Confidential to Consumer reports and the rest of the Cleveland Gang: Your wish........ (WARNING LO-O-O-N-N-NG POST)

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

Here it is folks, I snipped the relevant portions of First Energy, CEI, and ComEd.

First Energy over-all Impact of the Year 2000 Issue The Year 2000 issue is the result of computer programs being written using two digits rather than four to identify the applicable year. Any of the Company's programs that have date-sensitive software may recognize a date using "00" as the year 1900 rather than the year 2000. The Company has developed a multi-phase program for Year 2000 compliance that consists of: (i) assessment of the corporate systems and operations of the Company that could be affected by the Year 2000 problem; (ii) remediation or replacement of noncompliant systems and components; and (iii) testing of systems and components following such remediation or replacement. The Company has focused its Year 2000 review on three areas: centralized system applications, noncentralized systems and relationships with third parties (including suppliers as well as end-use customers). The Company currently believes that with modifications to existing software and conversions to new software, the Year 2000 issue will pose no significant operational problems for its computer systems. Most of the Company's Year 2000 problems will be resolved through system replacement. Of the Company's major - 13 - FIRSTENERGY CORP. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION (Cont.)centralized systems, the general ledger system and inventory management and procurement accounts payable system will be replaced by the end of 1998. The Company's payroll system was enhanced to be Year 2000 compliant in July 1998; all employees will be converted to the new system by January 1999. The customer service system is due to be replaced in mid-1999. The Company has categorized its noncentralized systems into sixteen separate areas, and has already determined that five of such areas pose no material Year 2000 problem. The Company has identified certain Year 2000 issues in nine areas and is in the process of remediating them. The Company has plans to complete the assessment of the final two areas by the end of 1998. The Company plans to complete the entire Year 2000 project by September 1999. If the already identified modifications and conversions are not made or are not completed on a timely basis, or if the Company identifies material additional modifications which are not completed on a timely basis, the Year 2000 issue would have a material adverse impact on operations. The Company has initiated formal communications with many of its major suppliers to determine the extent to which it is vulnerable to those third parties' failure to resolve their own Year 2000 problems and is still in the assessment phase as to whether and to what extent such third parties have a Year 2000 issue. There can be no guarantee that the failure of other companies to resolve their own Year 2000 issue will not have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition and results of operations. The Company is utilizing both internal and external resources to reprogram and/or replace and test the Company's software for Year 2000 modifications. Of the $111 million total project cost, approximately $90 million will be capitalized since those costs are attributable to the purchase of new software for total system replacements (i.e., the Year 2000 solution comprises only a portion of the benefits resulting from the system replacements). The remaining $21 million will be expensed as incurred. As of September 30, 1998, the Company had expended a total of $43 million for Year 2000 capital projects and had expensed approximately $6 million for Year 2000 related maintenance activities. The Company's total Year 2000 project cost, as well as its estimates of the time needed to complete remedial efforts, are based on currently available information and do not include the estimated costs and time associated with the impact of third party Year 2000 issues. The Company believes the most reasonably likely worst case scenario from the Year 2000 issue to be disruption in power plant monitoring systems, thereby producing inaccurate data and potential failures in electronic switching mechanisms at transmission junctions. This would prolong localized outages, as technicians would have to manually activate switches. Such an event could have a material, but presently undeterminable, effect on the Company's financial results. The Company has not yet developed a contingency plan to address the effects of any delay in becoming Year 2000 compliant but currently expects to have a contingency plan by the spring of 1999. The costs of the project and the dates on which the Company plans to complete the Year 2000 modifications are based on management's best estimates, which were derived from numerous assumptions of future events including the continued availability of certain resources, and other factors. However, there can be no guarantee that this project will be completed as planned and actual results could differ materially from the estimates. Specific factors that might cause material differences include, but are not limited to, the availability and cost of trained personnel, the ability to locate and correct all relevant computer code, and similar uncertainties.

OHIO EDISON:

