue to apply their best professional judgment to address impingement and entrainment.

 

Salem and Other Power Generation Facilities. In June 2001, the NJDEP issued a renewed NPDES permit for Salem, allowing for the continued operation of Salem with its existing cooling water system. NJDEP advised PSEG, in July 2004 that it strongly recommended reducing cooling water intake flow commensurate with closed-cycle cooling as a compliance option for Salem. PSEG submitted an application for a renewal of the permit on February 1, 2006. In the permit renewal application, PSEG analyzed closed-cycle cooling and other options and demonstrated that the continuation of the Estuary Enhancement Program, an extensive environmental restoration program at Salem, is the best technology to meet the Section 316(b) requirements. PSEG continues to operate Salem under the approved June 2001 NPDES permit while the NPDES permit renewal application is being reviewed. If the final permit or Section 316(b) regulations ultimately requires the retrofitting of Salem's cooling water intake structure to reduce cooling water intake flow commensurate with closed-cycle cooling, Exelon's and Generation's share of the total cost of the retrofit and any resulting interim replacement power would likely be in excess of $430 million, based on a 2006 estimate, and would result in increased depreciation expense related to the retrofit investment.

 

It is unknown at this time whether the NJDEP permit programs will require closed-cycle cooling at Salem. In addition, the economic viability of Generation's other power generation facilities, as well as CENG's, without closed-cycle cooling water systems will be called into question by any requirement to construct cooling towers. Should the final rule not require the installation of cooling towers, and retain the flexibility afforded the state permitting agencies in applying a cost benefit test and to consider site-specific factors, the impact of the rule would be minimized even though the costs of compliance could be material to Generation and CENG.

 

Given the uncertainties associated with the requirements that will be contained in the final rule, Generation cannot predict the eventual outcome or estimate the effect that compliance with any resulting Section 316(b) or interim state requirements will have on the operation of its and CENG's generating facilities and its future results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

 

Groundwater Contamination. In October 2007, a subsidiary of Constellation entered into a consent decree with the MDE relating to groundwater contamination at a third-party facility that was licensed to accept fly ash, a byproduct generated by coal-fired plants. The consent decree required the payment of a $1 million penalty, remediation of groundwater contamination resulting from the ash placement operations at the site, replacement of drinking water supplies in the vicinity of the site, and monitoring of groundwater conditions. Prior to the Merger, Constellation recorded in its Consolidated Balance Sheets total liabilities of approximately $30 million to comply with the consent decree with an additional $3 million recognized through purchase accounting. During third quarter of 2013, Generation increased its reserve by $2 million based on an update of future estimated remediation costs. The remaining liability as of December 31, 2013, is approximately $14 million. In addition, a private party asserted claims relating to groundwater contamination. Generation has reached an agreement in principle to resolve these claims. The amount of the settlement is not material to the financial condition of Generation.

 

Alleged Conemaugh Clean Streams Act Violation.  The PA DEP has alleged that GenOn Northeast Management Company (GenOn), the operator of Conemaugh Generating Station, violated the Pennsylvania Clean Streams Law.  GenOn reached agreement with PA DEP on a proposed Consent Decree that was approved by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania on December 4, 2012. Under the Consent Decree, GenOn is obligated to pay a civil penalty of $0.5 million, of which Generation's responsibility was approximately $0.2 million. Generation made the final payment in January 2014 and is complying with the Consent Decree.

 

Air Quality

 

Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR). On July 11, 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit Court) vacated the CAIR, which had been promulgated by the U.S. EPA to reduce power plant emissions of SO2 and NOx. The D.C. Circuit Court later remanded the CAIR to the U.S. EPA, without invalidating the entire rulemaking, so that the U.S. EPA could correct CAIR in accordance with the D.C. Circuit Court's July 11, 2008 opinion. On July 7, 2011, the U.S. EPA published the final rule, known as the CSAPR. The CSAPR requires 28 states in the eastern half of the United States to significantly improve air quality by reducing power plant emissions that cross state lines and contribute to ground-level ozone and fine particle pollution in other states.

 

Numerous entities challenged the CSAPR in the D.C. Circuit Court, and some requested a stay of the rule pending the Court's consideration of the matter on the merits. On December 30, 2011, the Court granted a stay of the CSAPR, and directed the U.S. EPA to continue the administration of CAIR in the interim. On August 21, 2012, a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court held that the U.S. EPA has exceeded its authority in certain material aspects of the CSAPR and vacated the rule and remanded it to the U.S. EPA for further rulemaking consistent with its decision. The Court also ordered that CAIR remain in effect pending finalization of CSAPR on remand. The Court's order was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, where oral argument was held on December 10, 2013. A decision is expected sometime during 2014.

 

Under the CSAPR, generation units were to receive allowances based on historic heat input and intrastate, and limited interstate, trading of allowances was permitted. The CSAPR restricted entirely the use of pre-2012 allowances. Existing SO2 allowances under the ARP would remain available for use under ARP. As of December 31, 2013, Generation had $56 million of emission allowances carried at the lower of weighted average cost or market.

