LONDON -- Standard&Poor's CreditWire 3/14/97 -- Standard&Poor's today has lowered its senior unsecured long-term ratings of East Midlands Electricity plc (EME) to single-`A'-minus from double-`A' and commercial paper ratings to `A-2' from `A-1'-plus. They are removed from CreditWatch where they were placed Nov. 13, 1996. Approximately UK250 million of long- term debt is affected. At the same time, Standard&Poor's assigns its single-`A'-minus issuer credit rating to DR Investments, EME's intermediate holding company and the acquisition debt holding company. The downgrade reflects the impact of higher financial leverage on EME's future debt servicing capacity. Following its takeover by U.S. utility Dominion Resources (parent of Virginia Electric&Power Co.) (see below for ratings) and increased
