GBC: Stop the 'warfare' against Constellation
From Don Fry and the Greater Baltimore Commitee. (Constellation is a GBC member):
Dispute with Constellation not in state's best interestIn a state that's importing as much as a third of its electricity, facing projected rolling brownouts as soon as 2011, and sorely in need of new investment in its power generating and transmission infrastructure, is there any way that Maryland stands to benefit from the dispute that has broken out during the last two weeks between Maryland regulators and Constellation Energy Group?
I can't think of any.
But the spectacle of Maryland's Public Service Commission (PSC) engaging in a war of words with a Fortune 200 company that was -- and hopefully still is -- planning to build a multi-billion dollar 1,600 megawatt nuclear power plant in our state is most certainly not good for our business climate, much less our energy future...
It occurs to me that, in the long run, the best interests of the citizens of Maryland are not well served by open warfare between state government and one of the state's most prominent private companies. Nor is this the image that we want to project to the business community in the rest of the country. It does not play well with potential investors considering doing business in our state, and markets do not react favorably to it. It will certainly not endear Maryland to energy companies outside the state that would otherwise consider investing in Maryland's energy infrastructure.
Comments
Mr. Fry isn't thinking very hard if he can't figure out what Maryland stands to gain by taking a hard line with Constellation. After all, the company has looted hundreds of millions of dollars from both taxpayers and ratepayers coming out of deregulation. I'd rather that Maryland have a reputation in "the business community in the rest of the country" that consumer interests actually still matter in this state.
Posted by: TJH | February 7, 2008 3:19 PM
Constellation needs more hard treatment than ever before. Trying to blackmail the state by threatening to cancel the nuclear plant if the state doesn't give them what they want is a clear reason to treat the company as the highwayman it is. There is no level of pain that could be induced to Constellation that would make up for my $500.00 electric bill.
Posted by: Douglas Wietzke | February 8, 2008 5:36 AM
Please remember...Constellation (BGE at the time), PSC, and all involved parties AGREED and SIGNED a pact to ease the transition of Maryland to a non-regulated environment.....Constellation even went back and froze eletricity rates at the 1993 levels until 2006. Maryland enjoyed the lowest rates in the eastern seaboard for that time period. Now the PSC wants to go after big business because the Democratic government and PSC couldn't live up to THEIR commitments to constituients? Always bad to promise stuff to voters that you can't deliver. It is not Constellation's fault that the cost of electrical production rose...
Posted by: Andrew McNeil | February 10, 2008 3:44 PM
Mr. Fry is right. Once again the Maryland political leaders are proving that they know how to drive businesses to other states. The end result is fewer jobs. Want to lower your energy bills? Decreasing rates back to below-market prices isn't realistic. Look in the mirror for the answer. Conserve energy; turn off that old 2nd refrigerator you just had to keep, replace aging appliances and hvac systems with high efficiency units, set your heat to 65 and a/c to 78, turn down your water heater temp, install shades or blinds to reduce drafts in winter and block sunlight in the summer, and much more. You have more control over your energy bills than you think.
Posted by: Dan P | February 12, 2008 8:16 AM
Mr. Fry is right. Once again the Maryland political leaders are proving that they know how to drive businesses to other states. The end result is fewer jobs. Want to lower your energy bills? Decreasing rates back to below-market prices isn't realistic. Look in the mirror for the answer. Conserve energy; turn off that old 2nd refrigerator you just had to keep, replace aging appliances and hvac systems with high efficiency units, set your heat to 65 and a/c to 78, turn down your water heater temp, install shades or blinds to reduce drafts in winter and block sunlight in the summer, and much more. You have more control over your energy bills than you think.
Posted by: Dan P | February 12, 2008 8:21 AM