Seven Union Locals Extend Contracts With FirstEnergy

Nearly Forty Percent of Union-Represented Employees Agree to Extensions 


AKRON, Ohio, June 26  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) today announced that seven of its union locals - representing about 2,600 employees - have ratified contract extensions.  These unions include employees from Pennsylvania Electric Company (Penelec), Pennsylvania Power Company (Penn Power), Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company (CEI), Ohio Edison, and Toledo Edison, along with some power plant employees.

"I appreciate the commitment that our union leaders and represented employees have made to the company during these tough economic times," said Anthony J. Alexander, president and chief executive officer of FirstEnergy.  "When combined with the changes already made by our salaried employees, these contract extensions will help ensure that we emerge a stronger company, better positioned for growth when the economy begins to rebound."

The contract extensions - one to three years in length - could include wage and health care changes along with a Voluntary Enhanced Retirement Option (VERO) for employees 58 years and older with at least 10 years of service.  The extent of contract changes was dependent upon the length of the extension.

The company recently announced that it would take steps to reduce costs, enhance efficiencies and minimize financial risk in response to the continued economic recession.  These steps include temporary salary changes, revisions to retiree health care coverage, and offering the VERO program to its non-represented workforce.  The contract extensions are an effort to bring the same kind of changes to represented employees.

Overall, FirstEnergy has 6,700 employees represented by 17 union locals.  The following ratified contract extensions:

  --  Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) Local 270, representing power
      plant and CEI employees in the Cleveland area
  --  UWUA Locals 118 and 126, representing Ohio Edison employees in Akron
      and Youngstown
  --  UWUA Local 140, representing Penn Power employees in western Pa.
  --  UWUA Local 457, representing employees at the W.H. Sammis Plant, in
      Stratton, Ohio
  --  UWUA Local 180, representing Penelec employees in Altoona, Pa.
  --  UWUA Locals 350 and 351, representing power plant employees in Ohio

  --  Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 19,
      representing power plant and Toledo Edison employees in Toledo, Ohio.



Company representatives plan to continue discussions with leadership of some of the remaining unions that represent FirstEnergy employees to provide the same time-sensitive extension options.

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 seven electric utility operating companies comprise the nation's fifth largest investor-owned electric system, based on 4.5 million customers served within a 36,100-square-mile area of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey; and its generation subsidiaries control more than 14,000 megawatts of capacity.

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 our 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 PUCO's regulatory process on the Ohio Companies associated with the distribution rate case, the impact of the competitive generation procurement process in Ohio, 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, 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 CAIR 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 AQC 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 NSR litigation or other potential regulatory initiatives, adverse regulatory or legal decisions and outcomes (including, but not limited to, the revocation of necessary licenses or operating permits and oversight) by the NRC (including, but not limited to, the Demand for Information issued to FENOC on May 14, 2007), Met-Ed's and Penelec's transmission service charge filings with the PPUC, 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 and 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 FirstEnergy'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 SEC 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 its 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.

http://www.firstenergycorp.com/ 

DATASOURCE: FirstEnergy Corp.



CONTACT:  Media, Ellen Raines, [phone], or Investor Relations,

Ronald Seeholzer, [phone], both of FirstEnergy Corp.



Web Site:  http://www.firstenergycorp.com/ 

Copyright