Item 1A. RISK FACTORS

You should carefully consider each of the risks described below relating to Alliant Energy, IPL and WPL, together with all of the other information contained in this combined Annual Report on Form 10-K, before making an investment decision with respect to our securities. If any of the following risks develop into actual events, our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially and adversely affected and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Our business is significantly impacted by government regulation and legislation - We are subject to extensive regulation by federal and state regulatory authorities, which significantly influences our operations and our ability to timely recover costs from customers and earn appropriate rates of return. In particular, regulatory authorities with jurisdiction over public utilities, including the IUB, the PSCW, the MPUC and FERC, regulate many aspects of our operations. Our operations are also governed by organizations such as the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, and the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. Operations impacted by these regulatory groups include: the rates charged to our customers; our ability to site and construct new generating facilities, such as the natural gas generating facility in Marshalltown, Iowa, any potential new generation investment in Wisconsin, and future wind projects to utilize our remaining available wind sites, and the amount of costs associated therewith that may be recovered from customers; the installation of environmental emission controls equipment and the amount of costs for the construction and maintenance of such equipment that may be recovered from customers; our ability to decommission generating facilities and recover the costs incurred to decommission the facilities and the remaining carrying value of such facilities; the amount of certain sources of energy we must use, such as renewable sources and reductions in energy usage by customers; our ability to purchase generating facilities and the amount of costs associated therewith that may be recovered from customers; the rates paid to transmission operators and the amount of those costs, and how those costs are recovered from customers; our ability to enter into purchased power agreements, such as the purchased power agreement entered into with NextEra Energy, Inc., the amount of costs associated therewith, and how those costs are recovered from customers; energy capacity standards and what forms of energy are considered when determining whether we meet those standards; the allocation of expenditures by transmission companies on transmission network upgrades and our ability to recover costs associated therewith from customers; reliability; safety; the issuance of securities; accounting matters; and transactions between affiliates. Failure to obtain approvals from regulatory authorities for any of these matters, failure to receive approvals in a timely manner, or receiving approvals with uneconomical conditions may adversely impact our ability to achieve our strategic plan, cause us to record an impairment of our assets, and have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

These regulatory authorities are also empowered to impose financial penalties and other sanctions if we are found to have violated statutes and regulations governing utility operations. While we believe we comply in all material respects with applicable laws and regulations governing us, state or federal agencies may not agree and may find that we violated a law or

regulation. Such a finding could cause fines or penalties or could require us to implement new compliance programs, which could increase our costs of compliance and may adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Our utility financial condition is influenced by how regulatory authorities establish the rates we can charge our customers, our authorized rates of return and common equity levels, and the amount of deferred costs that may be recovered from customers. Our ability to obtain rate adjustments to earn authorized rates of return depends upon timely regulatory action under applicable statutes and regulations, and we cannot assure that rate adjustments will be obtained or authorized rates of return on capital will be earned. In future rate cases, IPL and WPL may not receive an adequate amount of rate relief, rates may be reduced, rate refunds may be required, rate adjustments may not be approved on a timely basis, costs may not be otherwise recovered through rates, future rates may be temporarily frozen (as is the case for WPL’s retail electric and gas base rates through 2014) and authorized rates of return on capital may be reduced. As a result, we may experience adverse impacts on our financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to a wide variety of regulations, including and in addition to those described above, which are constantly changing. Changes in regulations or the imposition of additional regulations may require us to incur additional costs or change business operations or our business plan, which may have an adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Provisions of the Wisconsin Utility Holding Company Act limit our ability to invest in non-utility activities. Takeover attempts by potential purchasers who might be willing to pay a premium for our stock are also limited by certain provisions of the Wisconsin Utility Holding Company Act and the delays and conditions that generally result from the requirement that regulatory authorities approve such a transaction.

