Moss on Pepco-Exelon Merger in Washington Examiner

From Zach Colman’s Washington Examiner article Opponents call on feds to stop Pepco-Exelon merger:

“A merged Exelon-Pepco would possess an enhanced ability and pre-existing, powerful incentive to engage in vertical foreclosure and block entry by rivals. If unaddressed through antitrust remedies, the proposed merger stands not only to harm competition and consumers but also to reverse some of the gains from restructuring,” American Antitrust Institute President Diana Moss wrote in a Wednesday letter to William Baer, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division….

… She noted the Department of Justice in the past has encouraged divestiture of electric generation assets, the most recent being Exelon’s 2012 acquisition of Constellation Energy, parent company of Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.

“I think the fact that DOJ is still looking into it is indicative that they have concerns,” Moss told theExaminer. “The deal is problematic.”