 

EPA Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS). The MATS rule became final on April 16, 2012. The MATS rule reduces emissions of toxic air pollutants, and finalized the new source performance standards for fossil fuel-fired electric utility steam generating units (EGUs). The MATS rule requires coal-fired EGUs to achieve high removal rates of mercury, acid gases and other metals from air emissions. To achieve these standards, coal units with no pollution control equipment installed (uncontrolled coal units) will have to make capital investments and incur higher operating expenses. It is expected that smaller, older, uncontrolled coal units will retire rather than make these investments. Coal units with existing controls that do not meet the required standards may need to upgrade existing controls or add new controls to comply. In addition, the new standards will require oil units to achieve high removal rates of metals. Owners of oil units not currently meeting the proposed emission standards may choose to convert the units to light oils or natural gas, install control technologies or retire the units. The MATS rule requires generating stations to meet the new standards three years after the rule takes effect, April 16, 2015, with specific guidelines for an additional one or two years in limited cases. Numerous entities have challenged MATS in the D.C. Circuit Court, and Exelon was granted permission by the Court to intervene in support of the rule. A decision by the Court is expected sometime during 2014. The outcome of the appeal, and its impact on power plant operators' investment and retirement decisions, is uncertain.

 

Exelon, along with the other co-owners of Conemaugh Generating Station are moving forward with plans to improve the existing scrubbers and install Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) controls to meet the mercury removal requirements of MATS.

 

In addition, as of December 31, 2013, Exelon had a $698 million net investment in coal-fired plants in Georgia and Texas subject to long-term leases extending through 2028-2032. While Exelon currently estimates the value of these plants at the end of the lease term will be in excess of the recorded residual lease values, after the impairment recorded in the second quarter of 2013, final applications of the CSAPR and MATS regulations could negatively impact the end-of-lease term values of these assets, which could result in a future impairment loss that could be material.

 

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The U.S. EPA previously announced that it would complete a review of all NAAQS by 2014. Oral argument in the litigation (State of Miss. v. EPA) of the final 2008 ozone standard occurred in the D.C. Circuit Court in November 2012 and a final Court decision was issued on July 23, 2013 with the 2008 primary ozone standard upheld, but the secondary standard remanded to EPA for reconsideration. Concurrent with litigation of the 2008 ozone standard, the U.S. EPA continues its regular, periodic review of the ozone NAAQS and is expected to propose revisions in the fall of 2014, with preliminary indications that the U.S. EPA will likely propose a tightened standard. It is unclear at this point in time whether the U.S. EPA will be able to respond to the Court remand of the secondary 2008 ozone standard on a timeframe that would be any quicker than that of the U.S. EPA's current, periodic review schedule. In December 2012, the U.S. EPA issued its final revisions to the Agency's particulate matter (PM) NAAQS. In its final rule, the U.S. EPA lowered the annual PM2.5 standard, but declined to issue a new secondary NAAQS to improve urban visibility. The U.S. EPA indicated in its final rule that by 2020 it expects most areas of the country will be in attainment of the new PM2.5 NAAQS based on currently expected regulations, such as the MATS regulation. It is unclear if the vacatur of the CSAPR, one of the regulations that the U.S. EPA is relying on to assist with future PM reduction, would alter the U.S. EPA's view since either CAIR or a finalized CSAPR regulation would be in effect leading up to 2020. In March 2013, a number of industry coalitions filed a joint lawsuit challenging the new PM2.5 standard. Also during early 2013, the D.C. Circuit remanded several rules for implementation of earlier PM2.5 NAAQS to the U.S. EPA for revision of certain aspects of the rules, with a requirement that the U.S. EPA re-promulgate regulations in conformance with the correct subparts of the Clean Air Act.

 

In addition to these NAAQS, the U.S. EPA also finalized nonattainment designations for certain areas in the United States for the 2010 one-hour SO2 standard on August 5, 2013, and indicated that additional nonattainment areas will be designated in a future rulemaking. U.S. EPA will require states to submit state implementation plans (SIPs) for nonattainment areas by April 2015. With regard to Texas and Maryland, no nonattainment areas were identified in U.S. EPA's final designation rule. With regard to Illinois and Pennsylvania, several counties, or portions of counties, in each state were identified as nonattainment. The U.S. EPA will follow the approach outlined in a February 2013 U.S. EPA strategy document that establishes a process and timeline for the Agency to address additional designations in states' counties under a future rulemaking. Nonattainment county compliance with the one-hour SO2 standard is required by October 2018. While significant SO2 reductions will occur as a result of MATS compliance in 2015, Exelon is unable to predict the requirements of pending states' SIPs to further reduce SO2 emissions in support of attainment of the one hour SO2 standard.

 

Notices and Finding of Violations and Midwest Generation Bankruptcy.    In December 1999, ComEd sold several generating stations to Midwest Generation, LLC (Midwest Generation), a subsidiary of Edison Mission Energy (EME). Under the terms of the sale agreement, Midwest Generation and EME assumed responsibility for environmental liabilities associated with the ownership, occupancy, use and operation of the stations, including responsibility for compliance by the stations with environmental laws before their purchase by Midwest Generation. Midwest Generation and EME additionally agreed to indemnify and hold ComEd and its affiliates harmless from claims, fines, penalties, liabilities and expenses arising from third-party claims against ComEd resulting from or arising out of the environmental liabilities assumed by Midwest Generation and EME under the terms of the agreement governing the sale. In connection with Exelon's 2001 corporate restructuring, Generation assumed ComEd's rights and obligations with respect to its former generation business, including its rights and obligations under the sale agreement with Midwest Generation and EME.

