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April 2013 - Green Mountain Energy Company has expanded its Pennsylvania territory to include Pittsburgh. The retailer offers a variety of green energy products generated from both wind and solar sources with prices in Pittsburgh ranging from 7.2–9.7¢ per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Price differences are a result of various solar and wind content options and source locations. Additionally, Green Mountain Energy is teaming up with Pittsburgh to help support local initiatives. The company plans to make a donation to offset the total carbon dioxide emissions from the Pittsburgh Marathon, plant one tree for every new residential customer, and sponsor the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium's Earth Day celebration.
Press Release -
Green Mountain Energy Company Empowers Pittsburgh Residents and Businesses with Sustainable Energy
October 2012 - Green Mountain Energy has announced that Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York will purchase renewable energy certificates (RECs) generated from wind power to match 100 percent of the organization's annual electricity demand. In total, Lincoln Center will purchase an estimated 21.6 million kilowatt-hours of wind power each year over the course of a new three-year REC purchase contract. In addition, The Julliard School, which has purchased partial renewable energy in the past, will join Lincoln Center in purchasing 100 percent renewable energy to match the electricity use of its classrooms, practice rooms, stages, and dormitories.
News Release -
Lincoln Center Completes Ambitious Campus Transformation by Choosing Wind Energy from Green Mountain Energy Company
August 2012 - Green Mountain Energy has announced the sale of over 80 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind-generated renewable energy certificates (RECs) to NYSE Euronext. The purchased RECs are Green-e certified and were purchased retroactively to ensure accuracy in matching 100 percent of the electricity consumed by NYSE Euronext during the 2011 calendar year.
News Release -
NYSE Euronext Chooses 100% Wind Electricity from Green Mountain Energy Company
July 2012 - BMW and Green Mountain Energy Company have teamed up to offer purchasers of the BMW ActiveE electric vehicle the ability to buy renewable energy certificates (RECs) from Green Mountain to cover the estimated electricity used to charge the electric vehicle. Each ActiveE car from BMW will be offered to customers under a two-year lease. A one-time payment of $48 purchases enough RECs to allow owners of the ActiveE to ensure that the electricity used to charge the vehicle over the course of the lease period will be provided with renewable energy.
News Release -
BMW Partners with Green Mountain Energy Company to Support Clean Energy
June 2012 - Lord & Taylor has signed an 18-month contract with Green Mountain Energy Company to purchase more than 21 million kilowatt-hours of 100 percent wind energy in order to meet the electricity demands of seven of its retail stores in New Jersey. With this purchase, Lord & Taylor becomes Green Mountain's first commercial customer in New Jersey, where Green Mountain has recently begun offering its clean energy services. In April 2012, Lord & Taylor ranked 17th on the Environmental Protection Agency's Top 20 Retail list, and with this new green power purchase, Lord & Taylor would move up two spots to number 15 on the list.
News Release -
Green Mountain Energy Company Announces Lord & Taylor Purchases 100% Wind Energy for Seven New Jersey Locations
June 2012 - Starting June 1, Green Mountain Energy Company began offering renewable energy products to Pennsylvania residents in the PPL and PECO service territories. Green Mountain is offering its Pennsylvania customers a choice between two residential offerings, each of which providing 100% renewable energy: Pollution Free electricity and Pollution Free Gold electricity. Pollution Free offers power generated by regional wind and water power sources. Pollution Free Gold offers power generated by regional wind and solar power sources. Both options are available as month-to-month variable price and 12-month Reliable Rate fixed price plans.
News Release -
Green Mountain Energy Company Launches in Pennsylvania
May 2012 - Green Mountain Energy is now offering its green power products for residents of Rockland and Westchester counties, located in New York. Green Mountain Energy recently began offering its green power products to the residents of the City of White Plains, which provided green power options to residents of both counties.
Rockland County residents can purchase Green Mountain Energy's Pollution Free product for a rate of 9.7¢ per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Westchester County residents can purchase the Pollution Free product for 9.5¢/kWh. Pollution Free electricity products are sourced from New York wind and hydro projects. Customers can also voluntarily pay an extra $5 on their monthly electric bills to join the Green Mountain Energy Sun Club, which helps support solar installations for New York non-profit organizations.
News Article -
Meet Green Mountain Energy: Rockland & Westchester's Newest Green Energy Provider
January 2012 - Green Mountain Energy has been selected to supply green power for Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis, Indiana. Green Mountain Energy will supply 15,000 megawatt-hours of renewable energy certificates (RECs) for all six major Super Bowl facilities. The purchase is the equivalent to the electricity use for Lucas Oil Stadium (site of the Super Bowl), the Indiana Convention Center (site of the NFL Experience Football Theme Park), and all four of the major NFL hotels, including the NFL headquarters, the Super Bowl Media Center, and the AFC and NFC team hotels. The RECs are sourced from wind power generated in North Dakota.
News Release -
Super Bowl XLVI Goes Green
Additional Information -
Super Bowl XLVI Scores Green Power from Green Mountain Energy
August 2011 - Lord & Taylor signed a 2-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Green Mountain Energy to purchase more than 13 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of 100% wind power for its flagship Manhattan, and Eastchester (NY) stores. The green power purchase, which begins in November, will supply 100% of the electricity usage for the two stores. It is estimated that the renewable energy purchases will reduce the company's annual CO2 emissions by 20 million pounds, the equivalent of 3.6 million cab rides. Lord and Taylor stores will be purchasing renewable energy certificates (RECs) from wind farms through Green Mountain Energy.
Lord & Taylor recently joined EPA's Green Power Partnership, which is a voluntary program to utilize green power to reduce the environmental impacts associated with electricity use.
News Release -
Flagship Lord & Taylor to be 100% Wind-Powered
June 2011 - SoftLayer Technologies, an information technology company, has signed an agreement to purchase 10 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of Texas wind power beginning in October 2011. The renewable energy certificates (RECs) will be supplied by Green Mountain Energy Company and are equivalent to 10 percent of the electricity used at six of SoftLayer's Texas data centers.
News Release - SoftLayer Signs Renewable Energy Contract with Green Mountain Energy
Contacts:
Mark Quigley, SoftLayer, 214-442-1842
Marci Grossman, Green Mountain Energy Company, 602-694-8972
May 2011 - Green Mountain Energy Company of Texas launched a solar leasing program that will allow residents to buy into a 20-year lease of solar panels for their roofs. The leasing program allows customers to invest in solar at no upfront cost.
Leasing an average size 4-kilowatt (kW) solar array will produce about 450 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity at a cost of $100 per month, which is nearly double current grid power rates. Despite higher energy costs, interest in the solar leasing program has grown, according to Green Mountain Energy. The first 500 kWh of excess electricity generated per month from the leased solar panels will be purchased by Green Mountain Energy at the same rate customers pay for power as part of the utility's Renewable Rewards Buy-Back Program. For any excess energy beyond 500 kWh per month, the buy-back rate is reduced by 50 percent.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Launches Renewable Rewards® Solar Lease Program in Texas
Additional Information - Green Mountain Energy sets up solar leasing program
January 2011 - Green Mountain Energy Co. of Texas announced a two-year deal to supply 55 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind-generated electricity annually for the Empire State Building.
The purchase also exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Green Power Partnership minimum requirements and will place the Empire State Building on EPA's national Top 100% Green Power Purchaser List. The list represents green power purchasers that are buying green power to meet 100% of their U.S. organization-wide electricity use.