Large construction projects are subject to delays and cost increases that may not be recovered from customers - Our strategic plan includes installing environmental control equipment at our newer and more efficient coal-fired generating facilities, making other large-scale improvements to such generating facilities, and the construction of natural gas-fired generating facilities. These large construction projects are subject to various risks that could cause costs to increase or cause delays in completion. These risks include changes in costs of materials, equipment, commodities, fuel or labor; shortages in materials, equipment and qualified labor; changes to the scope or timing of the projects; general contractors or subcontractors not performing as required under their contracts; the inability to agree to contract terms or disputes in contract terms; poor initial cost estimates; work stoppages; adverse weather conditions; the inability to obtain necessary permits in a timely manner; adverse interpretation or enforcement of permit conditions; changes in applicable laws or regulations; governmental actions; legal action; unforeseen engineering or technology issues; limited access to capital; and other adverse economic conditions. If a construction project is not completed or is delayed, or final costs exceed the costs approved by our regulators, for example, if the Marshalltown Generating Station exceeds the cost cap approved by the IUB, we may not be able to recover all costs for the project in rates and face increased risk of potential impairment of our investment in the project. Inability to recover costs, or inability to complete the project in a timely manner, could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to numerous environmental laws and regulations, compliance with which could be difficult and costly, and pursuant to which we could incur material liabilities - We are subject to environmental laws and regulations that affect many aspects of our past, present and future operations. We are also subject to a Consent Decree between WPL, the EPA and the Sierra Club, which resolved environmental claims related to WPL’s generating facilities. The regulations and the Consent Decree govern air emissions, water quality, cooling water intake structures, wastewater discharges, the generation, transport and disposal of coal combustion products and other solid wastes and hazardous substances, and the clean-up of contaminated sites. These laws and regulations require us to obtain and comply with a wide variety of environmental registrations, licenses, permits, inspections and other approvals, which are subject to renewal proceedings and legal challenges. Environmental laws, regulations and the Consent Decree can also require us to restrict or limit the output of certain facilities or the use of certain fuels, to install emission controls equipment at our facilities, clean up spills and correct environmental hazards and other contamination. We may be required to pay all or a portion of the costs to remediate (i.e., clean-up) sites where our past activities, or the activities of certain other parties, caused environmental contamination, including sites of manufactured gas plants operated by our predecessors. Compliance with these regulations can significantly increase capital spending, operating costs, and plant down-times and can negatively affect the affordability of rates we charge our customers. We cannot predict with certainty the amount and timing of all future expenditures (including the potential or magnitude of any fines or penalties, including the severity of any restriction on our operations) necessary to comply with, or as a result of liabilities under, these environmental laws, regulations, and the Consent Decree, although we expect the expenditures to be material.

Although we believe we comply in all material respects with currently applicable environmental laws, regulations, and the Consent Decree, we may receive notices of violation from state or federal agencies. Citizen groups or private individuals that feel environmental regulations are not being sufficiently enforced by regulatory agencies may bring legal action against those regulatory agencies or bring citizen enforcement actions against us. We may be subject to litigation over environmental issues, including claims for property damage or personal injury, or suits by citizen groups alleging violations of environmental requirements. For example, the Consent Decree resulted from allegations originally raised by the Sierra Club that WPL violated various provisions of the Clean Air Act. If we are unsuccessful defending or settling litigation from governmental agencies or citizen groups, we could be subject to restrictions or prohibitions on operating our generation facilities, costly upgrades to our generating facilities, payment of damages or fines, requirements to complete other beneficial environmental projects, and litigation costs, all of which could be material. An adverse result in such legal actions could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to existing and potential future governmental mandates to provide customers with clean energy, renewable energy and energy conservation offerings. These mandates are designed in part to mitigate the potential environmental impacts of utility operations. Failure to meet the requirements of these mandates may result in fines or penalties, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. If our regulators do not allow us to recover all or a part of the costs incurred to comply with the mandates, it could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Existing environmental laws or regulations may be revised and new laws or regulations seeking to protect the environment may be adopted or become applicable to us. These revised and new laws or regulations may include regulation of mercury, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions, particulates, coal ash and other coal combustion products, and cooling water intake structures. Such changes could materially increase our cost of compliance. Our strategic plan was developed in part to comply with certain expected environmental laws and regulations as we anticipate they will be finally adopted. Revision of existing environmental laws or regulations may cause: (1) state utility commissions to not approve our plans to install environmental emission controls equipment at our existing generating facilities or not allow us to recover costs of such projects; (2) state utility commissions to not approve costs of emission allowances purchased to comply with environmental regulations that are no longer applicable to our operations; (3) co-owners in our jointly-owned facilities to not agree with our decision to move forward with these projects; or (4) our current plans do not meet new requirements. These outcomes could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Actions related to global climate change and reducing GHG emissions could negatively impact us - The primary GHG emitted from our utility operations is CO2 from combustion of fossil fuels at our generating facilities, which are primarily coal-fired facilities. We could incur costs or other obligations to comply with any GHG regulations that are adopted in the future, and could become the target of legal claims or challenges, because generating electricity using fossil fuels emits CO2 and other GHGs. In particular, President Obama and his administration have affirmed that the regulation of GHG emissions continues to be a top priority. The EPA has issued proposed regulations governing GHG emissions from new generating facilities, which would impact the Marshalltown Generating Station and any new generation investment in Wisconsin. The EPA is also expected to propose regulations in 2014 governing GHG emissions from existing generating facilities, which potentially could impact all of our generating facilities. Due to the uncertainty of what form CO2 emissions regulations regarding our existing generating facilities could take and control technologies available to reduce GHG emissions, including CO2, we cannot provide any assurance regarding the potential impacts any future regulations would have on our operations. The impacts of such proposals could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Demand for energy may decrease - Our results of operations are affected by the demand for energy in our service territories. We could lose customers, and therefore see lower demand for energy, due to economic conditions, customers constructing their own generation facilities, higher costs and rates charged to customers, or loss of service territory or franchises. Further, the energy conservation and technological advances that increase energy efficiency may temporarily or permanently reduce the demand for energy products. In addition, state and/or federal regulations require mandatory conservation measures, which would reduce the demand for energy. We may also lose wholesale customers to competitors. Technology improvements and regulatory developments are making distributed generation feasible for more of our customers. As more customers utilize distributed generation, demand for energy from us may decline. Future economic growth may not create enough growth for us to replace the lost energy demand from these customers. The loss of customers, the inability to replace those customers with new customers, and the decrease in demand for energy could negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Regional and national economic conditions could have an unfavorable impact on us - Our utility and non-regulated businesses follow the economic cycles of the customers we serve and credit risk of counterparties we do business with.

