Saturday, September 10, 2011

Business briefs: TVA makes 'top utilities' list

Site Selection magazine has named its annual Top Utilities in Economic Development and the Tennessee Valley Authority made the list.

Top utilities in alphabetical order were: Alabama Power, Birmingham, Ala.; Ameren, St. Louis; Duke Energy, Plainfield, Ind., and Charlotte, N.C.; Entergy Corp., New Orleans; FirstEnergy, Akron, Ohio; Georgia Power, Atlanta; Hoosier Energy, Bloomington, Ind.; Hydro-Québec, Montréal, Québec, Canada; and the TVA.

The magazine said the utilities help create jobs “through innovative programs for businesses, collaboration with community partners and their own investment in generation, transmission and other assets.”

— Randy McClain

CCA buys prison

Corrections Corporation of America paid $72.7 million to buy an Ohio prison that was among a handful of locations put up for sale by state officials there.

Under the agreement, Nashville-based prison operator CCA will operate Lake Erie Correctional Institution in Conneaut, Ohio, starting Jan. 1. About 304 prison beds are to be added to that location.

CCA’s operating costs should be 8 percent less than projected state operational costs, saving $3 million a year for the state, Ohio officials said.

— Getahn Ward

Community Health completes sale of two hospitals

Community Health Systems Inc. has completed the sale of two hospitals in Oklahoma to a subsidiary of Nashville-based rival hospital chain Ardent Health Services.

SouthCrest Hospital in Tulsa and Claremore Regional Hospital in Claremore, Okla., will become part of Ardent’s Hillcrest HealthCare System.

— Getahn Ward