News Release - A tall New York City icon goes green
News Release - Happy ReNew Year! Empire State Building Signs Contract with Green Mountain Energy Company, Becomes NYC's Largest Commercial Purchaser of Green Power
Green Mountain Contact: Marci Grossman, 602-694-8972
September 2010 - The City of Bowling Green, Ohio, announced its green pricing program, Nature's Energy, will become EcoSmart Choice. Participating customers will be rolled over into the new program and will receive more than a 50 percent reduction from the current rate of 1.5 cents to 0.7 cents per kilowatt-hour.
The Nature's Energy program was an arrangement with Green Mountain Energy and the City's wholesale power supply and services agency, American Municipal Power (AMP). When the agreement expired, Green Mountain Energy did not extend the agreement and AMP developed the EcoSmart Choice program to replace it.
A portion of the proceeds from the EcoSmart Choice Program is used to fund renewable energy and energy efficiency programs in Bowling Green.
News Release - "Nature's Energy" Green Pricing Program Becomes "EcoSmart Choice"
Contact: 419-352-6255, bgutility@bgohio.org
September 2010 - Trump SoHo New York, a luxury hotel condominium, has committed to purchasing more than 5.5 million kilowatt-hours of wind energy annually from Green Mountain Energy Company. The purchase represents 100 percent of the hotel's estimated annual electricity use, through a two-year agreement.
News Release - Trump SoHo New York Goes Green
August 2010 - Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center's Zuckerman Research Center (NY) purchased 31.5 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind renewable energy certificates (RECs), equivalent to 100 percent of the building's annual electricity use. The purchase is through Green Mountain Energy.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Announces that Memorial Sloan-Kettering's Zuckerman Research Center Purchases Renewable Energy Certificates
February 2010 - Archstone, an apartment investment and operations company, announced it has entered into a one-year contract to purchase more than 14.6 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of renewable energy. Under the agreement with Green Mountain Energy Company, Archstone's purchase is equivalent to 100 percent of its energy use at its 12 New York City apartment communities, including the facilities' lobbies, common areas, and exterior lighting.
News Release - Archstone Purchases Cleaner Electricity for New York City Apartment
Contact: Marci Grossman, 602-694-8972
May 2009 - Green Mountain Energy (GME) announced a program to buy excess residential electricity from Texas residents who have solar panels or other renewable generation facilities installed at their homes. Under the Renewable Rewards program, GME will buy back electricity that exceeds the amount needed for a household’s use. The program has no term commitment and is open to new and existing Green Mountain Energy customers who purchase the company’s 100% wind energy product. For the first 500 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of excess electricity they generate, GME will pay customers about 15¢/kWh, matching the rate that customers pay GME for the 100% wind product. After the first 500kWh, Green Mountain Energy will pay half that rate for any additional generation, or about 7.5¢/kWh.
Customer eligibility requirements for the program include an interconnection agreement in place with their Texas service provider and a meter that separately measures in-flow and out-flow.
Press Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Launches Renewable Rewards Buy-Back Program (PDF 111 KB) Download Adobe Reader
Contact: Marci Grossman, 480-502-8100
March 2009 - Half Price Books, a bookstore chain, purchased approximately 11.3 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) a year of wind energy from Austin-based Green Mountain Energy. This purchase is equivalent to 100 percent of the electricity needs of 30 stores and other Texas facilities for three years. Half Price is now the second largest retailer in Texas, after Whole Foods, to purchase 100 percent renewable energy.
News Release - Half Price Books Becomes One of Texas’ Largest Retail Green Power Purchasers (PDF 48 KB) Download Adobe Reader
News Article - Half Price Books turns new green page
Half Price Books Contact: Megan Kuntz, 214-360-0833
July 2008 - Sundance Square, a 35-block mixed-use residential, office, and retail development in Fort Worth, Texas, announced a five-year green energy purchase from Green Mountain Energy for the period from 2008-2012. According to the U.S. EPA, the purchase makes Sundance Square the largest green power purchaser among Texas real estate developments and the second largest in the industry nationally. The 2008 purchase of 6.3 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind energy represents about 10% of Sundance Square's electricity consumption.
Sundance Square, which advertises its use of renewable energy onsite through signs and storefront window displays, draws an estimated 10 million visitors per year. Sundance Square also recycles an estimated 23 tons of refuse per month and recently purchased an electric car from the Chrysler Company, used by parking services personnel and powered with renewable energy.
News Release - New Approach Enhances Sundance Square's Eco-friendly Appeal
News Article - Sundance Square Becomes Largest Real Estate Green Power Purchaser in Texas
Sundance Square Contact: Tracy Gilmour, 817-255-5700
August 2006 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is supplying a total of 51 million kWh of renewable energy annually to seven Texas-based businesses. The agreements include:
- Dallas-based ClubCorp is purchasing renewable energy for 27 of its private business and country clubs as well as public golf clubs in Dallas and Houston.
- FedEx Kinko's is increasing green power usage for 56 of its stores in Texas.
- The Hyatt Regency Dallas at Reunion and Hyatt Regency DFW are renewing their commitments to purchase renewable electricity for 100% of their electricity needs.
- Austin-based Fired Up, Inc., owner and operator of Johnny Carino's Italian restaurants, is purchasing renewable energy for 28 of its restaurants in Texas.
- John Deere has renewed its purchase of renewable energy for its distribution facility in Northwest Dallas.
- Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI) is purchasing renewable energy for four of its Texas stores.
- Rooms To Go, a national furniture retailer, is purchasing renewable energy for 11 of its stores in the Dallas area.
News Release - Several Leading Texas Businesses Choose Cleaner Electricity
April 2006 - Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) announced that it will install a 250-kW solar photovoltaic (PV) system at Rothenbach Park in Sarasota. The project is part of FPL's commitment to develop new solar facilities as a result of customer participation in the utility's Sunshine Energy program. Under the program, residential customers can purchase renewable energy in increments of 1,000 kWh each month at an extra cost of $9.75. FPL has pledged to add 150 kW of solar capacity in Florida for every 10,000 customer signups. Currently, nearly 24,000 customers participate in the program, which is marketed in partnership with Green Mountain Energy Company of Austin, TX.
News Release - FPL Selects Rothenbach Park for First Sunshine Energy® Solar Location
News Article - FP&L to Build Solar Power Facility in Sarasota
April 2006 - The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU), along with other state agencies and leaders, announced the statewide availability of the CleanPower Choice program. The program allows electricity users to support the development of renewable energy sources located in New Jersey and the mid-Atlantic region by purchasing green power from one of four marketers: Community Energy, Green Mountain Energy, Jersey-Atlantic Wind, and Sterling Planet.
Participating electricity customers will continue to be served and billed by their local electric company, and the renewable energy purchase will appear as a separate line item on the bill. The program began October 1 in the PSE&G and JCP&L service territories and has now expanded to Atlantic City Electric and Orange & Rockland Utilities.
