Exelon to close New Jersey nuke plant a year ahead of schedule

• Exelon (EXC +0.6%) says its Oyster Creek nuclear plant in New Jersey, the oldest in the U.S., will close this fall - more than a year ahead of schedule - under an agreement with state authorities.
• EXC says the plant has become too costly to operate amid low electricity prices, and the new timetable will help it "better manage resources as fuel and maintenance costs continue to rise amid historically low power prices."
• Shutting down Oyster Creek also helps avoid a refueling outage scheduled for this fall that would have required material purchases starting later this month, EXC says.