Adverse economic conditions in our service territories reduce the demand for electricity and natural gas. We lost certain customers after plants closed due to the 2009 recession. Reduced volumes of electricity and natural gas sold, or the inability to collect unpaid bills from our customers from a deterioration in national or regional economic conditions, could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Our operating results may fluctuate on a seasonal and quarterly basis and can be adversely affected by the impacts of weather - Our electric and gas utility businesses are seasonal businesses and weather patterns can have a material impact on their operating performance. Demand for electricity is greater in the summer months associated with higher air conditioning needs. In addition, market prices for electricity generally peak in the summer due to the higher demand. Conversely, demand for natural gas depends significantly upon weather patterns in winter months due to heavy use in residential and commercial heating. As a result, our overall operating results in the future may fluctuate substantially on a seasonal basis. In addition, we have historically generated less revenues and income when weather conditions are warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. Thus, unusually mild winters and summers could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Threats of terrorism and catastrophic events that could result from terrorism may impact our operations in unpredictable ways - We are subject to direct and indirect effects of terrorist threats and activities. Generating, transmission and distribution facilities, in general, have been identified as potential targets of physical attacks. Physical attacks on transmission and distribution facilities, including a substation in San Jose, California and substation and transmission facilities in Arkansas, appeared to be terrorist-style attacks. The risks posed by such attacks could include, among other things, the inability to generate, purchase or distribute electric energy or obtain fuel sources, the increased cost of security and insurance, the disruption of, volatility in, or other effects on capital markets, and a decline in the economy within our service territories, all of which could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the cost of repairing damage to our generating facilities and infrastructure due to acts of terrorism, and the loss of revenue if such events prevent us from providing utility service to our customers, could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

A cyber attack may disrupt our operations or lead to a loss or misuse of confidential and proprietary information or potential liability - We operate in an industry that requires the continuous use and operation of sophisticated information technology systems and network infrastructure. In addition, in the ordinary course of business, we collect and retain sensitive information including personal information about our customers and employees. Cyber attacks targeting our electronic control systems used at our generating facilities and for electric and gas distribution systems, could result in a full or partial disruption of our electric and/or gas operations. Any disruption of these operations could result in a loss of service to customers and a significant decrease in revenues, as well as significant expense to repair system damage and remedy security breaches. Any theft, loss and or/fraudulent use of customer, shareowner, employee or proprietary data as a result of a cyber attack could subject us to significant litigation, liability and costs, as well as adversely impact our reputation with customers and regulators, among others.

