Power company Exelon Corp is to buy rival Constellation Energy Group for $7.9 billion, the latest in a series of deals in a fragmented U.S. utility industry that faces new costs to upgrade power grids and meet environmental controls. Recent deals include Duke Energy's $13.7 billion bid for Progress Energy , Northeast Utilities' $4.2 billion buy of NSTAR , and AES Corp's $3.5 billion offer for DPL Inc . On Wednesday, Reuters had reported that Exelon was near to striking a deal with Constellation. Exelon, among the leading U.S. utilities and the nation's top nuclear power company, will add 1.2 million customers to its existing 5.4 million. The combined company will serve Maryland, Illinois and Pennsylvania.
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