Neither the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio nor the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission have indicated when they will rule on whether to allow the merger. PUCO spokesman Matt Schilling said Monday, however, that the merger issue is likely to be placed on the agenda for either of the commission’s two remaining meetings in 2011, scheduled for Nov. 22 and Dec. 7.
DPL has said for months that the merger could be completed in the final quarter of 2011 or the first quarter of 2012. But, the company offered a more precise time frame when it publicly stated Nov. 8 that its board had approved an additional cash dividend for holders of the company’s common stock “in anticipation of completing the pending merger ... sometime during the fourth quarter of this year.”
DPL shareholders in September approved the merger, in which AES will pay $30 in cash for each DPL common share.
David Burks, an analyst who follows the electric industry for Hilliard Lyons, said he expects the merger will receive the needed regulatory approvals to be concluded.
“To me, it’s a question of ‘when,’ and not ‘if,’” Burks said Monday.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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