 

On December 17, 2012 (Petition Date), EME and certain of its subsidiaries, including Midwest Generation, filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

 

In 2012, the Bankruptcy Court approved the rejection of a coal rail car lease under which Midwest Generation had agreed to reimburse ComEd for all obligations. The rejection left Generation as the party responsible to make remaining payments under the lease. In January 2013, Generation made the final $10 million payment due under the lease agreement which had been accrued at December 31, 2012.

 

During the second quarter of 2013, Exelon filed proofs of claim of $21 million with the Bankruptcy Court for amounts owed by EME and Midwest Generation for the coal rail car lease, ComEd utility payments and certain legal costs. Further, Exelon filed an environmental claim with an unspecified amount that listed the indemnifications that were in place pre-Petition Date and other factors associated with the remediation. As of December 31, 2013, Exelon has not recorded a receivable for the filed proofs of claim because recovery of any amount cannot be assured at this point in the bankruptcy. Exelon will not record claim recoveries unless and until they are realized.

 

Certain environmental laws and regulations subject current and prior owners of properties or generators of hazardous substances at such properties to liability for remediation costs of environmental contamination. As a prior owner of the generating stations, ComEd (and Generation, through its agreement in Exelon's 2001 corporate restructuring to assume ComEd's rights and obligations associated with its former generation business) could face liability (along with any other potentially responsible parties) for environmental conditions at the stations requiring remediation, with the determination of the allocation among the parties subject to many uncertain factors, including the impact of Midwest Generation's bankruptcy. On January 17, 2014, Midwest Generation filed a plan supplement to its bankruptcy filing that included a request to reject the sale agreement, including the environmental indemnity. ComEd and Generation have reviewed available public information as to potential environmental exposures regarding the Midwest Generation station sites. Midwest Generation publicly disclosed in its quarter ending September 30, 2013 Form 10-Q that (i) it has accrued a probable amount of approximately $8 million for estimated environmental investigation and remediation costs under CERCLA, or similar laws, for the investigation and remediation of contaminated property at four Midwest Generation plant sites, (ii) it has identified stations for which a reasonable estimate for investigation and/ or remediation cannot be made and (iii) it and the Illinois EPA entered into Compliance Commitment Agreements outlining specified environmental remediation measures and groundwater monitoring activities to be undertaken at its Crawford, Powerton, Joliet, Will County and Waukegan generating stations. At this time, however, ComEd and Generation do not have sufficient information to reasonably assess the potential likelihood or magnitude of any remediation requirements that may be asserted. For these reasons, ComEd and Generation are unable to predict whether and to what extent they may ultimately be held responsible for remediation and other costs relating to the generating stations and as a result no liability has been recorded as of December 31, 2013. Any liability imposed on ComEd or Generation for environmental matters relating to the generating stations could have a material adverse impact on their future results of operations and cash flows.

 

Under a supplemental agreement reached in 2003, Midwest Generation agreed to reimburse ComEd and Generation for 50% of the specific asbestos claims pending as of February 2003 and related expenses less recovery of insurance costs and agreed to a sharing arrangement for liabilities and expenses associated with future asbestos-related claims as specified in the agreement. In addition to the sale agreement, Midwest Generation also requested to reject this supplemental agreement in the January 17, 2014 plan supplement to its bankruptcy filing. Exelon and Generation had previously expected Midwest Generation or its successor would remain responsible for asbestos personal injury claims filed post-Petition Date, and as a result had not recorded a liability for such amounts. Exelon and Generation now believe that the rejection of the 1999 sale and supplemental agreements is probable, and as a result, Generation has increased its reserve for asbestos-related bodily injury claims at December 31, 2013 by $25 million. The increase in the reserve was estimated using actuarial assumptions and analyses available to Generation. Generation's exposure could differ to the extent new information is received or made available. Midwest Generation publicly disclosed in its quarter ending September 30, 2013 Form 10-Q that they had $53 million recorded related to asbestos bodily injury claims under the contractual indemnity with ComEd. If the agreements are rejected, Exelon and Generation may be entitled to damages associated with the agreement terminations. These amounts are considered to be contingent gains and would not be recognized until realized.

 

On October 18, 2013, NRG Energy entered into an agreement to buy EME's portfolio of generation subject to regulatory approvals. Exelon continues to monitor all aspects of the bankruptcy; the proposed purchase by NRG has not impacted any accounting conclusions as of December 31, 2013.