We have instituted safeguards to protect our operational systems and information technology assets. FERC, through the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, requires certain safeguards be implemented to deter cyber attacks. The safeguards we have may not always be effective due to the evolving nature of cyber attacks and cyber security. We cannot guarantee that such protections will be completely successful in the event of a cyber attack. If the technology systems were to fail or be breached by a cyber attack or a computer virus, and not be recovered in a timely fashion, we may be unable to fulfill critical business functions and confidential data could be compromised, adversely impacting our financial condition and results of operation.

We may not be able to fully recover costs related to commodity prices - The prices that we may obtain for electric energy may not compensate for changes in delivered coal, natural gas or electric energy spot-market costs, or changes in the relationship between such costs and the market prices of electric energy. As a result, we may be unable to pass on the changes in costs to our customers, especially at WPL where we do not have a retail electric automatic fuel cost adjustment clause, which would allow for more consistent and timely cost recovery.

We are exposed to changes in the price and availability of coal because the majority of the electricity generated by us is from our coal-fired generating facilities. We have contracts of varying durations for the supply and transportation of coal for most of our existing generating capability, but as these contracts end or otherwise are not honored, we may not be able to purchase coal on terms as favorable as the current contracts. Further, we currently rely on coal primarily from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and any disruption of coal production in, or transportation from, that region may cause us to incur additional

costs which may not be fully recovered through rates. Increases in prices and costs due to disruptions that are not fully and timely recovered in rates may adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

We are exposed to changes in the price and availability of natural gas. In addition to supplying natural gas to our natural gas customers, we also have responsibility to supply natural gas to certain natural gas-fired electric generating facilities that we own. This increases our exposure to market prices of natural gas, which have remained low recently, but have been volatile in the past. We have natural gas supply contracts in place, which are generally short-term in duration. The natural gas supply commitments are either fixed price in nature or market-based. As some of the contracts are market-based, and all of the contracts are short-term, we may not be able to purchase natural gas with terms and prices as favorable as the current contracts. Further, any disruption of production or transportation of natural gas, such as the recent pipeline explosion in Manitoba, Canada, may cause us to incur additional costs to purchase natural gas, which may not be fully recovered through rates and may adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to fully recover higher transmission costs related to changing transmission reliability requirements - Both IPL and WPL pay for the use of the interstate electric transmission system that they do not own or control. Rates charged to IPL and WPL for such transmission service are regulated by FERC. FERC also regulates transmission owners’ operations in order to support the reliability of the transmission network. Changes are occurring in the transmission network which are required to, among other things, accommodate renewable energy and the decommissioning of older coal-fired generating facilities. These changes include socializing certain transmission network upgrades and system support resource payments, which may increase transmission costs to IPL and WPL. The prices that IPL and WPL charge for electric energy may not totally compensate for the increase in such transmission costs. We may be unable to fully pass on the increases in such transmission costs to our customers, especially at WPL where we do not have a retail automatic transmission rider. In addition, if the transmission rider at IPL is amended or removed, we may not be able to recover IPL’s full transmission costs. Inability to fully recover transmission costs in a timely manner may adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We are dependent on the capital markets and could be negatively impacted by disruptions in the capital markets - Successful implementation of our strategic plan and other long-term business strategies is dependent upon our ability to access the capital markets under competitive terms and rates. We have forecasted capital expenditures of approximately $3.6 billion over the next four years. Disruption, uncertainty or volatility in those markets could increase our cost of capital or limit the availability of capital. Disruptions could be caused by Federal Reserve policies and actions including tapering of its quantitative easing program, U.S. debt management concerns, U.S. debt limit and budget debates including government shutdowns, European sovereign debt concerns, economic downturn or uncertainty, monetary policies, a negative view of the utility industry or our company, failures of financial institutions or other factors. Any disruptions could adversely impact our ability to implement our strategic plan.

