Allegheny Energy

At a time when both large and small businesses are signaling with bulldozers and wrecking crews that Washington County's past isn't nearly as important as their future plans, one local corporation has quietly decided to take a stand on behalf of history. It's Allegheny Power, whose Friendship Technology Park was recently in the news when the electric utility donated 20 acres for a new University of Maryland campus. That wasn't the first time I'd heard about the park, located on the opposite side of Interstate 70 from Martin L. "Marty" Snook County Park.

dank@herald-mail.com The "evaporation" of energy trading markets in the wake of the Enron collapse was a factor in Allegheny Energy's $32.3 million loss in the second quarter of 2002, company Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Alan J. Noia said Wednesday. In a conference call with Wall Street analysts Wednesday afternoon, Noia said Enron turned the energy trading market upside down. As a result Allegheny's purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co.'s energy trading unit in March 2001 for $490 million did not produce the profits anticipated, he said.

laurae@herald-mail.com For the 35 years he's been a lineman with Allegheny Energy, Joe Moser has invested in his company's stock. So he has watched closely as the stock value - which makes up about 25 percent of his 401(k) retirement portfolio - has tumbled. In the last six months, Allegheny's share price has dropped from a high of $45.53 to Thursday's close of $8.80. Moser and several other employees interviewed last week expressed concern about the steep drop in the stock price and the Hagerstown-based company's financial future.

tarar@herald-mail.com HAGERSTOWN - The international satellite communications company that may become the first client at Allegheny Energy's Friendship Technology Park would bring 50 new jobs to Washington County, Senior Planner Tim Lung said Monday night. The Washington County Planning Commission unanimously approved the site plan for the project submitted by Mountainside Teleport Corp., a subsidiary of Intelsat Global Service Corp. in Washington D.C. Intelsat Global Service is a subsidiary of Intelsat Limited, which is headquartered in Bermuda.

The ABC Professional Tree Services is trimming trees along Allegheny Energy power lines.

Recovering from financial struggles after a failed expansion effort, Allegheny Energy said Monday it has hired a former Mirant Corp. executive as vice president of external affairs. Loyd "Aldie" Warnock served as senior vice president for governmental and regulatory affairs at Mirant, an Atlanta energy company that filed for bankruptcy protection in 2003 and has not yet fully recovered. Warnock resigned from Mirant, where he led the company's federal and state legislative and regulatory activities, sometime before Nov. 3. Warnock will report to Paul J. Evanson, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Allegheny Energy.

andrews@herald-mail.com As the rich got richer, Allegheny Energy dropped in value and was left behind. Fortune magazine's 2004 list of America's 500 top-revenue businesses was released Sunday and, for the first time in five years, Allegheny Energy was not on it. Allegheny Energy barely made the 2003 list with $2.96 billion in revenue, which put the company in 496th place. The 500th company, Neiman Marcus, had $2.95 billion in revenue. This year, the cutoff to be in the top 500 rose while Allegheny Energy's revenue dropped.

The Hagerstown City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved spending $6,500 to join a regional electricity transmission organization that will oversee the flow of electricity across high-voltage wires, City Light Department Manager Terry Weaver said. The cost could raise customers' bills by less than a few cents, if at all, Weaver said. The city will join PJM Interconnection, he said. This service was previously done by Allegheny Energy. But as part of the federal deregulation process, Allegheny Energy is required to join a regional transmission organization, such as PJM, Weaver said.

Allegheny Energy has named another new high-ranking executive. Joseph H. Richardson will become president of Allegheny's energy delivery business, Allegheny Power, on Aug. 25, according to a company news release. Richardson has been president and chief executive officer of Global Energy Group since 2002, the release states. Global Energy develops and patents technology to improve energy efficiency. Before that, Richardson served as president, chief executive officer and chief operating officer of Florida Power Corp.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - The Jefferson County Commission on Thursday offered another round of opposition to the proposed high-voltage power line that could cross through the county. Allegheny Power officials said recently that possible routes for the Potomac Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH) have been eliminated in Washington County, Md., and Berkeley and Morgan counties in the Eastern Panhandle. But the line could still cross through Jefferson County, Allegheny Energy officials said.