News Release - New Jersey Makes the Choice for Clean Energy
News Article - N.J. to Offer Renewable Energy Surcharge
News Article - 'Green' Electrical Bills Will Cost More Green
NJBPU Contact: Anne Marie McShea, (609) 777-3300
March 2006 - Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), a national cooperative retailer of outdoor gear and apparel, announced that it will purchase 10 million kWh of green power, equivalent to 20% of the company's annual electricity usage. The purchase of wind, landfill gas and solar-generated electricity will provide 100% of the power for 17 of REI's 82 retail stores. REI has entered into renewable energy contracts with seven different utilities and marketers in nine locales, with some of the products being Green-e certified. In several cases, the purchases will reduce the company's exposure to fossil fuel surcharges. The purchases include the following stores and suppliers:
- Brookfield, WI; We Energies; sources: wind, landfill gas and solar
- Madison, WI; Alliant Energy/WP&L; sources: wind, landfill gas and solar
- Eugene, OR; Eugene Water & Electric Board; source: wind
- Denver, Englewood, Boulder, Grand Junction and Lakewood, CO; Xcel Energy; source: wind
- Colorado Springs, CO; Community Energy Inc.; source: wind
- Fort Collins, CO; Fort Collins Utilities; source: wind
- Bloomington and Roseville, MN; Xcel Energy; source: wind
- Dallas, Houston (two stores) and Plano, TX; Green Mountain Energy; source: wind
- Pittsburgh, PA; Community Energy Inc.; source: wind
News Release - REI Steps Up to 20 Percent Green Power
REI Contact: Kevin Hagen, (253) 437-7312
February 2006 - Green Mountain Energy Company has created a new division, eMissions Solutions, to assist commercial and institutional sector clients looking to improve their environmental position. In addition to the company's traditional renewable energy offerings, the new program will offer a wide range of carbon reduction products and services including forest sequestration projects, LEED consulting and other carbon reduction strategies that will allow companies to reduce their carbon footprint and offset the carbon emissions associated with business activities like transportation, production, electricity usage, and employee commuting and air travel.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Launches eMission Solutions to Help Companies Offset Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Mitigate Carbon Risk
News Article - Green Mountain targets commercial customers
Green Mountain Contact: Gillan Taddune (512) 691-6176
October 2005 - On the heels of its exit from the Pennsylvania direct access market, Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is terminating its agreement to supply the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council's (NOPEC) retail electric aggregation program on December 31, 2005. Green Mountain attributed the move to "adverse regulatory events," citing FERC's implementation of the Seams Elimination Charge Adjustment and resulting litigation as well as unexpected charges associated with the start of the Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator's Day II energy markets. According to a story in the Austin Business Journal, Green Mountain will cut about 50 jobs as a result of the changes in Ohio and Pennsylvania.
The NOPEC retail electric aggregation program is the largest in the United States, serving more than 450,000 residential and small commercial customers. Green Mountain has supplied the aggregation group since September 2001. Together, NOPEC and Green Mountain helped spur the growth of renewable energy in Ohio by participating in the state's first utility-scale wind farm in Bowling Green and developing solar projects.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company to Discontinue Service to NOPEC Aggregation Program
News Article - Green Mountain discontinues service in two states, has layoffs
News Article - Energy provider severing deals, jobs: Austin's Green Mountain to leave Ohio market and lay off almost a third of its workers
October 2005 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it will stop providing electric generation service to its approximately 30,000 customers in Pennsylvania, blaming rising natural gas prices and electricity rate caps. The company has been providing electricity service in the state since 1999. According to several reports, Green Mountain would have to raise rates by about $30 per month to remain viable in the Pennsylvania market. Instead, the company will offer a renewable energy certificate-based product to Pennsylvania consumers, which will be supplied from national wind energy resources and sold in 500-kWh monthly increments for $9.95 per month (2¢/kWh) or $99.95 annually (1.7¢/kWh).
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Introduces New Renewable Energy Product in Pennsylvania
News Article - Green Mountain to quit selling power in Pennsylvania
News Article - Energy Provider to Quit State
October 2005 - The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities announced the start of a new program through which the state's retail electric customers can purchase renewable energy without switching electricity suppliers. Under the CleanPower Choice Program, residential and business customers can enroll by checking a box on their utility bills and selecting from among renewable energy products offered by four marketers: Community Energy, Green Mountain Energy Company, Jersey-Atlantic Wind, and Sterling Planet. The program began October 1 in the PSE&G and JCP&L service territories and will expand to Atlantic City Electric and Orange & Rockland Utilities in April 2006. The products available through the program are as follows:
Community Energy is offering a blend of wind (50%), low-impact hydro (49%), and solar (1%) at a rate premium of 1.3¢/kWh.
Green Mountain Energy is offering a blend of wind (50%), and small hydro (50%) sourced in the region at a premium of 0.9¢/kWh.
Jersey-Atlantic Wind is offering a blend of New Jersey-based wind (50%) and low-impact hydro (50%) at a premium of 2.9¢/kWh. The company is also offering a 100% New Jersey-based wind product in 100-kWh monthly increments for $5.50, or a premium of 5.5¢/kWh.
Sterling Planet is offering a blend of new wind (33%), small hydro (33%), and new bioenergy (34%) from sources in the Mid-Atlantic states at a premium of 1.2¢/kWh. Customers can elect to purchase the product to meet 50% or 100% of their electricity usage.
News Release - Acting Governor Codey Declares October "Clean Energy Month in New Jersey"
News Article - Would You Pay More for Clean Energy?
More Information - New Jersey CleanPower Choice Program
NJ BPU Contact: Anne Marie McShea, (609) 777-3300
August 2005 - Two Hyatt hotels in Dallas have entered into an agreement with Austin-based Green Mountain Energy Company to purchase renewable energy for 100% of their electricity needs. Together, the Hyatt Regency Dallas at Reunion and Hyatt Regency DFW International Airport will purchase about 34 million kWh of renewable energy annually, which is the largest hospitality industry purchase of renewable energy nationally.
News Release - Two Dallas Hyatt Properties Become Industry Leader with Purchase of 100 Percent Renewable Electricity
January 2005 - On December 1, the City of Bowling Green (Ohio) Public Utilities Department announced a new green pricing program for its 13,600 municipal electricity customers, replacing a similar program that it offered for the past four years. In partnership with American Municipal Power-Ohio and Green Mountain Energy, the city is now offering the Nature's Energy product, which is a blend of wind, landfill gas, and small hydropower resources.
Customers can purchase Nature's Energy for 100% of their electricity needs at a rate premium of 1.3¢/kWh, which is slightly less than the 1.35¢/kWh premium charged under the previous program. The new program is also open to commercial customers who can buy 1,000-kWh increments of green power at the same 1.3¢/kWh premium. A portion of the power for the program comes from the AMP-Ohio/Green Mountain Energy wind farm located six miles west of the city. Two, 1.8-MW wind turbines were added to the site in 2004, bringing the total project capacity to 7.2 MW.
Since the city announced the new offering, it has experienced a nearly 30% increase in green pricing enrollment, bringing total participation to 464 customers or about 3.4% of its customer base.
News Article - Some Happily Pay More for Electricity
Bowling Green Contact: Rita Hoffmann (419) 354-6253
December 2004 - Green Mountain Energy Company, an Austin-based national green power marketer, announced a new "Pollution Free" electricity product for Texas residential customers that is priced at the local incumbent utility's "price to beat," meaning that customers can purchase a 100% renewable electricity product at no additional cost over the price charged by their local electric utility. Other electricity marketers are offering standard electricity service at prices below the "price to beat" in the state's competitive retail electricity market.