 

In May 2010, the United States and State of Illinois initiated a lawsuit against Midwest Generation, ComEd and EME alleging Clean Air Act violations relating to the modification and/or operation of six (coal) electric generation plants in Northern Illinois, which ComEd sold to Midwest Generation/EME in 1999. The government parties sought injunctive relief and civil penalties against all defendants, although not all of the claims specifically pertained to ComEd. On March 16, 2011, the District Court granted ComEd's motion to dismiss the May 2010 complaint in its entirety as it relates to ComEd. On January 3, 2012, upon leave of the District Court, the government parties appealed the dismissal of ComEd to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. On July 8, 2013, the Circuit Court affirmed the District Court's dismissal of the complaint against ComEd. On September 19, 2013, the Circuit Court denied the petition for a rehearing filed by the governmental parties. The government parties did not seek United States Supreme Court review of the Seventh Circuit's decision. The deadline for seeking such review was in December 2013. In light of the Circuit Court decision resolving this matter in favor of ComEd, no reserve has been established.

 

Solid and Hazardous Waste

 

Cotter Corporation.    The U.S. EPA has advised Cotter Corporation (Cotter), a former ComEd subsidiary, that it is potentially liable in connection with radiological contamination at a site known as the West Lake Landfill in Missouri. On February 18, 2000, ComEd sold Cotter to an unaffiliated third-party. As part of the sale, ComEd agreed to indemnify Cotter for any liability arising in connection with the West Lake Landfill. In connection with Exelon's 2001 corporate restructuring, this responsibility to indemnify Cotter was transferred to Generation. On May 29, 2008, the U.S. EPA issued a Record of Decision approving the remediation option submitted by Cotter and the two other PRPs that required additional landfill cover. The current estimated cost of the anticipated landfill cover remediation for the site is approximately $42 million, which will be allocated among all PRPs. Generation has accrued what it believes to be an adequate amount to cover its anticipated share of such liability. By letter dated January 11, 2010, the U.S. EPA requested that the PRPs perform a supplemental feasibility study for a remediation alternative that would involve complete excavation of the radiological contamination. On September 30, 2011, the PRPs submitted the final supplemental feasibility study to the U.S. EPA for review. In June 2012, the U.S. EPA requested that the PRPs perform additional analysis and groundwater sampling as part of the supplemental feasibility study that could take up to one year to complete, and subsequently requested additional analysis sampling and modeling to be conducted into 2014. In light of these additional requests, it is unknown when the U.S EPA will propose a remedy for public comment. Thereafter the U.S. EPA will select a final remedy and enter into a Consent Decree with the PRPs to effectuate the remedy. A complete excavation remedy would be significantly more expensive than the previously selected additional cover remedy; however, Generation believes the likelihood that the U.S. EPA would require a complete excavation remedy is remote.

 

On August 8, 2011, Cotter was notified by the DOJ that Cotter is considered a PRP with respect to the government's clean-up costs for contamination attributable to low level radioactive residues at a former storage and reprocessing facility named Latty Avenue near St. Louis, Missouri. The Latty Avenue site is included in ComEd's indemnification responsibilities discussed above as part of the sale of Cotter. The radioactive residues had been generated initially in connection with the processing of uranium ores as part of the U.S. government's Manhattan Project. Cotter purchased the residues in 1969 for initial processing at the Latty Avenue facility for the subsequent extraction of uranium and metals. In 1976, the NRC found that the Latty Avenue site had radiation levels exceeding NRC criteria for decontamination of land areas. Latty Avenue was investigated and remediated by the United States Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to funding under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program. The DOJ has not yet formally advised the PRPs of the amount that it is seeking, but it is believed to be approximately $90 million. The DOJ and the PRPs agreed to toll the statute of limitations until August 2014 so that settlement discussions could proceed. Based on Exelon's preliminary review, it appears probable that Exelon has liability to Cotter under the indemnification agreement and has established an appropriate accrual for this liability.

 

On February 28, 2012, and April 12, 2012, two lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri against 15 and 14 defendants, respectively, including Exelon, Generation and ComEd (the “Exelon defendants”) and Cotter. The suits allege that individuals living in the North St. Louis area developed some form of cancer due to the defendants' negligent or reckless conduct in processing, transporting, storing, handling and/or disposing of radioactive materials. Plaintiffs have asserted claims for negligence, strict liability, emotional distress, medical monitoring, and violations of the Price−Anderson Act. The complaints do not contain specific damage claims. On May 30, 2012, the plaintiffs filed voluntary motions to dismiss the Exelon defendants from both lawsuits which were subsequently granted. Since May 30, 2012, several related lawsuits have been filed in the same court on behalf of various plaintiffs against Cotter and other defendants, but not Exelon. The allegations in these related lawsuits mirror the initially filed lawsuits. In the event of a finding of liability, it is reasonably possible that Exelon would be considered liable due to its indemnification responsibilities of Cotter described above. On March 27, 2013, the U.S. District Court dismissed all state common law actions brought under the initial two lawsuits; and also found that the plaintiffs had not properly brought the actions under the Price–Anderson Act. On July 8, 2013, the plaintiffs filed amended complaints under the Price–Anderson Act. Cotter moved to dismiss the amended complaints and has motions currently pending before the court. At this stage of the litigation, Exelon cannot estimate a range of loss, if any.

