Difference between revisions of "Ameren"
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==History== | ==History== | ||
| − | Created by the year-end 1997 merger of Union Electric Company and CIPSCO, parent of Central Illinois Public Service Company, the company grew in 2003 with the acquisition of CILCORP, the parent of Central Illinois Light Company and again in 2004 with the acquisition of Illinois Power Company. | + | Created by the year-end 1997 merger of Union Electric Company and CIPSCO, parent of Central Illinois Public Service Company, the company grew in 2003 with the acquisition of CILCORP, the parent of Central Illinois Light Company and again in 2004 with the acquisition of Illinois Power Company. At the end of 2009 it was announced that Ameren Energy Resources had spent $1 billion for the installation of [[scrubbers]] at two of its facilities, including the Duck Creek Station and the Coffeen Plant. The scrubbers reduce nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide emissions.<ref>[http://www.tradingmarkets.com/news/stock-alert/aee_aer-invests-1-billion-in-environmental-upgrades-in-illinois-690319.html AER invests $1 billion in environmental upgrades in Illinois,] TradingMarkets.com, accessed January 2010.</ref> |
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==Political contributions== | ==Political contributions== | ||
Revision as of 01:16, 26 January 2010
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| Type | Public (NYSE: AEE) |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | 1901 Chouteau Ave. St. Louis, MO 63103 |
| Area served | IL, MO |
| Key people | Gary L. Rainwater, CEO |
| Industry | Electric Producer and Utility |
| Products | Electricity |
| Revenue | $7.38 billion (2007)[1] |
| Net income | ▲ $618 million (2007)[1] |
| Employees | 9,069 (2007) |
| Divisions | Ameren Services Ameren Illinois Utilities AmerenEnergy Resources AmerenUE |
| Subsidiaries | Electric Energy Inc. (IL) Union Electric Co. (MO) |
| Website | Ameren.com |
{{#badges: Climate change |CoalSwarm}}
Ameren is a St. Louis-based corporation and among the nation's biggest investor-owned electric and gas utilities, with approximately $23 billion in assets. The largest electric utility in Missouri and the second largest in Illinois, Ameren companies provide energy services to 2.3 million electric customers throughout its 64,000-square-mile territory.[2]
Contents
History
Created by the year-end 1997 merger of Union Electric Company and CIPSCO, parent of Central Illinois Public Service Company, the company grew in 2003 with the acquisition of CILCORP, the parent of Central Illinois Light Company and again in 2004 with the acquisition of Illinois Power Company. At the end of 2009 it was announced that Ameren Energy Resources had spent $1 billion for the installation of scrubbers at two of its facilities, including the Duck Creek Station and the Coffeen Plant. The scrubbers reduce nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide emissions.[3]
Political contributions
Ameren is one of the largest energy company contributors to both Republican and Democratic candidates for Congress. These contributions total $132,500 to the 110th US Congress (as of the third quarter), the largest of which has been to Rep. Roy Blunt, who in 2007-2008 took $51,500 from coal-related companies of which $12,500 was from Ameren.[4] More information on coal industry contributions to Congress can be found at FollowtheCoalMoney.org, a project sponsored by the nonpartisan, nonprofit Oil Change International and Appalachian Voices.
Lobbyists
Ameren paid $60,000 for the services of Bryan Cave Strategies LLC in 2008.[5] The registered lobbyists were Matt Jessee, and David Russell. Ameren spent another $160,000 on Ogilvy Government Relations in 2008 and 40,000 so far in 2009.[6] The registered lobbyists were Chris Giblin, Drew Maloney, Julie Dammann, Wayne Berman, and John Green. Elmendorf Strategies LLC received $90,000 from Ameren in 2008 and $30,000 in 2009.[7] The registered lobbyists were Robert Cogorno, Steven Elmendorf, James Houton, Kristina Kennedy, and Shanti Stanton in 2008 with Barry LaSala joining the team in 2009. Ameren also spent $78,000 on Bracewell & Giuliani in 2008 and another $50,000 in 2009.[8] The registered lobbyists were Scott H. Segal, Jeffrey Holmstead, Edward Krenik, Joshua Zive, and E. Dee Martin. They have also used the lobbying firms the Gephardt Group Government Affairs and Barnes & Thornburg, and their own in-house services arm, Ameren Services. Together the utility spent $2.36 million on lobbying the federal legislature in the first six months of 2009 alone.[9]
CEO compensation