The product is supplied from a combination of hydropower (90%) and wind energy (10%) resources. Green Mountain also offers Texans a 100% wind energy product that is priced at a variable rate of 1.0¢/kWh above the local "price to beat" or about $10 more per month for the average residential customer.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Introduces New Pollution Free Electricity Product at the "Price To Beat"
News Article - Electric utilities renew pitch for renewable-source power
Green Mountain Contact: John Savage (512) 691-6140
September 2004 - Wyandotte Municipal Services (WMS), a utility member of American Municipal Power-Ohio (AMP-Ohio), is offering a green power option to its electricity customers in partnership with Green Mountain Energy Company. Under the Nature's Energy program, WMS customers can purchase renewable energy derived from wind, landfill gas and hydroelectric power sources for 100% of their electricity needs. The added cost of the renewable energy is 1.5¢/kWh or about $8 to $10 per month for an average residential customer. Commercial customers can also participate in the program by purchasing renewable energy in one-MWh increments for the same 1.5¢/kWh premium.
A portion of the power for the program comes from the AMP-Ohio/Green Mountain Energy wind farm located near the city of Bowling Green. AMP-Ohio recently announced that two new 1.8-MW wind turbines would be added to the site this year, which will bring the total project capacity to 7.2 MW.
News Release - Wyandotte Municipal Services Establishes Partnership Giving Customers Opportunity to Choose Renewable Power
News Article - Customers can buy cleaner power
AMP-Ohio Contact: Kent Carson
Wyandotte Contact: Kevin Maynard (734) 324-7111
September 2004 - Niagara Mohawk (NiMo) announced that about 8,800 customers have enrolled in the utility's GreenUp renewable energy program, since it was unveiled two years ago. Under the program, the utility's customers can purchase renewable energy from one of four participating marketers—Community Energy, EnviroGen, Green Mountain Energy, and Sterling Planet—while continuing to be served by the utility. The additional cost to purchase either 50% or 100% green power ranges from 1.0¢/kWh to 1.5 ¢/kWh, depending on the provider selected. NiMo includes the surcharge as a line item on the participating customer's bill.
News Release - Niagara Mohawk Customers Choosing Renewable Energy
NiMo Contact: Alberto Bianchetti (315) 428-6932
Community Energy Contact: Ron Kamen (917) 453-5740
Green Mountain Energy Contact: Andy Prince (512) 289-4728
Sterling Planet Contact: Bob Maddox (203) 266-7973
EnviroGen Contact: Robert Kreppel (716) 631-1518
August 2004 - Less than six months after the launch of its Sunshine Energy green power program, Florida Power & Light Company announced that nearly 6,000 residential customers are now enrolled, making it the fastest growing green pricing program in the Southeast. FPL partners with Green Mountain Energy Company to market the program to customers.
Under the program, residential customers can purchase renewable energy in increments of 1,000 kWh each month at an extra cost of $9.75. The program is supplied with renewable energy certificates from wind, solar and biomass sources located in Florida and other states. For every 10,000 customers who sign up for the Sunshine Energy program, FPL will add 150 kW of solar capacity in Florida. The utility plans to announce the location of the first solar facility in the coming weeks.
News Release - FPL's Sunshine Energy® program approaches 6,000 customer milestone; FPL customers make local "green" program fastest growing in the Southeast
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Selected by Florida Power & Light to Help Implement FPL's New Green Pricing Program
News Article - Sunshine Energy approaches first solar milestone
News Article - FPL says 6,000 subscribing to Sunshine Energy program - No longer online at palmbeachpost.com
March 2004 - Cuyahoga Falls Electric System, a municipal utility serving 24,000 electricity customers in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, is the first utility member of American Municipal Power-Ohio (AMP-Ohio) to offer a green power option to its electricity customers in partnership with Green Mountain Energy Company. Under the Nature's Energy program, customers can purchase electricity generated from small hydro and wind facilities for 1.3¢/kWh above standard electric rates or an extra $8 to $10 per month for the average customer. Commercial customers can buy green power in 1-MWh increments at the same 1.3¢/kWh premium. The power for the program is supplied from a recently completed 3.6-MW wind energy project in Bowling Green and a 6-MW hydro project installed in 1999.
News Release - City of Cuyahoga Falls Establishes Partnership Giving Customers Opportunity to Choose Renewable Power
News Release - Ohio's First Utility Scale Wind Farm Dedicated
City of Cuyahoga Falls Contact: Valerie Wax Carr (330) 971-8240
February 2004 - Expressing concern that global warming threatens the livelihood of the ski industry, its employees, and quality of life more generally, the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) is teaming with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to reduce global warming emissions using a variety of measures including green power purchases and on-site renewable energy use. The NSAA reports that member ski resorts are employing renewable energy in a number of different ways, including using wind energy to power chair lifts, purchasing renewable energy credits to offset a portion of their electricity use, and using solar energy for heating or to generate electricity on-site.
Among the green power marketers supplying ski resorts around the country are Bonneville Environmental Foundation, Community Energy, Inc., Green Mountain Energy Company, and NativeEnergy.
News Release - Keep Winter Cool: Ski Areas Team With Conservation Group to Fight Global Warming
News Release - Renewable Energy Becomes Key Component of National Ski Areas' Sustaianbility Program
News Release - Wind Power Helps Ski Resorts "Keep Winter Cool"
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Gives a "Lift" To Ski Industry's Global Warming Campaign
News Release - Smugglers' Notch and NativeEnergy announce SkiCool(sm) program to help fight Global Warming (PDF 120 KB) Download Acrobat Reader
NSAA Contact: Geraldine Link, (720) 963-4205
December 2003 - Florida Power & Light (FPL) received approval from the Florida Public Service Commission to offer its residential customers a green pricing program. Under the three-year pilot program, customers will have the option to pay $9.75 more per month for the utility to purchase renewable energy certificates representing 1,000 kWh of power generated from projects in the Southeast region, including Florida. FPL has also committed to the development or purchase of 150 kW of photovoltaics capacity within Florida for every 10,000 participating customers. The utility plans to officially launch the program during the first quarter of 2004.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Selected by Florida Power & Light to Help Implement FPL's New Green Pricing Program
News Release - FPL To Offer Environmentally Friendly Sunshine Energy Program to Residential Customers
More Information - Docket No. 030752-EI - Petition for Approval of Green Power Pricing Research Project as Part of Demand-Side Management Plan by Florida Power & Light Company (PDF 972 KB) Download Acrobat Reader
FPL Contact: Joshua Bass (305) 552-4302
September 2003 - Portland General Electric (PGE) announced that it has once again selected Green Mountain Energy Company as its primary supplier of renewable energy products and green power marketing affiliate. The new contract will run through the end of 2006.
PGE customers have access to three different green power products: PGE Renewable Usage, which is a 100% renewable power option from Green Mountain and includes new wind resources located in the Pacific Northwest; PGE Salmon Friendly Plan, which adds a contribution for salmon restoration to the 100% renewables product; and PGE Clean Wind, which allows customers to pay a fixed amount for wind power from the Pacific Northwest. PGE will begin a new customer education and information campaign about the program later this year.
News Release - PGE Chooses Green Mountain Energy Company as Renewable Power Supplier
PGE Contact: Thor Hinckley (503) 464-8089 Green Mountain Contact: John Savage (512) 691-6140
September 2003 - The Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) announced that its Green-e program has certified another seven Tradable Renewable Certificate (TRC) products. TRCs, or green tags, represent the environmental attributes of electricity generated from renewable sources.