 

68th Street Dump. In 1999, the U.S. EPA proposed to add the 68th Street Dump in Baltimore, Maryland to the Superfund National Priorities List, and notified BGE and 19 others that they are PRPs at the site. In March 2004, BGE and other PRPs formed the 68th Street Coalition and entered into consent order negotiations with the U.S. EPA to investigate clean-up options for the site under the Superfund Alternative Sites Program. In May 2006, a settlement among the U.S. EPA and 19 of the PRPs, including BGE, with respect to investigation of the site became effective. The settlement requires the PRPs, over the course of several years, to identify contamination at the site and recommend clean-up options. The PRPs submitted their investigation of the range of clean-up options in the first quarter of 2011. Although the investigation and options provided to the U.S. EPA are still subject to U.S. EPA review and selection of a remedy, the range of estimated clean-up costs to be allocated among all of the PRPs is in the range of $50 million to $64 million. On September 30, 2013, U.S. EPA issued the Record of Decision identifying its preferred remedial alternative for the site. The estimated cost for the alternative chosen by U.S. EPA is consistent with the PRPs estimated range of costs noted above. Based on Exelon's preliminary review, it appears probable that Exelon has liability and has established an appropriate accrual for its share of the estimated clean-up costs. BGE is indemnified by a wholly owned subsidiary of Generation for most of the costs related to this settlement and clean-up of the site.

 

Rossville Ash Site. The Rossville Ash Site is a 32-acre property located in Rosedale, Baltimore County, Maryland, which was used for the placement of fly ash from 1983-2007. The property is owned by Constellation Power Source Generation, LLC(CPSG). In 2008, CPSG investigated and remediated the property by entering it into the Maryland Voluntary Cleanup Program (VCP) to address any historic environmental concerns and ready the site for appropriate future redevelopment. The site was accepted into the program in 2010 and is currently going through the process to remediate the site and receive closure from MDE. Exelon currently estimates the cost to close the site to be approximately $6 million, which has been fully reserved as of December 31, 2013.

 

Sauer Dump. On May 30, 2012, BGE was notified by the U.S. EPA that it is considered a PRP at the Sauer Dump Superfund site in Dundalk, Maryland. The U.S. EPA offered BGE and three other PRPs the opportunity to conduct an environmental investigation and present cleanup recommendations at the site. In addition, the U.S. EPA is seeking recovery from the PRPs of $1.7 million for past cleanup and investigation costs at the site. On March 11, 2013, BGE and three other PRP's signed an Administrative Settlement Agreement and Order on Consent with the U.S. EPA which requires the PRP's to conduct a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study at the site to determine what, if any, are the appropriate and recommended cleanup activities for the site. The ultimate outcome of this proceeding is uncertain. Since the U.S. EPA has not selected a cleanup remedy and the allocation of the cleanup costs among the PRPs has not been determined, an estimate of the range of BGE's reasonably possible loss, if any, cannot be determined. 

 

Climate Change Regulation.    Exelon is subject to climate change regulation or legislation at the Federal, regional and state levels. In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that GHG emissions are pollutants subject to regulation under the new motor vehicle provisions of the Clean Air Act. Consequently, on December 7, 2009, the U.S. EPA issued an endangerment finding under Section 202 of the Clean Air Act regarding GHGs from new motor vehicles and on April 1, 2010 issued final regulations limiting GHG emissions from cars and light trucks effective on January 2, 2011. While such regulations do not specifically address stationary sources, such as a generating plant, it is the U.S. EPA's position that the regulation of GHGs under the mobile source provisions of the Clean Air Act has triggered the permitting requirements under the Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and Title V operating permit sections of the Clean Air Act for new and modified stationary sources effective January 2, 2011. Therefore, on May 13, 2010, the U.S. EPA issued final regulations (the Tailoring Rule) relating to these provisions of the Clean Air Act for major stationary sources of GHG emissions that apply to new sources that emit greater than 100,000 tons per year, on a CO2 equivalent basis, and to modifications to existing sources that result in emissions increases greater than 75,000 tons per year on a CO2 equivalent basis. These thresholds became effective January 2, 2011, apply for six years and will be reviewed by the U.S. EPA for future applicability thereafter. On July 2, 2012 the U.S. EPA declined to lower GHG permit thresholds in its final “Step 3” Tailoring Rule update. The U.S. EPA will review permit thresholds again in a 2015 rulemaking process. On June 26, 2012, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, in a per curium decision, dismissed industry and state petitions challenging the U.S. EPA's “Tailpipe Rule” for cars and light duty trucks, the endangerment finding for GHG's from stationary sources, and the Tailoring Rule. On October 15, 2013 the U.S. Supreme Court granted industry petitions to review one aspect of the PSD permitting regulations. Under the PSD regulations, new and modified major stationary sources could be required to install best available control technology, to be determined on a case by case basis. Generation could be significantly affected by the regulations if it were to build new plants or modify existing plants.

 

On June 25, 2013, President Obama announced “The President's Climate Action Plan,” a summary of executive branch actions intended to: reduce carbon emissions; prepare the United States for the impacts of climate change; and lead international efforts to combat global climate change and prepare for its impacts. Concurrent with the announcement of the Administration's plan, the President also issued a Memorandum for the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency that focused on power generation sector carbon reductions under the Section 111 New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) section of the federal Clean Air Act. The memorandum directs the U.S. EPA Administrator to issue two sets of proposed rulemakings with regard to power plant carbon emissions under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act.