Impact of the Year 2000 Issue The Year 2000 issue is the result of computer programs being written using two digits rather than four to identify the applicable year. Any of the OE companies' programs that have date-sensitive software may recognize a date using "00" as the year 1900 rather than the year 2000. The OE companies have developed a multi-phase program for Year 2000 compliance that consists of: (i) assessment of the corporate systems and operations of the OE companies that could be affected by the Year 2000 problem; (ii) remediation or replacement of non-compliant systems and components; and (iii) testing of systems and components following such remediation or replacement. The OE companies have focused their Year 2000 review on three areas: centralized system applications, non-centralized systems and relationships with third parties (including suppliers as well as end-use customers). The OE companies currently believe that with modifications to existing software and conversions to new software, the Year 2000 issue will pose no significant operational problems for their computer systems. Most of the OE companies' Year 2000 problems will be resolved through system replacement. Of the OE companies' major centralized systems, the general ledger system and inventory management and procurement accounts payable system will be replaced by the end of 1998. The OE companies' payroll system was enhanced to be Year 2000 compliant in July 1998. The customer service system is due to be replaced in mid-1999. The OE companies have categorized their non-centralized systems into sixteen separate areas, and have already determined that five of such areas pose no material Year 2000 problem. The OE companies have identified certain Year 2000 issues in nine of such areas and are in the process of remediating them. The OE companies have plans to complete the assessment of the final two areas by the end of 1998. The OE companies plan to complete the entire Year 2000 project by September 1999. If the already identified modifications and conversions are not made or are not completed on a timely basis, or if the OE companies identify - 22 - OHIO EDISON COMPANY MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION (Cont.)material additional modifications which are not completed on a timely basis, the Year 2000 issue would have a material adverse impact on operations. The OE companies have initiated formal communications with many of their major suppliers to determine the extent to which they are vulnerable to those third parties' failure to resolve their own Year 2000 problems and are still in the assessment phase as to whether and to what extent such third parties have a Year 2000 issue. There can be no guarantee that the failure of other companies to resolve their own Year 2000 issue will not have a material adverse effect on the OE companies' business, financial condition and results of operations. The OE companies are utilizing both internal and external resources to reprogram and/or replace and test the OE companies' software for Year 2000 modifications. Of the $53 million total project cost, approximately $43 million will be capitalized since those costs are attributable to the purchase of new software for total system replacements (i.e., the Year 2000 solution comprises only a portion of the benefits resulting from the system replacements). The remaining $10 million will be expensed as incurred. As of September 30, 1998, the OE companies have expended a total of $20 million for Year 2000 capital projects and have expensed approximately $3 million for Year 2000 related maintenance activities. The OE companies' total Year 2000 project cost, as well as their estimates of time needed to complete remedial efforts, are based on currently available information and do not include the estimated costs and time associated with the impact of third party Year 2000 issues. The OE companies believe the most reasonably likely worst case scenario from the Year 2000 issue to be disruption in power plant monitoring systems, thereby producing inaccurate data and potential failures in electronic switching mechanisms at transmission junctions. This would prolong localized outages, as technicians would have to manually activate switches. Such an event could have a material, but presently undeterminable, effect on the OE companies' financial results. The OE companies have not yet developed a contingency plan to address the effects of any delay in becoming Year 2000 compliant but currently expect to have a contingency plan by the spring of 1999. The costs of the project and the dates on which the OE companies plan to complete the Year 2000 modifications are based on management's best estimates, which were derived from numerous assumptions of future events including the continued availability of certain resources, and other factors. However, there can be no guarantee that this project will be completed as planned and actual results could differ materially from the estimates. Specific factors that might cause material differences include, but are not limited to, the availability and cost of trained personnel, the ability to locate and correct all relevant computer code, and similar uncertainties.

Cleveland Electric Illuminating Co.

Impact of the Year 2000 Issue The Year 2000 issue is the result of computer programs being written using two digits rather than four to identify the applicable year. Any of CEI's programs that have date-sensitive software may recognize a date using "00" as the year 1900 rather than the year 2000. CEI has developed a multi-phase program for Year 2000 compliance that consists of: (i) assessment of the corporate systems and operations of CEI that could be affected by the Year 2000 problem; (ii) remediation or replacement of noncompliant systems and components; and (iii) testing of systems and components following such remediation or replacement. CEI has focused its Year 2000 review on three areas: centralized system applications, noncentralized systems and relationships with third parties (including suppliers as well as end-use customers). CEI currently believes that, with modifications to existing software and conversions to new software, the Year 2000 issue will pose no significant operational problems for its computer systems. Most of CEI's Year 2000 problems will be resolved through system replacement. Of CEI's major centralized systems, the general ledger system and inventory management and procurement accounts payable system will be replaced by the end of 1998. CEI's payroll system was enhanced to be Year 2000 compliant in July 1998; all employees will be converted to the new system by January 1999. The customer service system is due to be replaced in mid-1999. CEI has categorized its noncentralized systems into sixteen separate areas, and has already determined that five of such areas pose no material Year 2000 problem. CEI has identified certain Year 2000 issues in nine of such areas and is in the process of remediating them. CEI has plans to complete the assessment of the final two areas by the end of 1998. CEI plans to complete the entire Year 2000 project by September 1999. If the already identified modifications and conversions are not made or are not completed on a timely basis, or if CEI identifies material additional modifications which are not completed on a timely basis, the Year 2000 issue would have a material adverse impact on operations. CEI has initiated formal communications with many of its major suppliers to determine the extent to which it is vulnerable to those third parties' failure to resolve their own Year 2000 problems and is still in the assessment phase as to whether and to what extent such third parties have a Year 2000 issue. There can be no guarantee that the failure of other companies to resolve their own Year 2000 issue will not have a material adverse effect on CEI's business, financial condition and results of operations. - 31 - THE CLEVELAND ELECTRIC ILLUMINATING COMPANY MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITIONS (Cont.) CEI is utilizing both internal and external resources to reprogram and/or replace and test CEI's software for Year 2000 modifications. Of the $38 million total project cost, approximately $31 million will be capitalized since those costs are attributable to the purchase of new software for total system replacements (i.e., the Year 2000 solution comprises only a portion of the benefits resulting from the system replacements). The remaining $7 million will be expensed as incurred. As of September 30,1998, CEI has expended a total of $15 million for Year 2000 capital projects and had expensed approximately $2 million for Year 2000 related maintenance activities. CEI's total Year 2000 project cost, as well as its estimates of time needed to complete remedial efforts, are based on currently available information and do not include the estimated costs and time associated with the impact of third party Year 2000 issues. CEI believes the most reasonably likely worst case scenario from the Year 2000 issue to be disruption in power plant monitoring systems, thereby producing inaccurate data and potential failures in electronic switching mechanisms at transmission junctions. This would prolong localized outages, as technicians would have to manually activate switches. Such an event could have a material, but presently undeterminable, effect on CEI's financial results. CEI has not yet developed a contingency plan to address the effects of any delay in becoming Year 2000 compliant but currently expects to have a contingency plan by the spring of 1999. The costs of the project and the dates on which CEI plans to complete the Year 2000 modifications are based on management's best estimates, which were derived from numerous assumptions of future events including the continued availability of certain resources, and other factors. However, there can be no guarantee that this project will be completed as planned and actual results could differ materially from the estimates. Specific factors that might cause material differences include, but are not limited to, the availability and cost of trained personnel, the ability to locate and correct all relevant computer code, and similar uncertainties.