We rely on our strong credit ratings to access the credit markets. If our credit ratings are downgraded for any reason, we could pay higher interest rates in future financings, the pool of potential lenders could be reduced, borrowing costs under existing credit facilities could increase, our access to the commercial paper market could be limited, or we could be required to provide additional credit assurance, including cash collateral, to contract counterparties. If our access to capital were to become significantly constrained or costs of capital increased significantly due to lowered credit ratings, prevailing industry conditions, regulatory constraints, the volatility of the capital markets or other factors, our financial condition and results of operations could be significantly adversely affected.

We are subject to employee workforce factors that could affect our businesses - We are subject to employee workforce factors, including loss or retirement of key personnel, and the availability of, and our ability to recruit, qualified personnel, which could affect our businesses and our financial condition and results of operations. Further, our workforce includes a significant number of employees who are nearing retirement. We need employees with specialized and technical skills in order to achieve our strategic plan. It may be difficult to retain current employees with these specialized skills, especially as they near retirement, and it may be difficult to find new employees with the necessary skills. We are also subject to collective bargaining agreements with approximately 2,300 employees. Our contract with one collective bargaining unit representing over 1,000 of our employees is due to expire in May 2014. Any work stoppage experienced in connections with negotiations of collective bargaining agreements could adversely affect our financial condition and our ability to implement our strategic plan.

We face risks associated with operating electric and natural gas infrastructure - The operation of electric generating facilities involves many risks, including start-up risks, breakdown or failure of equipment, the dependence on a specific fuel source, including the supply and transportation of fuel, the risk of performance below expected or contracted levels of output

or efficiency, operator error and compliance with mandatory reliability standards. The operation of our energy delivery infrastructure involves many risks including breakdown or failure of equipment and forest or prairie fires developing from vegetation around our power lines. In addition, the North American transmission grid is highly interconnected and, in extraordinary circumstances, disruptions at particular points within the grid could cause an extensive power outage in our delivery systems. Further, the transmission system in our utilities’ service territories is constrained, limiting the ability to transmit electric energy within our service territories. The transmission constraints could result in an inability to deliver energy from generating facilities, particularly wind generating facilities, to the national grid, or to access lower cost sources of electric energy. We also have obligations to provide electrical service under regulatory requirements and contractual commitments. Failure to meet our service obligations could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

The operation of our natural gas distribution activities also involves many risks, such as leaks, explosions and mechanical problems, which could cause substantial financial losses. These risks could result in loss of human life, particularly in highly populated areas, significant damage to property, environmental emissions, impairment of our operations and substantial losses to us. We are also responsible for compliance with new and changing mandatory reliability and safety standards. Failure to meet these standards could result in substantial fines. We also have obligations to provide service under regulatory requirements and contractual commitments. Failure to meet our service obligations could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Storms or other natural disasters may impact our operations in unpredictable ways - Storms and other natural disasters, including events such as floods, tornadoes, blizzards, ice storms, or droughts may adversely impact our ability to generate, purchase or distribute electric energy or obtain fuel sources. In addition, we could incur large costs to repair damage to our generating facilities and infrastructure, or costs related to environmental remediation, due to storms or natural disasters. The restoration costs may not be fully covered by insurance policies. Damage to assets could also require us to take impairments, such as occurred with our damaged Sixth Street Generating Station after a flood. Some costs may not be recovered in rates, or there could be significant delays in cost recovery. Storms and natural disasters may prevent our customers from being able to operate or may significantly slow growth or cause a decline in the economy within our service territories. The reduced demand for energy could cause lower sales and revenues, which may not be replaced or recovered in rates. Any of these items could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

