PSE Achieves "Top 10" Rank by National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Business Wire,  May 15, 2008  

Tags: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

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Utility Reaches 20,000 Customer Participation Goal in Voluntary Green Power Program

BELLEVUE, Wash. -- Puget Sound Energy (PSE, the utility subsidiary of Puget Energy) (NYSE:PSD) was recently recognized by the U. S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) as having one of the "Top 10" Green Power Programs in the United States. Out of more than 800 utilities providing similar programs across the nation, PSE's Green Power Program ranks 7th in renewable energy sales and 9th in total number of customer participants.

"This year's rankings are of special significance for PSE customers," said Stephen P. Reynolds, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Puget Sound Energy. "In 2007, we surpassed a significant goal of having 20,000 voluntary participants - 2 percent of our overall electric customers - in our Green Power Program. We are pleased to see the growing awareness and look forward to even more customer participation in the future."

Since 2004, PSE's Green Power Program has been recognized as one of the top 10 in the country. In 2007, PSE sold 246,000 megawatt hours (MWh) - 85 percent more than the 131,000 MWh the company sold in 2006 - of Green Power, moving up three positions in the 2006 NREL rankings, and increased the number of voluntary participants in the program by nearly 20 percent from 17,426 to 20,457.

Customers who sign up to participate in PSE's voluntary Green Power Program agree to pay an additional charge on their monthly bill for investments in renewable energy, which support the development of new wind, biomass and solar facilities in the Pacific Northwest. With two participation options, purchase 100 percent green power or buy a specific amount each month, the minimum a PSE customer can purchase is $4 per month for 320 kilowatt hours (kWh). After an initial investment, additional green power can be bought in increments of $2 for 160 kWh. An energy-efficient household that uses 800 kWh per month can pay $10 to go totally green.

PSE's Green Power Program energy mix concentrates on the development of renewable energy from four main sources: wind, solar, biomass and landfill gas.

The utility industry across the nation has seen a large jump in renewable energy supply and participation over the past year, due to customer choice programs like PSE's. In 2007, the industry saw a 20 percent increase in green power sales over the previous year's 4.5 billion (kWh). Nationwide, approximately 600,000 customers are participating in utility renewable energy programs.

NREL is the U.S. Department of Energy's primary national laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. NREL is operated for DOE by Midwest Research Institute and Battelle.

About Puget Sound Energy

Washington state's oldest and largest energy utility, with a 6,000-square-mile service territory stretching across 11 counties, Puget Sound Energy serves more than 1 million electric customers and 735,000 natural gas customers primarily in the growing Puget Sound region of Western Washington. PSE, a subsidiary of Puget Energy (NYSE:PSD), meets the energy needs of its growing customer base through incremental, cost-effective energy conservation, low-cost procurement of sustainable energy resources, and far-sighted investment in the energy-delivery infrastructure. PSE employees are dedicated to providing great customer service to deliver energy that is safe, reliable, reasonably priced, and environmentally responsible. For more information, visit PSE.com.

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