 

The first rulemaking, under Section 111(b) of the Clean Air Act is to focus on establishing carbon regulations for new fossil-fuel power plants. This rulemaking was proposed on September 20, 2013 and is to be finalized “in a timely fashion.” In the proposed rule U.S.EPA sets separate standards for fossil-fuel fired utility boilers and natural gas fired stationary combustion turbines.

 

The second rulemaking, under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act is to focus on modified, reconstructed and existing fossil power plants. The rulemaking is to be proposed no later than June 1, 2014, be finalized no later than June 1, 2015, and require that states submit to U.S. EPA their implementation plans no later than June 30, 2016. In developing this rulemaking, U.S. EPA is directed to consider a number of factors, including options to reduce costs, options to ensure the continued use of a range of energy sources and technologies, options that are consistent with reliable and affordable power, and options that allow for the use of market-based instruments, performance standards and other regulatory flexibilities.

 

To the extent that the final Section 111(d) rule results in emission reductions from fossil fuel fired plants, and thereby imposes some form of direct or indirect price of carbon in competitive electricity markets, Exelon's overall low-carbon generation portfolio results could benefit.

 

Litigation and Regulatory Matters

 

Asbestos Personal Injury Claims (Exelon, Generation, PECO and BGE).

 

Exelon and Generation. Generation maintains a reserve for claims associated with asbestos-related personal injury actions in certain facilities that are currently owned by Generation or were previously owned by ComEd and PECO. The reserve is recorded on an undiscounted basis and excludes the estimated legal costs associated with handling these matters, which could be material.

 

        At December 31, 2013 and 2012, Generation had reserved approximately $90 million and $63 million, respectively, in total for asbestos-related bodily injury claims. As of December 31, 2013, approximately $19 million of this amount related to 224 open claims presented to Generation, while the remaining $71 million of the reserve is for estimated future asbestos-related bodily injury claims anticipated to arise through 2050, based on actuarial assumptions and analyses, which are updated on an annual basis. On a quarterly basis, Generation monitors actual experience against the number of forecasted claims to be received and expected claim payments and evaluates whether an adjustment to the reserve is necessary.

 

On November 22, 2013, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that the Pennsylvania Workers Compensation Act does not apply to an employee's disability or death resulting from occupational disease, such as diseases related to asbestos exposure, which manifests more than 300 weeks after the employee's last employment-based exposure, and that therefore the exclusivity provision of the Act does not apply to preclude such employee from suing his or her employer in court. The Supreme Court's ruling reverses previous rulings by the Pennsylvania Superior Court precluding current and former employees from suing their employers in court, despite the fact that the same employee was not eligible for workers compensation benefits for diseases that manifest more than 300 weeks after the employee's last employment-based exposure to asbestos. Currently, Exelon, Generation and PECO are unable to predict whether and to what extent they may experience additional claims in the future as a result of this ruling; as such no increase to the asbestos-related bodily injury liability has been recorded as of December 31, 2013. Increased claims activity resulting from this ruling could have a material adverse impact on Exelon, Generation's and PECO's future results of operations and cash flows.

 

BGE. Since 1993, BGE and certain Constellation (now Generation) subsidiaries have been involved in several actions concerning asbestos. The actions are based upon the theory of “premises liability,” alleging that BGE and Generation knew of and exposed individuals to an asbestos hazard. In addition to BGE and Generation, numerous other parties are defendants in these cases.

Approximately 486 individuals who were never employees of BGE or certain Constellation subsidiaries have pending claims each seeking several million dollars in compensatory and punitive damages. Cross-claims and third-party claims brought by other defendants may also be filed against BGE and certain Constellation subsidiaries in these actions. To date, most asbestos claims which have been resolved have been dismissed or resolved without any payment by BGE or certain Constellation subsidiaries and a small minority of these cases has been resolved for amounts that were not material to BGE or Generation's financial results.

 

Discovery begins in these cases after they are placed on the trial docket. At present, only two of the pending cases are set for trial. Given the limited discovery in these cases, BGE and Generation do not know the specific facts that are necessary to provide an estimate of the reasonably possible loss relating to these claims; as such, no accrual has been made and a range of loss is not estimable. The specific facts not known include:

 

  • the identity of the facilities at which the plaintiffs allegedly worked as contractors;
  • the names of the plaintiffs' employers;
  • the dates on which and the places where the exposure allegedly occurred; and
  • the facts and circumstances relating to the alleged exposure.

 

Insurance and hold harmless agreements from contractors who employed the plaintiffs may cover a portion of any awards in the actions.

 

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Investigation (Exelon and Generation).

 

On January 30, 2012, FERC published a notice on its website regarding a non-public investigation of certain of Constellation's power trading activities in and around the ISO-NY from September 2007 through December 2008. Prior to the merger, Constellation announced on March 9, 2012, that it had resolved the FERC investigation. Under the settlement, Constellation agreed to pay, and has paid, a $135 million civil penalty and $110 million in disgorgement.

