Wow! Coming off of January, you can feel the heat rising on FirstEnergy and AEP. Major power producers Exelon and Dynegy both offered alternative plans to the Ohio utilities’ bailout deals, alleging they can provide cleaner, cheaper electricity during the same time frame. Then, Dynegy teamed up with NRG Energy and other generators to ask the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to step in and halt the deals. And the regional grid operator, PJM Interconnection, filed materials opposing FirstEnergy’s plan and zeroed in on AEP’s proposal, asking for “consumer protections” (more on PJM’s involvement later).

Even FirstEnergy’s hometown newspaper thinks the utility giant is asking for too much. Literally – the Akron Beacon Journal recently ran an editorial with the headline “FirstEnergy just asks for too much,” in which it called the company “ballsy” and said the public benefits of the deal are “hard to see now.”

Indeed, the justifications for the subsidies appear downright silly, as we illuminate in our recent blog post.

You can always visit EDF’s FirstEnergy website for our newsletter archive and links to the latest news about FirstEnergy’s bailout.

New Ads Highlight Ridiculousness of Bailout Requests

Do you think a $20 cup of coffee is reasonable? How about if the price jump is to cover the cost of the shop’s aging coffeemaker? Still no?

It shouldn’t be a customer’s responsibility to maintain a business’ outdated equipment through huge cost increases.

That’s the point the Alliance for Energy Choice, a nonprofit group of independent power companies, is trying to make in its new TV ads opposing the bailouts. The spots include the tagline “Fight the Hikes” and use the coffee example, in addition to an exorbitantly priced pizza, to show just how “crazy” FirstEnergy and AEP’s requests are. By drawing a comparison to the price of everyday items we all love, the ads suggest the utility giants are trying to put one over on everyday people.

We wouldn’t let someone take away our fairly-priced pizza, and Ohioans shouldn’t let FirstEnergy and AEP manipulate the cost of their electricity. Can I speak to a manager, please?

FirstEnergy and AEP, Your Customers Have Spoken

FirstEnergy and AEP’s territories cover a majority of Ohio, and the outcome of their subsidy requests will directly affect hundreds of thousands of customers. So, what do the people think about the income-guarantee deals? It’s not pretty.

Two recent polls show “huge majorities of Ohio voters are adamantly opposed to paying higher monthly electric bills bankrolling FirstEnergy and American Electric Power power plants,” according to the Plain Dealer. In a joint release, Ohio AARP and the Alliance for Energy Choice provided numbers that demonstrate just how unfavorable these deals are. Specifically, AARP surveyed Ohioans over the age of 50 on general utility issues, revealing that affordable electricity bills are a top concern.

But it was the Alliance’s results, which came from a broader statewide Ohio Omnibus Survey and included questions on the bailout deals, that were particularly telling. Notably, 75 percent of respondents believe the PUCO should not approve the special "power purchase agreements."

Hmm, is it power to the people – or power against the people’s will and at a huge cost to the people?

FirstEnergy Either Really Needs the Money, or Not at All

Ah, transparency – a key pillar of democracy. Ideally, transparency would be front and center of a major $4-billion deal that will significantly raise the rates of captive customers. Unfortunately, it’s never been a strong suit for FirstEnergy.

And a recent article in the Columbus Dispatch suggests the two-faced antics have risen to new levels:

• “FirstEnergy presents a confident public face to support a controversial profit-guarantee, but the company has shown a much more vulnerable side in closed-door meetings with state leaders and others, describing the proposal as an attempt to stave off financial disaster.”

Financial disaster! Everybody panic!

But then…a look back at 2015 third-quarter results tells a very different picture. Let’s let Charles E. Jones, FirstEnergy president and chief executive officer, give us the details: "Our strong third quarter results reflect a solid performance across all three of our businesses – Regulated Distribution, Regulated Transmission, and Competitive Energy Services."

So, what to believe: Is FirstEnergy on the verge of collapse or solid ground? Are claims of impending doom solely to garner “sympathies,” as the article suggests? Either way, this lack of transparency doesn’t bode well for FirstEnergy’s customers – or its intentions.

Grid Operator Takes Wind out of Reliability Argument’s Sails

Electric reliability, no doubt, is an important issue. That’s why FirstEnergy and AEP are using it as a primary argument to bail out their unprofitable power plants. But that’s also why the responsibility is in the hands of the regional grid operator, which can manage electricity across a wide area, and not the regulators of an individual state.

FirstEnergy and AEP’s grid operator, PJM, has weighed in on both bailouts (as noted above). So, let’s see what the agency – which is tasked with keeping the lights on – has to say about Ohio.

PJM notes Ohio actually has lots of excess capacity and reliability is not an issue. Furthermore, the grid operator recently filed comments in the AEP case, saying the idea AEP's electric generation is needed for reliability is a "red herring." (Refresher: a red herring is intentionally misleading or distracting.)

We’ll take misdirection in our magic shows, not our lives, thank you.