Business Digest

Utilities merger

Akron

FirstEnergy Corp., and Allegheny Energy, Inc., have moved forward with their proposed merger. The utilities filed an application Tuesday with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for approval of the merger.

The merged company would have about 6 million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, New York and New Jersey. The companies plan to make filings for state regulatory approval in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Maryland this month, and in Virginia in the second quarter. The merger is expected to close in the first half of 2011, the companies said in a joint press release.

Nomination blocked

Washington

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown on Tuesday blocked the nomination of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. director Joshua Gotbaum in an effort to prevent a nomination by unanimous consent.

The action was designed to urge the White House administration to bring General Motors to the table to meet the pension obligations of the Delphi retirees, Brown said in a release. Many Delphi retirees are at risk of losing a substantial percentage of their pension income under the PBGC. Brown and U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th, have asked Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to force GM to negotiate a solution that would protect the pensions of Delphi workers.

Vindicator wire reports