>Many of these paragraphs should look awfully familiar by the time you get to here. Of course the same weasels wrote them so......

Chuck

-- Chuck a Night Driver (rienzoo@en.com), November 22, 1998

Answers

Oh H**l, it don't sound good even it when they try to make it sound good: did you notice the repititous:

<>

So they don't know either, and can only guess about what they're guessing about ....

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 22, 1998.


We wanted facts. I had hoped they wouldn't be so bad. Now we know.

I think that about resolves the power issue for me. Glad I've been

preparing for a while. Gonna need a lot of batteries in Ohio.

-- Mike Lang (webflier@erols.com), November 22, 1998.


Again, images of the complete lack of organisational ability to arrange festivities in a brewery spring to mind.

-- Andy (andy_rowland@msn.com), November 23, 1998.

>>>>Just finished swallowing 2 xanex....OH MY....Chuck you are such a "sweetheart" for this thread. Thank you... <<
-- consumer alert (private@aol.com), November 23, 1998.

Thanks Chuck.

-- Christine A. Newbie (here@gone.now), November 23, 1998.


Thanks Chuck! We were in Chicago last week and didn't have access to a computer. It was such a mental vacation. For a week it seemed like everything was "normal" before I knew anything about this mess. I knew the 10Q's were due and checked last monday before we left and FirstEnergy still had not submitted their 10Q. This was the information I was looking for even tho I dreaded it. BTW, I checked Ameritech, it is not good. For some reason I can't find anything on East Ohio Gas. I thought they would have to file a 10Q also? Do you know anything about them? Max

-- Max (xam01@aol.com), November 24, 1998.

About East Ohio Gas - with all of the deregulation going on, they maybe listed with their parent company???? Where are you going to find this information? I would like to read Ameritech's report.

-- Christine A. Newbie (vaganti01@aol.com), November 24, 1998.

I found the information about Ameritech at the Securities & Exchange Commission site in their 10Q report (which is the financial report with notes and very long) It's a lot of scrolling down but eventually you will find the section where they address (ha) the year 2000. All publicly held corporations must disclose their y2k status to the stockholders. "Follow the money" http://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/srch-edgar Do you know the parent company of East Ohio Gas?? Max

-- Max (xam01@aol.com), November 25, 1998.

On my East Ohio Gas Bill it says "The sunshine People" A CNG company. I do not know what CNG stands for.

More on Ameritech. Did a little investigation on my own. Not too happy with my findings. Last thing posted was from June. They had a few items they deemed as critical behind schedule. Behind schedule for them means not meeting a target date of January 1, '99. What their target date implies is a little iffy. It seems to change from project to project (even within Y2k). I would not count on uniterrupted phone service in the year of 2000. Will continue to look for more updated materials

-- Christine A. Newbie (vaganti01@aol.com), November 25, 1998.


"CNG" = Columbia natural Gas (I think)

try them, anyway

CR

-- Chuck etc (not@this.computer), November 25, 1998.



You will find that East Ohio Gas is a subsidiary of Consolidated Natural Gas in Pittsburgh. I have not looked for their 10-Q yet. EOG has had to delay full implementation of it's natural gas customer choice program because of Y2K related repairs to its customer billing system.

-- notme (not me @anon.com), November 27, 1998.

Ref: Delaying the natural gas switch-over

- the good news is: at least they are concentrating on one important thing.

- and the bad news is: they're not done yet, they're not close to being done yet, and they don't have the resources to do two things at once.

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 29, 1998.


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