The newly certified products are offered by: EAD Environmental, People's Power and Light, Sterling Planet, WindCurrent, Big Green Energy, Mainstay Energy, and Green Mountain Energy Company. A total of 15 marketers now sell Green-e certified TRCs nationally.
News Release - Seven NEW Green-e Certified "Green Tag" Products Increase Business & Consumer Choice
CRS Contact: Këri Bolding (415) 561-2100
August 2003 - The World Resources Institute (WRI) announced that the American Psychological Association (APA) will buy green power equal to 75% of the annual electricity consumption of its two Capitol Hill office buildings. The green power will be supplied by Green Mountain Energy Company as renewable energy certificates derived from wind energy and other renewable resources. The green power purchase amounts to more than 20 million kWh over a 19-month period.
News Release - WRI Lauds APA for Greening Two D.C. Buildings
Contact: Mark Crowdis (303) 625-2590
August 2003 - Green Mountain Energy Company, in partnership with several other companies, is building a 160-MW wind project outside the city of Snyder in west Texas. According to a July 24 article in the Dallas Morning News, Green Mountain will use the project output to serve its Texas-based customers, replacing wind energy purchases that it has been making from a variety of facilities. The project is expected to be on-line by the end of the year.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company and TXU Energy Announce The Green Mountain Energy® Wind Farm at Brazos
August 2003 - AMP-Ohio, the City of Bowling Green, and Green Mountain Energy Company are partnering on a 3.6-MW wind project, which will be the first commercial-scale wind project to be built in Ohio. The two, 1.8-MW units will be located at the Wood County landfill just west of the city of Bowling Green. Plans call for the units to be interconnected to Bowling Green Municipal Utilities through an existing 12.47-kilovolt distribution circuit near the site.
The project output will be shared between AMP-Ohio and Bowling Green. Bowling Green's green pricing program collects a premium for existing renewable resources to fund future wind and solar projects. AMP-Ohio will use its share of the wind project as supply for its Nature's Energy product, which is offered to member utilities in partnership with Green Mountain.
Bowling Green Contact: Daryl Stockburger (419) 354-6246
May 2003 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is expanding its Texas-based marketing operations to include commercial and industrial customers. The company now offers three different products to business customers: 1) a "month-to-month" plan, 2) a "reliable rate" plan, and 3) a "100% wind" plan. The first two options are designed to offer both cost savings and environmental improvement, and are supplied from a combination of natural gas and wind resources. The third option features electricity generated exclusively from wind turbines and is priced at a premium to the standard market rate.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Expands Into Commercial Market in Texas
May 2003 - American Municipal Power-Ohio (AMP-Ohio), an Ohio-based nonprofit wholesale power supplier for municipal utilities, announced that it has selected Green Mountain Energy Company to offer a new renewable energy option to its 86 member communities, representing more than 380,000 customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Michigan.
Under the agreement, communities served by AMP-Ohio can offer residential and small business customers the opportunity to purchase renewable electricity from Green Mountain. The product, called Nature's Energy, will cost an additional 1.3¢/kWh, or approximately $8 to $10 more per month for the average customer, and will be supplied from landfill gas and/or small hydroelectric generators located in Ohio and neighboring states.
The new program stems from a nationwide agreement between Green Mountain and Hometown Connections International, a subsidiary of the American Public Power Association (APPA), to develop customized green pricing electricity options for public power utilities.
News Release - AMP-Ohio Selects Green Mountain Energy Company to Supply Renewable Power For Its New 'Green Pricing' Program - No longer online at yahoo.com
Green Mountain Contact: Jim Gravelle (617) 761-8701 ext. 225 AMP Ohio Contact: Kent Carson (614) 337-6222
April 2003 - The Emerald People's Utility District (EPUD), a public utility located near Eugene, Oregon, announced that it is negotiating with Green Mountain Energy Company to develop a green pricing option for its customers. Under the terms of the proposed agreement, EPUD's 15,000 residential and 2,000 small business customers will be able to purchase up to 100% of their annual energy usage from renewable sources, including geothermal and wind energy.
In October 2002, Green Mountain announced an exclusive partnership with Hometown Connections International to design customized green power services for public power utilities, including renewable power procurement and a range of sales and marketing services.
News Release - The Emerald People's Utility District Selects Green Mountain Energy Company to Supply Renewable Power Choices to its Customers
April 2003 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it has purchased nearly all of the environmental attributes associated with the output from PG&E National Energy Group's 11.5-MW wind power facility in Madison County, New York. The wind attributes will be used to supply Green Mountain customers participating in the Niagara Mohawk Renewable Energy Program. Green Mountain offers these customers a product mix of 50% new wind and 50% hydro at a 1.3¢/kWh premium to the standard utility rate or about $7 more per month for an average customer. The purchase agreement extends through 2004.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Announces Local Wind Purchase Agreement with Madison Windpower Facility in Upstate New York
February 2003 - For the Sake of the Salmon (4SOS), a Portland, Oregon-based non-profit organization, announced seven new salmon habitat restoration projects in Oregon resulting from the support provided by more than 6,000 customers of Pacific Power and Portland General Electric (PGE). In choosing the Salmon-Friendly renewable energy option, which is administered by Green Mountain Energy Company, customers make a monthly contribution through their electricity bill to the Pacific Salmon Watershed Fund. The contributions directly fund projects that restore habitat for threatened fish. The seven new projects will receive matching funds from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Community-Based Restoration Program and in-kind support from other local organizations.
News Release - Salmon Habitat Projects Reap Rewards of Renewable Power Option
4SOS Contact: Betsy Kauffman (503) 223-8511
January 2003 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is discontinuing operations in Connecticut's retail electricity market because of "regulations that make it cost prohibitive to bring pollution-free energy" into the state "as well as the overall lack of a competitive electric market." Specifically, the company maintains that the standard offer rate available to retail customers is too low and "does not reflect the true cost of electricity" and that new rules adopted by the New England grid system operator "place limitations and excessive costs" on the company's ability to secure wind energy for Connecticut customers.
Green Mountain currently serves 1,312 customers in the state, who will be returned to their default electricity suppliers. The company said that it will focus its East Coast efforts on expanding its customer base in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Pulls Plug in Connecticut
Green Mountain Contact - John Holtz (609) 304-2770
November 2002 - Portland General Electric (PGE) and Pacific Power announced that customer sign-ups for green power products offered through the two utilities have more than tripled in just nine months. The jump came after the utilities began offering additional green power options, including renewable electricity supplied by Green Mountain Energy Company, in accordance with Oregon's electricity restructuring law. Total customer participation at the end of October stood at 29,171 total customers (28,518 residential customers and 653 small businesses) compared to about 8,200 total customers at the end of 2001.
News Release - Oregonians Make Local Renewable Energy Program One of Fastest Growing In the Country
October 2002 - Green Mountain Energy Company and Hometown Connections International, a majority-owned subsidiary of the American Public Power Association (APPA), announced an exclusive partnership to provide a national green power program designed specifically for public power utilities. Public power utilities serve more than 40 million people or about 15% of the nation's electricity consumers.
