Northwest Ohio residents and businesses to save over $70 million on electric generation costs

AKRON, Ohio, Dec. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The nine communities that compose the Northwest Ohio Aggregation Coalition (NOAC) have agreed to extend their contracts with FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. (FES), a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), making FES their electric generation supplier until May 2017. Through its innovative Powering Our Communities program, FES will make a one-time grant to each of the nine communities - totaling nearly $5.4 million - which can be used as the communities see fit. The level of funding is based on the number of customers in each community who participate in the program.

In addition, residents and small businesses in Toledo, Maumee, Northwood, Oregon, Perrysburg, Sylvania, Village of Holland, Lucas County, and Lake Township are expected to receive over $70 million in electric generation savings over the term of the contract, based on current generation prices.

"We are pleased to be supplying electric generation to the approximately 200,000 electric customers in NOAC's communities for an additional six years," said President of FirstEnergy Solutions Donny Schneider. "Our Powering Our Communities program has been extremely successful in bringing much-needed support to over 170 communities in the northern Ohio area, providing customers guaranteed, long-term savings on their electric bills - as well as funding for the communities where they live."

City of Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner said, "This agreement with FirstEnergy Solutions couldn't have come at a better time, as nearly every household, business and community is struggling to balance their budgets right now. This funding is a great help to Toledo as we seek ways to maintain essential services. And just as important, Toledo customers can save millions in electric generation costs."

"I'd like to thank FirstEnergy Solutions, and especially Tony Alexander, for their quick response to our community's need," said Pete Gerken, President of the Board of Lucas County Commissioners. "We're pleased to have developed this strong relationship with FirstEnergy Solutions, and we look forward to the electric generation savings and economic development support that this relationship provides."

The Powering Our Communities program locks in long-term discounted generation prices to residential and small commercial customers in these communities. The attractive fixed price for residential customers, which was negotiated through the original agreement, will continue through May 2011. After that time, the discounts will be based on the Price to Compare (PTC), or the generation price customers would have been charged if they purchased electric generation service from their local electric utility. Beginning June 2011, eligible residential customers will receive 6 percent off the PTC and small businesses will get a 4 percent discount off the PTC through May 2017.

FES provides competitive electric generation supply and other energy-related products and services, and is a licensed supplier in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Michigan and Illinois. To learn more about FirstEnergy Solutions' governmental aggregation programs and specifically Powering Our Communities, community officials can call FirstEnergy Solutions' Governmental Aggregation Program Manager Brenda Fargo at (330) 315-6898 or visit www.fes.com.

FirstEnergy is a diversified energy company headquartered in Akron, Ohio. Its subsidiaries and affiliates are involved in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, as well as energy management and other energy-related services. Its generation subsidiaries control more than 14,000 megawatts of capacity.

Established in October 2000, NOAC was formed as a coalition of local governmental entities initially pledged to work together on issues relating to electric deregulation. Since its founding, the Coalition now coordinates efforts on a wide range of utility issues, focusing primarily on electric, natural gas and telecommunications.

Forward-Looking Statements: This news release includes forward-looking statements based on information currently available to management. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties. These statements include declarations regarding management's intents, beliefs and current expectations. These statements typically contain, but are not limited to, the terms "anticipate," "potential," "expect," "believe," "estimate" and similar words. Forward-looking statements involve estimates, assumptions, known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially due to the speed and nature of increased competition in the electric utility industry and legislative and regulatory changes affecting how generation rates will be determined following the expiration of existing rate plans in Pennsylvania, the impact of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio's regulatory process on the Ohio Companies associated with the distribution rate case, economic or weather conditions affecting future sales and margins, changes in markets for energy services, changing energy and commodity market prices and availability, replacement power costs being higher than anticipated or inadequately hedged, the continued ability of FirstEnergy's regulated utilities to collect transition and other charges or to recover increased transmission costs, operating and maintenance costs being higher than anticipated, other legislative and regulatory changes, revised environmental requirements, including possible greenhouse gas emission regulations, the potential impacts of the U.S. Court of Appeals' July 11, 2008 decision requiring revisions to the Clean Air Interstate Rules and the scope of any laws, rules or regulations that may ultimately take their place, the uncertainty of the timing and amounts of the capital expenditures needed to, among other things, implement the Air Quality Compliance Plan (including that such amounts could be higher than anticipated or that certain generating units may need to be shut down) or levels of emission reductions related to the Consent Decree resolving the New Source Review litigation or other similar potential regulatory initiatives or actions, adverse regulatory or legal decisions and outcomes (including, but not limited to, the revocation of necessary licenses or operating permits and oversight) by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Metropolitan Edison Company's and Pennsylvania Electric Company's transmission service charge filings with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, the continuing availability of generating units and their ability to operate at or near full capacity, the ability to comply with applicable state and federal reliability standards, the ability to accomplish or realize anticipated benefits from strategic goals (including employee workforce initiatives), the ability to improve electric commodity margins and to experience growth in the distribution business, the changing market conditions that could affect the value of assets held in FirstEnergy's nuclear decommissioning trusts, pension trusts and other trust funds, and cause it to make additional contributions sooner, or in an amount that is larger than currently anticipated, the ability to access the public securities and other capital and credit markets in accordance with FirstEnergy's financing plan and the cost of such capital, changes in general economic conditions affecting the company, the state of the capital and credit markets affecting the company, interest rates and any actions taken by credit rating agencies that could negatively affect FirstEnergy's access to financing or its costs or increase its requirements to post additional collateral to support outstanding commodity positions, letters of credit and other financial guarantees, the continuing decline of the national and regional economy and its impact on the company's major industrial and commercial customers, issues concerning the soundness of financial institutions and counterparties with which FirstEnergy does business, and the risks and other factors discussed from time to time in its Securities and Exchange Commission filings, and other similar factors. The foregoing review of factors should not be construed as exhaustive. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all such factors, nor assess the impact of any such factor on FirstEnergy's business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. FirstEnergy expressly disclaims any current intention to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.

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