DQE earnings rise
Duquesne Light's first-quarter earnings rose 60 percent, beating analysts' estimates, in part because of one-time gains from the sale of an investment in a natural gas operating partnership and a favorable settlement of an interest rate lock agreement. The utility reported earnings were $35 million, or 45 cents per share, compared to $21.8 million, or 29 cents, during the same period last year. Because of the gains from nonrecurring items, Duquesne Light is raising its annual earnings projections to between $1.22 and $1.29.

UPMC churns ahead
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center posted strong results during the third quarter, keeping the health system on track for a more profitable year during fiscal 2005. UPMC's cumulative excess margin for the first three quarters stood at $218 million, compared with $175 million during the first three quarters of fiscal 2004. The majority of excess margin during the third quarter came from provider services, but the UPMC Health Plan also contributed, generating about $17 million in profit from its operations.

Brewery suit moved
The Allegheny County Sanitary Authority has made a federal case out of a lawsuit filed by Lawrenceville-based Pittsburgh Brewing. The brewery, which owes about $2.5 million in unpaid sewage bills, has alleged it has been overcharged by $1.4 million. Alcosan said the lawsuit raised claims under federal civil rights statutes so the agency removed the case filed in Common Pleas Court to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, union workers at the brewery continue under a day-to-day extension of a contract that expired last week.

CMU team wins
A team of Carnegie Mellon University students has won the JP Morgan Chase Community Development Competition in New York City. Their winning project was a plan for creating a non-profit grocery store in the Hill District in partnership with the Hill House. The Hill House will receive $25,000 in seed money to bring the plan into reality.

Health savings begun
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield announced that it has begun marketing a health savings account program for purchase by individuals, as opposed to employer groups. HSAs are federal tax-preferred savings accounts that consumers can use to cover their share of medical costs. The accounts, which work in tandem with high-deductible insurance policies, have been championed by the Bush administration as a cure to rising health care costs. About 7,000 people are covered through HSAs that Highmark makes available to employer groups.

Canada forum has Web site
The Western Pennsylvania Canada Forum has launched a new Web site, www.Canada-Connect.org, to strengthen the link between the tech and biotech communities on both sides of the border. The site will offer articles about Canadian and American life sciences firms as well as cultural and tourist news.

Also in business ...
Alcoa, saying the facility no longer is competitive, announced plans to close its Elyria, Ohio, plant that makes rigid-plastic sheet and employs 66 in this year's third quarter ... Shareholders of Riggs National Corp. approved the Washington, D.C., bank's merger with PNC Financial Services Group, clearing the way for the $652 million deal to close next Friday... Kennametal completed the sale of its Full Service Supply business to Ferguson Enterprises, a U.S. subsidiary of Wolseley PLC of the United Kingdom. Terms were not disclosed.