 

During the year ended December 31, 2012, Generation recorded expense of $195 million in operating and maintenance expense with the remaining $50 million recorded as a Constellation pre-acquisition contingency. See Note 4 — Merger and Acquisitions for additional information on the merger.

 

Continuous Power Interruption (ComEd)

 

Section 16-125 of the Illinois Public Utilities Act provides that in the event an electric utility, such as ComEd, experiences a continuous power interruption of four hours or more that affects (in ComEd's case) more than 30,000 customers, the utility may be liable for actual damages suffered by customers as a result of the interruption and may be responsible for reimbursement of local governmental emergency and contingency expenses incurred in connection with the interruption. Recovery of consequential damages is barred. The affected utility may seek from the ICC a waiver of these liabilities when the utility can show that the cause of the interruption was unpreventable damage due to weather events or conditions, customer tampering, or certain other causes enumerated in the law.

 

On August 18, 2011, ComEd sought from the ICC a determination that ComEd is not liable for damage compensation to customers in connection with the July 11, 2011 storm system that produced multiple power interruptions that in the aggregate affected more than 900,000 customers in ComEd's service territory, as well as for five other storm systems that affected ComEd's customers during June and July 2011 (Summer 2011 Storm Docket). In addition, on September 29, 2011, ComEd sought from the ICC a determination that it was not liable for damage compensation related to the February 1, 2011 blizzard (February 2011 Blizzard Docket).

 

On June 5, 2013, the ICC approved a complete waiver of liability for five of the six summer storms and the February 2011 blizzard. However, the ICC held that for the July 11, 2011 storm, 34,599 interruptions were preventable and therefore no waiver should apply. As required by the ICC's Order, ComEd notified relevant customers that they may be entitled to seek reimbursement of incurred costs in accordance with a claims procedure established under ICC rules and regulations. In addition, the ICC found that ComEd did not systematically fail in its duty to provide adequate, reliable and safe service. As a result, the ICC rejected the Illinois Attorney General's request for the ICC to open an investigation into ComEd's infrastructure and storm hardening investments.

 

Following the ICC's June 26, 2013 denial of ComEd's request for rehearing, on June 27, 2013 ComEd filed an appeal of both the summer and winter storm dockets with the Illinois Appellate Court regarding the ICC's interpretation of Section 16-125 of the Illinois Public Utilities Act. ComEd cannot predict the outcome of appeals.

 

As a result of the ICC's June 5, 2013 ruling, ComEd established a liability, which was not material, for potential reimbursements for actual damages incurred by the 34,559 customers covered by the ICC's June 5, 2013 Order. The liability recorded represents the low end of a range of potential losses given that no amount within the range represents a better estimate. ComEd's ultimate liability will be based on actual claims eligible for reimbursement as well as the outcome of the appeal. Although reimbursements for actual damages will differ from the estimated accrual recorded, at this time ComEd does not expect the difference to be material to ComEd's results of operations or cash flows.

 

ComEd has not recorded an accrual for reimbursement of local governmental emergency and contingency expenses as a range of loss, if any, cannot be reasonably estimated at this time, but may be material to ComEd's results of operations and cash flows.

 

Telephone Consumer Protection Act Lawsuit (ComEd)

 

On November 19, 2013, a class action complaint was filed in Cook County on behalf of a single individual and a presumptive class that would include all customers in ComEd's service territory who were enrolled by the Company in ComEd's Outage Alert text message program.  The complaint alleges that ComEd violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) by sending approximately 1.2 million text messages to customers without first obtaining their consent to receive such messages.  The complaint seeks certification of a class along with statutory damages, attorneys' fees, and an order prohibiting ComEd from sending additional text messages.  Such statutory damages could range from $500 to $1,500 per text. However, ComEd is preparing a motion to dismiss this class action complaint and will vigorously contest the allegations of this suit. The ultimate outcome of this proceeding is uncertain, and an amount, if any, which might be asserted, cannot be reasonably estimated at this time, but may be material to ComEd's results of operations and cash flows. As a result, ComEd has not established a reserve for this complaint as of December 31, 2013.

 

Securities Class Action (Exelon)

 

Three federal securities class action lawsuits were filed in the United States District Courts for the Southern District of New York and the District of Maryland between September 2008 and November 2008 against Constellation. The cases were filed on behalf of a proposed class of persons who acquired publicly traded securities, including the Series A Junior Subordinated Debentures (Debentures), of Constellation between January 30, 2008 and September 16, 2008, and who acquired Debentures in an offering completed in June 2008. The securities class actions generally allege that Constellation, a number of its former officers or directors, and the underwriters violated the securities laws by issuing a false and misleading registration statement and prospectus in connection with Constellation's June 27, 2008 offering of the Debentures. The securities class actions also allege that Constellation issued false or misleading statements or was aware of material undisclosed information which contradicted public statements, including in connection with its announcements of financial results for 2007, the fourth quarter of 2007, the first quarter of 2008 and the second quarter of 2008 and the filing of its first quarter 2008 Form 10-Q. The securities class actions sought, among other things, certification of the cases as class actions, compensatory damages, reasonable costs and expenses, including counsel fees, and rescission damages.