Under the agreement, Green Mountain Energy will provide interested public power utilities with electricity products generated from renewable energy sources, such as wind, hydropower, biomass, geothermal, and landfill gas to be used in utility green pricing programs. The company will also offer a range of sales and marketing services to the utilities.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company and Hometown Connections Announce Exclusive Marketing Partnership to Offer 100 Percent Renewable Electricity Programs To Public Power Utilities That Serve About 15 Percent of the Nation's Electricity Consumers
Green Mountain Contact: Marci Grossman (512) 691-6310 Hometown Connections Contact: Dennis Melton (970) 871-1075
September 2002 - Green Mountain Energy announced that it is providing 100% renewable electricity service to the Liberty Bell Pavilion at Independence National Historical Park and other federal government-operated facilities in Philadelphia. Under the three-year contract, the federal government will purchase a total of 3.7 million kWh of green power annually. The facilities will purchase Green Mountain Energy's Nature's Choice, a Green-e certified product generated from renewable resources such as wind, water, biomass and solar generation.
Among the accounts included in the contract are the Liberty Bell Pavilion; the new Liberty Bell Center currently under construction; the First Bank of the United States (circa 1797); and the Todd House (circa 1791). The contract also covers seven other government facilities in and around Philadelphia, operated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), and the National Park Service.
With this new purchase, the agencies have reaffirmed their commitment to green power. In March 2000, GSA entered into a contract with the Energy Cooperative Association of Pennsylvania (ECAP) to supply the agencies with green power.
News Release - Liberty Bell Pavilion Purchases 100 Percent Renewable Electricity from Green Mountain Energy Company
September 2002 - Niagara Mohawk, which serves 1.5 million electricity customers in upstate New York, has unveiled a new program allowing residential and commercial customers to purchase electricity generated from renewable energy sources. Under the program, customers can choose to purchase green power products offered by three providers—Community Energy, Inc., Green Mountain Energy Company, and Sterling Planet. Participating customers will not switch from their regular utility service but will see a green power surcharge appear as a line item on their utility bills.
Community Energy is offering a 50% wind/50% hydro product for 1.3¢/kWh that would supply all of a customer's electricity needs. The Green Mountain Energy product, which is also designed to meet 100% of the customer's electricity needs, is supplied from 85% hydro and 15% wind, and priced at 1.5¢/kWh. Finally, customers can choose to meet 50%, 75%, or 100% of their electricity needs with the Sterling Planet product, which is supplied from 30% wind, 20% hydro, and 50% biomass, and priced at 1.5¢/kWh. All of the utility's residential and commercial customers will receive program information with their September bills.
The development of the renewable energy program stems from the settlement agreement reached in the Niagara Mohawk-National Grid merger.
News Release - Niagara Mohawk Kicks Off Renewable Energy Choice - No longer online at niagaramohawk.com
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Expands By Launching in New York State
News Release - Sterling Planet and Niagara Mohawk Team to Deliver Green Energy Choices - No longer online at sterlingplanet.com
News Article - NiMo customers can opt for 'green' electricity - No longer online at buffalonews.com
August 2002 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is supplying wind energy certificates equivalent to the entire power consumption of singer/songwriter Bonnie Raitt's 38-city summer music tour, estimated to be approximately 500 MWh. The tour will also feature a sideshow called Green Highway that carries the message of clean energy and sustainable living, and includes exhibits of hybrid electric cars, solar and wind power technologies, and energy-efficient building materials.
News Release - Bonnie Raitt Launches Her 'Green Highway' On Tour
July 2002 - In conjunction with Nuon Renewable Ventures and the Upper Kirby District Foundation, Green Mountain Energy Company announced the dedication of a new solar facility in Houston, Texas. The 43-kW photovoltaic (PV) array, located on the rooftop of the Upper Kirby District Association building, is owned and operated by Nuon. The system is supported by customers of Green Mountain Energy's Big Texas Sun Club who pay $5 per month more than the company's standard renewable energy service rate to promote the development of new solar systems in Texas.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company and Nuon Unveil One of Houston's Largest Solar Facilities
May 2002 - In partnership with Nuon Renewable Ventures LLC and The Winston School, Green Mountain Energy Company dedicated a new 58-kW solar array at The Winston School site in Dallas, Texas. The project received support from Green Mountain Energy's Texas-based customers. In addition to receiving 100% wind-generated electricity, Green Mountain Energy customers can join the Big Texas Sun Club to help construct, develop and maintain new solar facilities in Texas as well as promote statewide education about solar energy.
News Release - Dallas' Largest Solar Facility Unveiled
Green Mountain Contact: Eleanor Scott (512) 691-6316
May 2002 - Green Mountain Energy Company, Sun Power Electric, and BJ's Wholesale Club have teamed with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to install a 52-kW solar photovoltaics (PV) system on the roof of a BJ's club store in Deptford, New Jersey. The system is owned and operated by Sun Power Electric and will serve Green Mountain Energy's customers in New Jersey's competitive retail electricity market. Financial support for the facility also came from the New Jersey Clean Energy Fund, which was established under the state's electricity restructuring law.
News Release - South Jersey's Largest Operating Solar Facility Unveiled
Green Mountain Contact: Eleanor Scott (512) 691-6316
May 2002 - The State of New Jersey reaffirmed its commitment to purchase green power by entering into a contract with Green Mountain Energy Company to purchase a total of 113 million kWh of renewables-based electricity over a 15-month period. Nearly 200 state facilities will receive power from Green Mountain Energy's Enviro Blend product, which is Green-e certified and supplied from renewable resources such as wind, water, biomass and solar generation. The green power purchase will meet 12% of the state governments' total electricity needs.
Under an earlier contract, the state was purchasing a blend of landfill gas and small hydro resources from Conectiv Energy (see previous story below).
News Release - New Jersey State Government Begins Buying Cleaner Power From Green Mountain Energy Company
April 2002 - Green Mountain Energy Company unveiled a new fixed-rate plan designed to protect its Texas-based customers from seasonal electricity price fluctuations. The EasyRate plan is available to customers in the service territories of Central Power & Light (CP&L), TXU, Reliant, and TNMP at prices ranging from 8.2¢/kWh to 8.9¢/kWh plus a $4.95 monthly service fee. The power for the product, which is Green-e certified, is supplied exclusively from new Texas-based wind turbines.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Expands In Texas - 100 Percent Pollution-Free Electricity Now Available In Central Power & Light Territory
March 2002 - Tens of thousands of residents in four Ohio communities will be able to choose "cleaner" electricity under an agreement announced by Green Mountain Energy Company and municipal aggregator, AMPO, Inc. Electricity customers in the cities of Alliance, Sandusky, London and the village of Lagrange will have the option of purchasing electricity from Green Mountain Energy or "opting out" and continuing to buy power from their current supplier. The power will be supplied from a mix of natural gas (98%) and new renewable resources (2%), which the company claims "is 70 percent less polluting than what most Ohioans are buying." Green Mountain Energy already serves more than 400,000 customers of the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council.
News Release - Cleaner Electricity is Coming: Alliance, Sandusky, Lagrange and London Residents Can Choose Green Mountain Energy Company
Green Mountain Contact: Molly Hanlon (512) 691-6187
March 2002 - In just two months, more than 7,000 residential and small business customers of Pacific Power and Portland General Electric (PGE) have signed up for green power. Customers of the two Oregon-based utilities can choose among three renewable energy options: a wind power option, a renewable energy blend, and a salmon-friendly product. About three-quarters of the customers who have subscribed since January have chosen one of the latter two products, which are offered by Green Mountain Energy Company in cooperation with the two utilities.