We may incur material post-closing adjustments related to past asset and business divestitures - We recently sold RMT, Inc. (RMT), a non-regulated subsidiary. Pursuant to the terms of that sale, we may face unfavorable post-closing adjustments that could be material. In addition, we might be required to make payments on liabilities that we retained pursuant to the terms of the sale. In addition, Alliant Energy continues to guarantee RMT’s performance obligations related to certain of RMT’s projects that were commenced prior to Alliant Energy’s sale of RMT. Required material post-closing adjustments or payments on retained liabilities or guarantees with respect to RMT or other future asset or business divestitures, such as the proposed sales of our Minnesota electric and gas distribution assets, could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We face risks related to non-regulated operations - We rely on our non-regulated operations for a portion of our earnings. If our non-regulated investments do not perform at expected levels, we could experience diminished earnings. In particular, Franklin County Wind LLC is a non-regulated subsidiary that operates a non-regulated 99 MW wind project in Franklin County, Iowa, referred to as the Franklin County wind project. The Franklin County wind project does not currently have a buyer of its electrical output and its electrical output is being sold into the general market at prevailing market prices. Failure to find a buyer for the output, or selling the output at disadvantageous market prices, may cause the project to lose money or cause an impairment of its assets. Such losses or impairments could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, a variety of operating parameters, including adverse weather conditions and breakdown or failure of equipment, could result in a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to limitations on our ability to pay dividends - Alliant Energy is a holding company with no significant operations of its own. Accordingly, the primary sources of funds for Alliant Energy to pay dividends to its shareowners are dividends and distributions from its subsidiaries, primarily its utility subsidiaries. Our subsidiaries are separate and distinct legal entities and have no obligation to pay any amounts to us, whether by dividends, loans or other payments. The ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends or make distributions to us and, accordingly, our ability to pay dividends on Alliant Energy common stock will depend on regulatory limitations and the earnings, cash flows, capital requirements and general financial condition of our subsidiaries. Our utilities each have dividend payment restrictions based on the terms of any outstanding preferred stock and regulatory limitations applicable to them. If we do not receive adequate dividends and distributions from

our subsidiaries, then we may not be able to make, or may have to reduce, dividend payments on Alliant Energy common stock.

Changes to certain tax elections, tax regulations and future taxable income could negatively impact our financial condition and results of operations - We have significantly reduced our federal and state income tax obligations for the past few years through tax planning strategies. These tax planning strategies have generated large annual taxable losses and tax credits over the past few years that have resulted in significant federal and state net operating losses and federal tax credit carryforwards. We plan to utilize these net operating losses and tax credit carryforwards in the future to reduce our income tax obligations. If we cannot generate enough taxable income in the future to utilize all of the net operating losses and tax credit carryforwards before they expire, we may incur material charges to earnings. If the IRS does not agree with the deductions resulting from our tax planning strategies, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely impacted.

Our utility business currently operates wind generating facilities, which generate material production tax credits for us to use to reduce our federal tax obligations. The amount of production tax credits we earn is dependent on the level of electricity output generated by our wind projects and the applicable tax credit rate. A variety of operating and economic parameters, including significant transmission constraints, adverse weather conditions and breakdown or failure of equipment, could significantly reduce the production tax credits generated by our wind projects resulting in a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, we have tax benefit riders in place in Iowa that provide billing credits to our customers. We have made certain assumptions regarding the timing of the tax benefit riders for accounting purposes. If those assumptions are not accurate, our results of operations and financial condition may be adversely impacted.

Lastly, if corporate tax rates or policies are changed in future federal or state legislation, we may be required to take material charges against earnings.

Poor performance of pension and other postretirement plan investments could negatively impact our financial condition - We have pension and other postretirement benefits plans that provide benefits to a large portion of our employees and retirees. Costs of providing benefits and related funding requirements of these plans are subject to changes in the market value of the assets that fund the plans. The funded status of the plans and the related costs reflected in our financial statements are affected by various factors, which are subject to an inherent degree of uncertainty, including economic conditions, financial market performance, interest rates, life expectancies and demographics. Recessions and volatility in the domestic and international financial markets have negatively affected the asset values of our pension plans at various times in the past. Future losses of asset values may necessitate accelerated funding of the plans in the future to meet minimum federal government requirements. Downward pressure on the asset values of our pension plans may require us to fund obligations earlier than originally planned, which would have an adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Energy industry changes could have a negative effect on our businesses - We operate in a highly regulated business environment. The advent of new and unregulated markets has the potential to significantly impact our financial condition and results of operations. The evolution of the wholesale and transmission markets has the potential to significantly increase costs of transmission, costs associated with inefficient generation dispatching, costs of participation in the new markets and costs stemming from estimated payment settlements. Competitive pressures, including advances in technology that reduce the costs of alternative methods of producing electric energy to a level that is competitive with that of current electric production methods, could result in our utilities losing market share and customers and incurring stranded costs (i.e., assets and other costs rendered unrecoverable through customer rates as a result of competitive pricing), which would be borne by our shareowners. Increased competition from any restructuring efforts in our primary retail electric service territories may have a significant adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.