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Organization
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2013
Organization

(1) ORGANIZATION

Pepco Holdings, Inc. (PHI or Pepco Holdings), a Delaware corporation incorporated in 2001, is a holding company that, through the following regulated public utility subsidiaries, is engaged primarily in the transmission, distribution and default supply of electricity and the distribution and supply of natural gas (Power Delivery):

 

    Potomac Electric Power Company (Pepco), which was incorporated in Washington, D.C. in 1896 and became a domestic Virginia corporation in 1949,

 

    Delmarva Power & Light Company (DPL), which was incorporated in Delaware in 1909 and became a domestic Virginia corporation in 1979, and

 

    Atlantic City Electric Company (ACE), which was incorporated in New Jersey in 1924.

Each of PHI, Pepco, DPL and ACE is also a reporting company under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Together, Pepco, DPL and ACE constitute the Power Delivery segment, for financial reporting purposes.

Through Pepco Energy Services, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, Pepco Energy Services), PHI provides energy savings performance contracting services, high voltage underground transmission cabling, and low voltage electric construction and maintenance services, and designs, constructs and operates combined heat and power and central energy plants. Pepco Energy Services constitutes a separate segment for financial reporting purposes.

PHI Service Company, a subsidiary service company of PHI, provides a variety of support services, including legal, accounting, treasury, tax, purchasing and information technology services to PHI and its operating subsidiaries. These services are provided pursuant to a service agreement among PHI, PHI Service Company and the participating operating subsidiaries. The expenses of PHI Service Company are charged to PHI and the participating operating subsidiaries in accordance with cost allocation methodologies set forth in the service agreement.

Power Delivery

Each of Pepco, DPL and ACE is a regulated public utility in the jurisdictions that comprise its service territory. Each utility owns and operates a network of wires, substations and other equipment that is classified as transmission facilities, distribution facilities or common facilities (which are used for both transmission and distribution). Transmission facilities are high-voltage systems that carry wholesale electricity into, or across, the utility’s service territory. Distribution facilities are low-voltage systems that carry electricity to end-use customers in the utility’s service territory.

Each utility is responsible for the distribution of electricity, and in the case of DPL, electricity and natural gas, in its service territory, for which it is paid tariff rates established by the applicable local public service commissions. Each utility also supplies electricity at regulated rates to retail customers in its service territory who do not elect to purchase electricity from a competitive energy supplier. The regulatory term for this supply service is Standard Offer Service in Delaware, the District of Columbia and Maryland, and Basic Generation Service in New Jersey. In the notes to the consolidated financial statements, these supply service obligations are referred to generally as Default Electricity Supply.

Pepco Energy Services

Pepco Energy Services is engaged in the following businesses:

 

    providing energy savings performance contracting services principally to federal, state and local government customers, and designing, constructing and operating combined heat and power and central energy plants, and

 

    providing high voltage underground transmission construction and maintenance services to customers throughout the United States, as well as low voltage electric construction and maintenance services and streetlight construction services to utilities, municipalities and other customers in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

During 2012, Pepco Energy Services deactivated its Buzzard Point oil-fired generation facility and its Benning Road oil-fired generation facility. Pepco Energy Services placed the facilities into an idle condition termed a “cold closure.” A cold closure requires that the utility service be disconnected so that the facilities are no longer operable and that the facilities require only essential maintenance until they are completely decommissioned. During the third quarter of 2013, Pepco Energy Services determined that it would be more cost effective to pursue the demolition of the Benning Road generation facility and realization of the scrap metal salvage value of the facility instead of maintaining cold closure status. As a result of this change in intent, Pepco Energy Services reduced its asset retirement obligation related to the facility by $2 million. The demolition of the facility is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2014 and Pepco Energy Services will recognize the salvage proceeds associated with the scrap metals at the facility as realized.

Discontinued Operations

Cross-Border Energy Lease Investments

Through its subsidiary Potomac Capital Investment Corporation (PCI), PHI maintained a portfolio of cross-border energy lease investments. During the third quarter of 2013, PHI completed the termination of its interests in its cross-border energy lease investments. As a result, beginning with PHI’s consolidated financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013, the cross-border energy lease investments, which comprised substantially all of the operations of the Other Non-Regulated segment, are being accounted for as discontinued operations. The remaining operations of the Other Non-Regulated segment, which no longer meet the definition of a separate segment for financial reporting purposes, are being included in Corporate and Other. Substantially all of the information in these notes to the consolidated financial statements with respect to the cross-border energy lease investments has been consolidated in Note (16), “Discontinued Operations – Cross-Border Energy Lease Investments.”

Pepco Energy Services

In December 2009, PHI announced the wind-down of the retail energy supply component of the Pepco Energy Services business, which was comprised of the retail electric and retail natural gas supply businesses. Pepco Energy Services implemented the wind-down by not entering into any new retail electric or natural gas supply contracts while continuing to perform under its existing retail electric and natural gas supply contracts through their respective expiration dates. On March 21, 2013, Pepco Energy Services entered into an agreement whereby a third party assumed all the rights and obligations of the remaining retail natural gas supply customer contracts, and the associated supply obligations, inventory and derivative contracts. The transaction was completed on April 1, 2013. In addition, Pepco Energy Services completed the wind-down of its retail electric supply business in the second quarter of 2013 by terminating its remaining customer supply and wholesale purchase obligations beyond June 30, 2013. The operations of Pepco Energy Services’ retail electric and retail natural gas supply businesses are being accounted for as discontinued operations and are no longer a part of the Pepco Energy Services segment for financial reporting purposes. Substantially all of the information in these notes to the consolidated financial statements with respect to Pepco Energy Services’ retail energy supply business has been consolidated in Note (16), “Discontinued Operations – Retail Electric and Natural Gas Supply Businesses of Pepco Energy Services.”

Potomac Electric Power Co [Member]
 
Organization

(1) ORGANIZATION

Potomac Electric Power Company (Pepco) is engaged in the transmission and distribution of electricity in the District of Columbia and major portions of Prince George’s County and Montgomery County in suburban Maryland. Pepco also provides Default Electricity Supply, which is the supply of electricity at regulated rates to retail customers in its service territories who do not elect to purchase electricity from a competitive supplier. Default Electricity Supply is known as Standard Offer Service in both the District of Columbia and Maryland. Pepco is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pepco Holdings, Inc. (Pepco Holdings or PHI).

Delmarva Power & Light Co/De [Member]
 
Organization

(1) ORGANIZATION

Delmarva Power & Light Company (DPL) is engaged in the transmission and distribution of electricity in Delaware and portions of Maryland and provides natural gas distribution service in northern Delaware. Additionally, DPL provides Default Electricity Supply, which is the supply of electricity at regulated rates to retail customers in its service territories who do not elect to purchase electricity from a competitive supplier. Default Electricity Supply is known as Standard Offer Service in both Delaware and Maryland. DPL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Conectiv, LLC, which is wholly owned by Pepco Holdings, Inc. (Pepco Holdings or PHI).

Atlantic City Electric Co [Member]
 
Organization

(1) ORGANIZATION

Atlantic City Electric Company (ACE) is engaged in the transmission and distribution of electricity in southern New Jersey. ACE also provides Default Electricity Supply, which is the supply of electricity at regulated rates to retail customers in its service territory who do not elect to purchase electricity from a competitive energy supplier. Default Electricity Supply is known as Basic Generation Service in New Jersey. ACE is a wholly owned subsidiary of Conectiv, LLC, which is wholly owned by Pepco Holdings, Inc. (Pepco Holdings or PHI).