In addition, Seattle City Light has subscribed more than 1,200 customers just seven weeks after launching its green power program. The utility is signing up customers at a rate of about 40 per day, surpassing the city's expectations. Under Seattle's Green Power program, residential and business customers can contribute funds to support local renewable energy projects.
News Release - Governor Kitzhaber Proclaims March 1 'Renewable Energy Day', Celebrating New Pollution-Free Power Options and First Day of Energy Restructuring
News Release - Signups For Seattle Green Power Program Surpass 1,200 Mark
December 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it has been selected by Pacific Power and Portland General Electric (PGE) to supply renewable energy to retail customers of the two utilities. Beginning March 1, 2002, Oregon residential and small business customers served by Pacific Power and PGE will be able to choose from a range of new options, including three different renewable, environmentally preferred power options provided by the utilities. The customer service options are required under the state's electricity industry restructuring law, which was enacted in 1999. Both utilities will continue to offer their own pre-existing green pricing options.
News Release - Pacific Power and PGE Select Green Mountain Energy Company to Supply Renewable Power Options in Oregon
Green Mountain Contact: Marci Grossman (512) 691-6310
October 2001 - Green Mountain Energy announced that it has teamed with Sun Power Electric to install a 30-kilowatt (kW) solar electric system at an IKEA store near Pittsburgh that will supply Green Mountain's Pennsylvania-based customers with solar energy. Sun Power will own and operate the system.
Green Mountain also recently announced plans to construct a 25-kW solar array at Lake Farmpark in Kirtland, Ohio, 25 miles east of Cleveland. The system will be the first commercial solar array in the state built exclusively to supply the competitive power market. Green Mountain serves more than 400,000 customers of the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council (NOPEC), a public energy aggregation group of 100 communities located in nine Northeast Ohio counties.
News Release - Ikea, Green Mountain Energy Company And Sun Power Electric Bring Solar Electric Power to the Greater Pittsburgh Community
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Announces New Developments to Bring Clean Electricity to Ohio - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Article - Green Mountain Energy to Build Wind Towers in Northeast Ohio - No longer online
October 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced a new solar energy program, the Big Texas Sun Club, which will provide its Texas-based customers with an avenue "to help construct, develop and maintain new solar facilities in Texas as well as promote ongoing statewide education about solar energy."
Currently, Green Mountain customers receive 100% wind energy. Membership in the program costs $5 per month. In addition to contributing to the development of solar facilities, members will receive a free beach towel, access to an online newsletter, a priority customer care number, and a tree planted in their name.
The company also said that it will work to develop a total of 100 kW of photovoltaics (PV) projects in Dallas and Houston.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Announces Plans to Construct Two Commercial Scale Solar Arrays in Texas
August 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is teaming with BP Solar to design and install solar electric systems for residential consumers in California. Under its Home Solar program, Green Mountain will handle all aspects of the system installation for the customer, including designing and ordering the systems, applying for permits and incentives, and conducting annual system check-ups for the first five years.
Three system sizes will be offered, ranging from 1 to 4 kilowatts (kW). After factoring in state incentives, the 1-kW system will cost approximately $7,000 and a 4-kW system approximately $22,000. A 2-kW system can supply the average California residence with about 50% of its annual power needs. Californians installing PV systems are eligible for rebate payments of $4,500/kW, or up to 50% of the system cost. Green Mountain estimates that most customers could recoup the system costs within about 10 years.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Expands California Presence With Launch of Home Solar Offering
April 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it is offering retail customers in Texas a green power product generated exclusively from in-state wind energy projects. Up to 5% of each customer class living in an investor-owned utility service territory is eligible to participate in the state's retail choice pilot program, which begins in June. Full retail competition is scheduled for January 1, 2002.
Green Mountain has priced the product at a fixed rate of 9.2¢/kWh for customers in the TXU Electric & Gas and Texas-New Mexico Power Company service territories, and 9.8¢/kWh for customers in the Reliant Energy service territory. Green Mountain will also charge a $4.95 monthly service fee. Green Mountain customers will earn discounts and special offers from local educational and corporate institutions through the company's Power Perks program.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Announces 100% Clean Wind Power Product for Texas Electric Customers
News Article - Will Texans buy it? - Subscription required at dallasnews.com
Additional Information - Texas PUC Rate Comparison Web Page
February 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved a plan for the company to provide power to 50,000 randomly selected PECO customers beginning later this year.
To create more competition in the retail market, the PUC directed PECO in the utility's 1998 restructuring order and in its merger application with Unicom to develop a plan for assigning at least 20 percent of its residential customers to another supplier. Customers have the right to opt out of the program and to return to PECO at any time without a penalty. They may also choose to shop for a supplier other than Green Mountain or PECO.
Green Mountain will offer savings of up to two percent off the PECO price to compare, depending on the residential customer rate class. According to Green Mountain, "100 percent of the electricity product to be sold to those customers...will include cleaner and renewable sources."
News Release - PA Public Utility Commission Approves Plan For Green Mountain Energy Company To Provide Cleaner Electricity To 50,000 PECO Customers - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Article - 'Green' electricity to be sold in region - No longer online at philly.com
Green Mountain Contact: John Holtz (609) 953-1647
February 2001 - Citing "huge wholesale rate increases and the instability of the state's energy markets and regulatory structure," Green Mountain Energy Company has become the latest retail marketing casualty of California's dysfunctional electricity market. The company announced that it is returning most of its customers to their default utility providers. In exception are customers located in Southern California who signed up for Green Mountain's fixed rate green power product. Those customers will continue to be served until the end of the year.
At the same time, Green Mountain is gearing up to sell green power in Texas, which will begin a retail competition pilot program in June before moving to full retail competition on January 1, 2002. The Texas Public Utility Commission recently approved the company's application for a Retail Electric Provider license, although no details are yet available on the products that will be offered or their pricing.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company to Protect California Customers by Returning Most to Local Utilities - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Receives License to Supply Cleaner and Renewable Electricity in Texas - No longer online at Yahoo.com
February 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced its selection by the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council (NOPEC) to supply more than 400,000 Ohio residents with clean power. NOPEC is a buying group of nearly 100 Northeast Ohio communities formed under the state's electricity restructuring law. According to an article in the Akron Beacon Journal, Green Mountain will supply the aggregation group with a blend of power generated from natural gas (98%) and renewable resources (2%), such as hydro and wind, beginning in September 2001. Participating customers will save 6% to 8% on the generation component of their electric bills. The power supply agreement is expected to save consumers up to $12 million over six years.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Signs Largest Energy Aggregation Contract in U.S. Adding Over 400,000 New Ohio Customers
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Wins Over 400,000 Ohio Customers Under Country's Largest Energy Aggregation Contract
News Release - Nopec Reaches Landmark Understanding With Green Mountain Energy Co. To Supply Electricity To 600,000 Northeast Ohioans - No longer online at www.nopecinfo.org
News Article - 'Green' Electricity Supplier to Sell Power in Ohio - No longer online at Akron Beacon Journal
January 2001 - According to a recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle, the few remaining green power marketers in California are struggling to meet their customers needs given skyrocketing wholesale power prices. One of the companies, electricAmerica (formerly Commonwealth Energy), is still providing a 5% rate discount to its customers because it locked in fixed prices for its power supplies. Other marketers have been buying power on the volatile spot market. According to the newspaper, Green Mountain Energy has been inundated with calls from consumers looking for lower rates but the company has started turning away new customers and is recommending that its existing customers return to their default suppliers.
