FirstEnergy Corp. Declares Common Stock Dividend

AKRON, Ohio, Feb. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Directors of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) today declared an unchanged quarterly dividend of 55 cents per share of outstanding common stock for the second quarter of 2011.  

In addition, the Board provided updated contingent scenarios to synchronize the payments of the FirstEnergy and Allegheny Energy, Inc. (NYSE: AYE), dividends as of the effective date of the companies' proposed merger.  These scenarios are similar to the plan announced in December for payment of the first quarter 2011 dividend.  

If the merger is not completed before the payment date of June 1, 2011, the full 55 cent-per-share second quarter dividend would be payable on June 1, 2011, to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 6, 2011.

If the merger is completed before June 1, 2011, FirstEnergy will pay two separate dividends that will total 55 cents per share.  The timing and amount of these payments depend on the merger effective date.

If the effective date of the merger is on or after May 6, 2011, and before June 1, 2011:

• FirstEnergy would pay a dividend of 0.598 cents per share per day for the period from and including March 1, 2011, through the day before the merger effective date, to shareholders of record as of May 6, 2011 (or May 5, 2011 if the merger is effective on May 6).  This dividend would be payable on June 1, 2011.  
• A second pro rata dividend of 0.598 cents per share per day would be payable to shareholders of record at the close of business on the merger effective date, for the period from and including the effective date, through May 31, 2011.  The second dividend would be payable within 30 days following the effective date of the merger.

If the effective date of the merger is on or after March 1, 2011, and before May 6, 2011:

• FirstEnergy would pay a dividend of 0.598 cents per share per day for the period from and including March 1, 2011, through the day before the merger effective date, to shareholders of record at the close of business on the day prior to the merger effective date.  This dividend would be payable within 30 days following the effective date of the merger.  
• A second pro rata dividend of 0.598 cents per share per day would be payable to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 6, 2011, for the period from and including the effective date through May 31, 2011.  The second dividend would be payable on June 1, 2011.

The plan for payment of the first quarter 2011 dividend remains unchanged.  If the merger becomes effective before March 1, that dividend will be paid to qualified shareholders as two payments totaling 55 cents per share.  If the merger becomes effective on or after March 1, the first quarter 2011 dividend will be paid as a single payment of 55 cents per share.

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 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, the impact of the regulatory process on the pending matters in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, business and regulatory impacts from American Transmission Systems, Incorporated's realignment into PJM Interconnection, L.L.C., economic or weather conditions affecting future sales and margins, changes in markets for energy services, changing energy and commodity market prices and availability, financial derivative reforms that could increase our liquidity needs and collateral costs, replacement power costs being higher than anticipated or inadequately hedged, the continued ability of FirstEnergy's regulated utilities to collect transition and other  costs, operating and maintenance costs being higher than anticipated, other legislative and regulatory changes, revised environmental requirements, including possible greenhouse gas emission and coal combustion regulations, the potential impacts of any laws, rules or regulations that ultimately replace the Clean Air Interstate Rules, the uncertainty of the timing and amounts of the capital expenditures needed to, among other things, resolve any NSR litigation or other potential similar regulatory initiatives or rulemakings (including that such amounts could be higher than anticipated or that certain generating units may need to be shut down), adverse regulatory or legal decisions and outcomes (including, but not limited to, the revocation of necessary licenses or operating permits and oversight) by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Metropolitan Edison Company's and Pennsylvania Electric Company's transmission service charge appeal at the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, any impact resulting from the receipt by Signal Peak of the Department of Labor's notice of a potential pattern of violations at Bull Mountain Mine No. 1, 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 the impact of, among other factors, the increased cost of coal and coal transportation on such margins and the ability 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 or increase its requirements to post additional collateral to support outstanding commodity positions, letters of credit and other financial guarantees, the continuing uncertainty in the national and regional economy and its impact on the company's major industrial and commercial customers, issues concerning the soundness of financial institutions and counterparties with which FirstEnergy does business, the expected timing and likelihood of completion of the proposed merger with Allegheny Energy, Inc., including the timing, receipt and terms and conditions of any required governmental and regulatory approvals of the proposed merger that could reduce anticipated benefits or cause the parties to abandon the merger, the diversion of management's time and attention from our ongoing business during this time period, the ability to maintain relationships with customers, employees or suppliers as well as the ability to successfully integrate the businesses and realize cost savings and any other synergies and the risk that the credit ratings of the combined company or its subsidiaries may be different from what the companies expect and the risks and other factors discussed from time to time in its Securities and Exchange Commission filings, and other similar factors. Dividends declared from time to time on FirstEnergy's common stock during any annual period may in aggregate vary from the indicated amount due to circumstances considered by FirstEnergy's Board of Directors at the time of the actual declarations. 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 FirstEnergy's 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.

SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.