PNO-III-97-047, on 970516,WI Energy Co & Northern States Power Co Announced They Were Terminating Plans for Proposed Merger of Two Companies Into New Co,Primergy Corp.Two Utils Issued News Releases on Decision

PNO-III-97-047:on 970516,WI Energy Co & Northern States Power Co Announced They Were Terminating Plans for Proposed Merger of Two Companies Into New Co,Primergy Corp.Two Utils Issued News Releases on Decision

ML20141C831
Person / Time
Site:	Prairie Island
Issue date:	05/19/1997
From:	Jeffrey Jacobson, Schweibinz E NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION III)
To:
References
PNO-III-97-047, PNO-III-97-47, NUDOCS 9705190235
Download: ML20141C831 (1)

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• , .. j i lMay19.1997 PRELIMINARY NOTIFICATION OF EVENT OR UNUSUAL OCCURRENCE PNO-III-97-047 l

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This preliminary notification constitutes EARLY notice of events of POSSIBLE i safety or public interest significance. The information is as initially i received without s.erification or evaluation, and is basically all that is l known by Region III staff (Lisle. Illinois) on this date. l l Facility Licensee Emergency Classification 3

Northern States Power Co. Notification of Unusual Event

-Prairie Islar.d-1 2 Alert l Welch. Minnesota Site Area Emergency , , '

Dockets: 50-282.50-306 General Emergency X Not Applicable

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Subject:

PROPOSED MERGER TERMINATED 1

On May 16. 1997. Wisconsin Energy Company (Wisconsin Electric Power-Company) and Northern States Power Company announced they were terainating their plans for a proposed merger of the two com)anies into a new com)any. Primergy Corporation. A May 14 decision by the rederal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) had remanded the cace to an FERC 1

settlement judge for further negotiations, including Lne possible sale of some generating facilities and other actions. ,

, The utilities attributed their decision to changing regulatory Jolicies on mergers and to further regulatory delays as a result of the ERC i decision. The proposed merger had been announced May 1. 1995.

The merger had previously been approved by state agencies in Michigan and 1 North Dakota, but decisions were still pending before the Minnesota and ,

l Wisconsin public service commissions. Other federal agency decisions were also pending.

The States of Wisconsin and Minnesota will be informed of the information i

in this preliminary notification. -

The two utilities issued news releases on their decision on May 16. 1997.

This information is current as of 9 a.m. on May 19. 1997.

Contact:

EDWARD SCHWEIBINZ JOHN JACOBSON  !

(630)829-9712 (630)829-9736 ,

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9705190235 970519 (, ) ' g

-I 97-047 PDR , f i 19004L

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