ComEd 2005 Annual Report Download - page 7

5
operating improvements
Our generation business continued to lead the way in 2005. Our average
nuclear capacity factor was 93.5 percent. The commercial availability of our
fossil fleet has improved most recently to 95.7 percent. Several of our nuclear
units set world records in 2005, and General Electric named five of our
units as among the most efficient in the world. We have also seen remark-
able improvements in the performance of Salem and Hope Creek, two of the
units now managed for PSEG by an Exelon team.
Our power marketing team had a fine year in 2005. Despite an increasingly
volatile wholesale market in the wake of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, they
continued to leverage our strength as a low-cost provider, and build a record
of solid risk management and the successful matching of our physical
assets to load.
Our distribution affiliates also showed improvement in 2005. At ComEd,
2005 frequency and duration of outage statistics improved over 2004
despite higher than expected storm activity. Customer satisfaction also
improved, and safety performance reached the first quartile. Unfortunately,
ComEd experienced two significant substation fires during the summer of
2005 that reopened regulatory concerns about the quality of our facilities
and management. PECO also saw improved reliability in 2005, and customer
satisfaction reached a five-year high. Despite an industry standard-setting
employee safety program, however, PECO experienced a workplace fatality,
the first in 16 years. Mike Killian’s death profoundly affected us all; we grieve
for his family. It underscored as nothing else could the importance of safety
in the work that we do.
Our finance group continues to plan for the new company, and the divestiture
of 6,600 megawatts of existing capacity. Over the last year, they also improved
our internal long-range planning and quarterly management processes,
issued $1.7 billion of Exelon corporate debt to fund our pension plans, executed
$354 million (6.75 million shares) in share repurchases, and secured a $I billion
credit facility for ComEd to enhance its liquidity in the coming years.
And finally, our Business Services Group performed exceptionally well in
2005, surpassing aggressive cost-savings targets while improving overall per-
formance and service levels. Among other initiatives, BSC introduced a new
operations management system in 2005, enabling ComEd to respond more
quickly and effectively in restoring service to customers, implemented an
online employee self-service payroll and benefits administration program, and
automated our invoice processing. BSC also exceeded its supply chain sav-
ings target for the second consecutive year, achieving $71.7 million in savings,
and directed some $252 million of Exelon’s spend for materials and services
to minority and women-owned businesses.