In May 2007, Forbes listed former Ameren CEO Gary L. Rainwater as receiving $1.44 million in total compensation for the latest fiscal year, with a three-year total compensation of $5.7 million. In 2007 he ranked 39th on the list of CEOs in the Utilities industry, and 462nd among all CEOs in the United States.[10] In 2008 he made $5 million in total compensation, and handed the CEO title to Thomas R. Voss on May 1, 2009.[11]
Power portfolio
Out of its total 16,546 megawatts (MW) of electric generating capacity (1.55% of the U.S. total), Ameren gets 64.8% from coal, 19.5% from natural gas, 7.5% from nuclear, 4.5% from hydroelectricity, and 3.7% from oil. Ameren owns power plants in Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri.[12]
Nuclear power
In April 2009, Ameren suspended efforts to build a proposed new nuclear power plant, the "Callaway 2," in Missouri. It was "the first of the 'nuclear renaissance' reactors to fall by the wayside," reported the New York Times. The move came after Ameren stopped efforts to change Missouri state law to allow "construction work in progress" (CWIP). CWIP allows utilities to charge customers to cover the cost of future electricity, and has been used to help fund expensive nuclear reactor projects. [13] The bill allowing companies to pass construction costs on to consumers during construction died in the Senate.[14]
However, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokesperson "hinted that AmerenUE's application might not, in fact, be dead," as "AmerenUE had been in contact with the commission staff this week, and had not asked that the commission staff stop work on the application. That work is done at the expense of the applicant." [13]
Existing coal-fired power plants
Ameren had 31 coal-fired generating stations in 2005, with 10,719 MW of capacity. Their aging power stations, based on 2005 data, emitted 1.2% of all U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. Here is a list of Ameren's coal power plants with capacity over 100 MW:[12][15][16]
| Plant Name | State | County | Year(s) Built | Capacity | 2007 CO2 Emissions | 2006 SO2 Emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labadie | MO | Franklin | 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973 | 2389 MW | 16,400,000 tons | 51,445 tons |
| Rush Island | MO | Jefferson | 1976, 1977 | 1242 MW | 6,828,000 tons | 28,674 tons |
| Newton | IL | Jasper | 1977, 1982 | 1235 MW | 7,799,000 tons | 20,922 tons |
| Joppa | IL | Massac | 1953, 1954, 1955 | 1100 MW | 9,222,000 tons | 26,408 tons |
| Sioux | MO | St. Charles | 1967, 1968 | 1099 MW | 6,043,000 tons | 44,148 tons |
| Coffeen | IL | Montgomery | 1965, 1972 | 1005 MW | 6,699,000 tons | 22,007 tons |
| Meramec | MO | St. Louis | 1953, 1954, 1959, 1961 | 923 MW | 6,635,000 tons | 17,225 tons |
| E.D. Edwards | IL | Peoria | 1960, 1968, 1972 | 780 MW | 4,696,000 tons | 50,126 tons |
| Duck Creek | IL | Fulton | 1976 | 441 MW | 2,545,000 tons | N/A |
| Meredosia | IL | Morgan | 1948, 1949, 1960 | 354 MW | 1,809,000 tons | N/A |
| Hutsonville | IL | Crawford | 1953, 1954 | 150 MW | 897,000 tons | N/A |
In 2005, Ameren's 11 largest coal-fired power plants emitted 69.6 million tons of CO2 (1.2% of all U.S. CO2 emissions) and at least 261,000 tons of SO2 (1.7% of all U.S. SO2 emissions).
Articles and resources
Related SourceWatch articles
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ameren Corporation, BusinessWeek Company Insight Center, accessed July 2008.
- ↑ "Ameren Overview" Ameren Website, September 2009
- ↑ AER invests $1 billion in environmental upgrades in Illinois, TradingMarkets.com, accessed January 2010.
- ↑ "Contributions to Representative Roy Blunt (R-MO07) during the 110th congress", Follow the Coal Money website, accessed February 2009.
- ↑ “Bryan Cave Strategiess LLC” Center for Public Integrity, accessed July 2009.
- ↑ “Ogilvy Government Relations” Center for Public Integrity, accessed July 2009.
- ↑ “Elmendorf Strategies LLC” Center for Public Integrity, accessed July 2009.
- ↑ “Bracewell & Giuliani” Center for Public Integrity, accessed July 2009.
- ↑ Bob Burton, "Elmendorf Strategies and the Carbon Lobby" PRWatch.org, August 17, 2009
- ↑ CEO Compensation: #462 Gary L Rainwater, Forbes.com, May 3, 2007.
- ↑ David Nicklaus, [1] St. Louis Post Dispatch, March 11, 2009
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Existing Electric Generating Units in the United States, 2005, Energy Information Administration, accessed April 2008.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Matthew L. Wald, "A Setback in the 'Nuclear Renaissance'," New York Times, April 23, 2009.
- ↑ Adam Allington, "Ameren Suspends Plans to Build Second Nuclear Reactor in Callaway Co." KBIA, April 24, 2009
- ↑ Environmental Integrity Project, Dirty Kilowatts: America’s Most Polluting Power Plants, July 2007.
- ↑ Dig Deeper, Carbon Monitoring for Action database, accessed June 2008.
External resources
External articles
- "Judge overrules request by Ameren to stop TV ads," Associated Press, March 29, 2009.
