CEG Constellation Energy Grp. Common Stock

Constellation Energy's Calvert Cliffs Completes Unit 2 Refueling Outage BALTIMORE, March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Constellation Energy (NYSE:CEG) today announced that the refueling outage on Unit 2 of its Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant in Lusby, Md., was completed at approximately 3 a.m. on March 16 and the Unit is back online. The outage was completed in 21 days, representing the shortest refueling ever completed at Calvert Cliffs, and the third consecutive outage that the plant has completed in record time. Previously, the shortest refueling outage for the plant's Unit 2 took 42 days. "Our goal is to continually move forward in all aspects of our work - from safety, to outages, to operational excellence," said George Vanderheyden, vice president of Calvert Cliffs. "This outage was an outstanding example of how Calvert Cliffs continues to improve. The credit for this success goes to our employees and their ability to work as a team. This is another significant achievement for Constellation Energy." The completion of Calvert Cliffs' Unit 2 refueling outage also represents one of the shortest outages ever achieved for a Combustion Engineering- designed nuclear reactor. More than a year of in-depth planning and preparation set the stage for the refueling outage. Employees of Calvert Cliffs and other Constellation Energy organizations, as well as specialized contractors, completed more than 100,000 hours of work. Major tasks included replenishing about one-third of the reactor's nuclear fuel, inspection of pipes that carry saltwater in the plant's cooling system, and the replacement of two 500-kilovolt breakers. Prior to the outage, Unit 2 had completed two years of safe operations, and was a major contributing factor to Calvert Cliffs producing 14.5 million megawatts of electricity in 2004, the most ever generated by the plant. Constellation Energy owns and operates Calvert Cliffs. Its output of 1,700 megawatts of electricity from its two units is enough to meet the needs of more than a half-million homes, or about 20 percent of all Maryland residents. Constellation Energy (http://www.constellation.com/), a Fortune 200 company based in Baltimore, is the nation's leading competitive supplier of electricity to large commercial and industrial customers and is the nation's largest wholesale power seller. Constellation Energy also manages fuels and energy services on behalf of energy intensive industries and utilities. It owns or co-owns 108 generating units at 35 locations in 11 states, totaling approximately 12,500 megawatts of generating capacity. The company delivers electricity and natural gas through the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE), its regulated utility in Central Maryland. In 2004, the combined revenues of the integrated energy company totaled $12.5 billion. DATASOURCE: Constellation Energy CONTACT: Lisa Lundberg, Media Relations, +1-410-897-5146, or Kevin Hadlock, Investor Relations, +1-410-783-3647, both of Constellation Energy Web site: http://www.constellation.com/ Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/084087.html

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