Hoping to get some clarity and expedite the merger review process, FPL Group has filed a lawsuit in Baltimore City Circuit Court against the state of Maryland and the Maryland Public Service Commission.
One of the questions left unclear in a Sept. 14 Maryland Court of Appeals ruling was whether the public service commission could approve a planned merger between Florida-based FPL Group and Baltimore-based Constellation Energy Group.
The court ruled that the Maryland General Assembly did not have the authority to force the five commissioners to resign. But the court did not act on a portion of legislation passed by the General Assembly that prevents the commission from considering the merger.
“The primaryreason for the lawsuit is to clarify if the commission can approve the merger and to expedite the process,” said Mary Lou Kromer, a spokeswoman for FPL Group.
In December 2005, Constellation and FPL announced plans to merge the two utility companies to create one of the nation?s largest energy companies. At that time, company officials predicted the deal would be closed in nine to 12 months.
But the approval process got side-tracked when the General Assembly intervened and adopted legislation related to a residential utility rate increase at Baltimore Gas & Electric, a subsidiary of Constellation Energy. Legislation that was approved by the General Assembly was challenged in court, which has delayed the approval process.
“As matters now stand, there is a danger that the Public Service Commission may not be able to render a final decision, not now, not ever, on the merits of the merger,” FPL stated in its lawsuit.
The company is hoping to get approval before June 2007.