 

The Southern District of New York granted the defendants' motion to transfer the two securities class actions filed in Maryland to the District of Maryland, and the actions have since been transferred for coordination with the securities class action filed there. On May 9, 2013, the federal court in Maryland preliminarily approved the settlement of Constellation's 2008 Securities Class Action for a payment of $4 million, which will be paid by Constellation's insurer.   Notice of the settlement was provided to class members in June 2013 and the court approved the final settlement on November 4, 2013.   This settlement will resolve all of Constellation's litigation arising from the 2008 Securities Class Action lawsuit.

 

Fund Transfer Restrictions (Exelon, Generation, ComEd, PECO and BGE)

 

Under applicable law, Exelon may borrow or receive an extension of credit from its subsidiaries. Under the terms of Exelon's intercompany money pool agreement, Exelon can lend to, but not borrow from the money pool.

 

The Federal Power Act declares it to be unlawful for any officer or director of any public utility “to participate in the making or paying of any dividends of such public utility from any funds properly included in capital account.” What constitutes “funds properly included in capital account” is undefined in the Federal Power Act or the related regulations; however, FERC has consistently interpreted the provision to allow dividends to be paid as long as: (1) the source of the dividends is clearly disclosed; (2) the dividend is not excessive; and (3) there is no self-dealing on the part of corporate officials. While these restrictions may limit the absolute amount of dividends that a particular subsidiary may pay, Exelon does not believe these limitations are materially limiting because, under these limitations, the subsidiaries are allowed to pay dividends sufficient to meet Exelon's actual cash needs.

 

Under Illinois law, ComEd may not pay any dividend on its stock unless, among other things, “[its] earnings and earned surplus are sufficient to declare and pay same after provision is made for reasonable and proper reserves,” or unless it has specific authorization from the ICC. ComEd has also agreed in connection with financings arranged through ComEd Financing III that it will not declare dividends on any shares of its capital stock in the event that: (1) it exercises its right to extend the interest payment periods on the subordinated debt securities issued to ComEd Financing III; (2) it defaults on its guarantee of the payment of distributions on the preferred trust securities of ComEd Financing III; or (3) an event of default occurs under the Indenture under which the subordinated debt securities are issued.

 

PECO's Articles of Incorporation prohibit payment of any dividend on, or other distribution to the holders of, common stock if, after giving effect thereto, the capital of PECO represented by its common stock together with its retained earnings is, in the aggregate, less than the involuntary liquidating value of its then outstanding preferred securities. On May 1, 2013, PECO redeemed all outstanding preferred securities. As a result, the above ratio calculation is no longer applicable. Additionally, PECO may not declare dividends on any shares of its capital stock in the event that: (1) it exercises its right to extend the interest payment periods on the subordinated debentures, which were issued to PEC L.P. or PECO Trust IV; (2) it defaults on its guarantee of the payment of distributions on the Series D Preferred Securities of PEC L.P. or the preferred trust securities of PECO Trust IV; or (3) an event of default occurs under the Indenture under which the subordinated debentures are issued.

 

BGE pays dividends on its common stock after its board of directors declares them. However, BGE is subject to certain dividend restrictions established by the MDPSC.  First, BGE is prohibited from paying a dividend on its common shares through the end of 2014.  Second, BGE is prohibited from paying a dividend on its common shares if (a) after the dividend payment, BGE's equity ratio would be below 48% as calculated pursuant to the MDPSC'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.  Finally, BGE must notify the MDPSC that it intends to declare a dividend on its common shares at least 30 days before such a dividend is paid. There are no other limitations on BGE paying common stock dividends unless: (1) BGE elects to defer interest payments on the 6.20% Deferrable Interest Subordinated Debentures due 2043, and any deferred interest remains unpaid; or (2) any dividends (and any redemption payments) due on BGE's preference stock have not been paid.

 

Baltimore City Franchise Taxes (BGE)

 

The City of Baltimore claims that BGE has maintained electric facilities in the City's public right-of-ways for over one hundred years without the proper franchise rights from the City.  BGE is currently reviewing the merits of this claim.  BGE has not recorded an accrual for payment of franchise fees for past periods as a range of loss, if any, cannot be reasonably estimated at this time.  Franchise fees assessed in future periods may be material to BGE's results of operations and cash flows.

 

 

General (Exelon, Generation, ComEd, PECO and BGE).  

 

The Registrants are involved in various other litigation matters that are being defended and handled in the ordinary course of business. The assessment of whether a loss is probable or a reasonable possibility, and whether the loss or a range of loss is estimable, often involves a series of complex judgments about future events. The Registrants maintain accruals for such losses that are probable of being incurred and subject to reasonable estimation. Management is sometimes unable to estimate an amount or range of reasonably possible loss, particularly where (1) the damages sought are indeterminate, (2) the proceedings are in the early stages, or (3) the matters involve novel or unsettled legal theories. In such cases, there is considerable uncertainty regarding the timing or ultimate resolution of such matters, including a possible eventual loss.

 

Income Taxes

 

See Note 14—Income Taxes for information regarding the Registrants' income tax refund claims and certain tax positions, including the 1999 sale of fossil generating assets.