Union Electric Company

Union Electric Company
Company type	Public
Industry	Electric utility
Founded	1902
Fate	Merged with CIPSCO Inc. to form Ameren Corporation in 1997
Successor	Ameren Corporation
Headquarters	St. Louis, United States
Products	Electricity generation and distribution, natural gas distribution

The Union Electric Company of Missouri, originally established in 1902, evolved into a prominent electric utility and was once listed on the S&P 500. In 1997, its parent company merged with the adjacent utility Central Illinois Public Service Company through CIPSCO Inc. (previously ), resulting in the creation of Ameren Corporation (), headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.

History

Originally founded as the Union Company in 1902 in St. Louis, it adopted the name Union Electric Company by 1904. That same year, it constructed the 36 MW coal-powered Ashley Street Plant to supply steam heating and electricity to downtown St. Louis, notably illuminating the Palace of Electricity at the 1904 World's Fair. The facility transitioned from coal to oil in 1972 and later to natural gas in 1996; today, it operates as a district steam plant under Ashley Energy ownership.

By 1906, Union Electric had become a publicly traded entity and consistently issued cash dividends up until the 1997 merger.

In 1909, the company ventured into electric automobile sales, acting as the St. Louis distributor for Studebaker and Rauch & Lang vehicles.

In 1929, Union Electric became part of North American Company, which was then included in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Its subsidiaries comprised Union Electric Light and Power in Missouri and its counterpart in Illinois.

That year also saw the completion of Bagnell Dam on the Osage River by Union Electric, forming Lake of the Ozarks and housing a hydroelectric facility with an output nearing 175 MW. The dam’s administrative building was erected in 1930 and subsequently added to the National Register of Historic Places.

By 1940, Union Electric was a significant asset within North American Company's $2.3 billion portfolio, which controlled more than 79% of its shares. After a 1946 Supreme Court ruling mandated North American's dissolution, Union Electric regained independence and traded publicly on the NYSE under the symbol UEP until its merger in 1997.

During the 1950s, Union Electric expanded into natural gas distribution around Alton, Illinois, becoming Missouri’s third-largest natural gas provider. In 1952, it collaborated with Central Illinois Public Service Company and Illinois Power Company to establish the Midwest Power Pool system.

In 1963, Union Electric completed Missouri’s Taum Sauk pumped storage facility with a capacity of 350 MW; however, its upper reservoir suffered a catastrophic failure in 2005 causing extensive damage.

The company’s inaugural nuclear facility, the Callaway Nuclear Generating Station (1,143 MW), commenced operations in 1984.

During the Great Flood of 1993 in St. Louis, Union Electric played a vital role in maintaining essential infrastructure and was honored with an Edison Award in 1994 for its efforts throughout this emergency.

Shareholders sanctioned a merger with CIPSCO Inc. in 1995; this transaction finalized on December 31, 1997, leading to the formation of Ameren Corporation. At that time, Union Electric possessed assets valued near $600 million alongside long-term debt amounting to $1.8 billion—a reduction from $2.5 billion during the previous decade.

Following the merger, Union Electric became a subsidiary under Ameren Corporation—initially operating as AmerenUE, later rebranded as Ameren Missouri in 2010. Ameren currently serves as a holding entity for various power and energy subsidiaries.

Ameren Missouri continues to own Bagnell Dam and oversees Lake of the Ozarks’ water management according to federal guidelines; failure to maintain proper water levels can result in lake closures until conditions are rectified.

Presently, Ameren Missouri runs nine power generation plants serving roughly 1.2 million electric customers and about 110,000 natural gas customers predominantly within Missouri—more than half located in the St. Louis metropolitan region. The company previously provided service to Iowa until the mid-1990s and transferred its Illinois service territories to Ameren Illinois by 2010.

External links

Official Ameren Website

Taum Sauk