News Article - Suppliers Find It's Not Easy Being Green
January 2001 - Green Mountain Energy Company officially entered the Connecticut market with the launch of Green Mountain Energy, a green power product containing electricity generated from wind and hydropower sources. Customers will pay 6.0¢/kWh for the new electricity product, a premium of 0.5¢/kWh to 1.0¢/kWh over standard offer rates. The purchase includes a "switch-back guarantee" and membership in the company's Power Perks rewards program "that is designed to both benefit customers and support the local community." The product is currently available to residential customers in the Connecticut Light and Power and United Illuminating service territories.
Green Mountain becomes the second green power marketer in Connecticut. The Hartford-based Connecticut Energy Cooperative offers green power generated from landfill gas, small hydro, and wind resources to residential customers in most parts of the state.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Brings Cleaner and Renewable Energy to Connecticut Customers
December 2000 - Several energy companies, including Green Mountain Energy Company, dedicated a new, 100-kW photovoltaic (PV) system in Berkeley, CA, that will provide solar electricity for Green Mountain's Solar for the Futuregreen power product. The project was developed by GPU Solar, AstroPower, and PowerLight Corporation, with financial assistance from the California Energy Commission, the City of Palo Alto, and the U.S. Department of Energy.
News Release - Green Mountain Solar Starts Up in Berkeley - No longer online at greenmountain.com
December 2000 - Partners for Environmental Quality (PEQ), an eight-year-old interfaith group based in Trenton, New Jersey, has launched a new campaign, "Congregations for Clean Air," to urge religious institutions and their members to purchase power generated from renewable energy sources. The group, which consists of leaders of the Catholic, Episcopal, Jewish, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Quaker, and Unitarian faiths, representing nearly 6,000 congregations in the state, has formed a one-year partnership with Green Mountain Energy to serve churches and members interested in purchasing green power. Several religious institutions have already signed up with Green Mountain.
News Release - Religious Leaders From Across NJ Announce Formation of Interfaith Energy Alliance
News Article - 'Clean Power' Pact Electrifies New Jersey Religious Coalition - No longer online
December 2000 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that it filed an application with the Public Utility Commission of Texas to become a licensed retail electric supplier in the state. Green Mountain, which is headquartered in Austin, plans to begin selling green power to retail customers in June 2001, when the state initiates its competitive market pilot program. The company is the first green power marketer to apply for a retail electric service license in Texas.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Files License Application to Provide Cleaner and Renewable Energy in Texas - No longer online at Yahoo.com
November 2000 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced a new fixed-rate, 100% renewable option for residential and small business customers in the San Diego and Orange County areas. The Breathe Easy Payment Plan is available to new or existing Green Mountain Energy customers in the San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison service territories, at a fixed rate of 8.5¢/kWh with no monthly fees. The price is guaranteed through December 31, 2001.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Announces Fixed-Rate Electricity Pricing for Residential Customers and Small Businesses - No longer online at Yahoo.com
October 2000 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that the Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) has renewed its contract with the company to supply green power to meet about 5% of the state's aggregated electricity demand. Green Mountain supplies about 37.5 million kWh annually to meet the collective load from several state office buildings and Pennsylvania's 14 universities. A portion of the power is being supplied from Green Mountain's 10.4-MW wind farm in Garrett, Pennsylvania, which began operating earlier this year.
Penn State Contact: Ken Davidson (814) 863-2090
October 2000 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced that Nuon, one of the largest electric utilities in the Netherlands and a green power provider, will invest up to $53.5 million in the company. Under the agreement, the two companies will "seek ways to develop new renewable energy generation facilities and explore future opportunities for extending the Green Mountain Energy brand to the European residential energy market." Nuon and BP Amoco, which earlier this year made a significant investment in Green Mountain, will each appoint one co-chair to Green Mountain's board of directors to succeed the current board chairman, Sam Wyly, who will remain an investor in the Company.
News Release - Nuon International to Invest up to $53.5 Million in Green Mountain Energy Company - No longer online at greenmountain.com
September 2000 - Green Mountain Energy Company announced its intention to sell green power in Connecticut. The company, which currently sells green power in California, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, is re-filing an application with the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control (DPUC) to become a licensed electricity provider. Green Mountain hopes to begin sales to Connecticut customers by the end of the year. Currently, there is only one supplier, the Connecticut Energy Cooperative, offering a green power product in the state.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Company Files License Application in Connecticut - No longer online at greenmountain.com
July 2000 - In the midst of calls for re-regulation of the state's power industry because of dwindling power reserves and skyrocketing wholesale electricity prices, GreenMountain.com announced that it will continue to serve all classes of customers in California's power market with its brands of cleaner electricity products. The company emphasized the importance of promoting renewable energy through customer choice as a long-term solution to energy price fluctuations.
News Release - GreenMountain.com Pledges Long Term Loyalty To California Customers - No longer online
GreenMountain.com Contact: Karen Woodbury (415) 439-5310
July 2000 - On June 30th, President Clinton signed into law the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, which gives legal status to electronic signatures and electronic contracts. The federal law is expected to obsolete state-imposed "wet signature" rules that have made it difficult for alternative marketers to sign up customers directly over the Internet. The bill signing prompted GreenMountain.com and Utility.com—two companies that rely on the Internet to market clean electricity products—to issue statements commending the new law.
News Release - Eliminating Barriers to Electronic Commerce While Protecting Consumers: The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act - No longer online at whitehouse.gov
News Release - Greenmountain.Com Says New E-Sign Law Will Empower Energy Customers - No longer online at greenmountain.com
May 2000 - GreenMountain.com announced that several companies led by BP Amoco agreed to invest up to $100 million in its green power marketing business, which currently has more than 100,000 retail customers in California, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. GreenMountain.com plans to use some of the capital to expand its operations into Connecticut, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Texas.
According to a BP Amoco press release, the energy company's investment is "focused on significantly extending the market for competitively priced renewable energy — including solar power — to businesses and households across America, the world's largest and most dynamic energy market."
A key target of BP Amoco will be large business customers. According to a BP Amoco executive, large industrial customers "will be able to buy greener, cleaner energy (for) close to the same cost as electricity fueled by other sources, thereby increasing the demand for renewable and environmentally responsible power while enhancing their green credentials."
BP Amoco owns BP Solarex, a photovoltaics manufacturer, and the deal calls for GreenMountain.com to use BP Solarex's solar technology in its solar energy offerings. The two companies also agreed to enter into strategic supply arrangements for electricity and natural gas.
GreenMountain.com also announced an agreement with Lycos Inc. to promote its power products on the Internet. The pact will allow GreenMountain.com to geographically target its electronic advertising.
News Release - BP Amoco Buys into GreenMountain.com - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Release - BP Amoco Invests In Innovative Green Power Marketer To Extend Environmentally Friendly Energy Sales
News Article - BP Amoco and Others to Invest in GreenMountain.com - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Article - BP Amoco to invest in Internet outfit - Subcription Required from Houston Chronicle
GreenMountain.com Contact: Jeb Hensarling (802) 846 6157
BP Amoco Contact: Neil Chapman (281) 366-7115
May 2000 - Toyota Motor Sales USA reaffirmed its commitment to green power by signing a contract with GreenMountain.com to purchase 100% renewable energy to power several of its California-based operations. Under the agreement, Toyota will purchase approximately 40 million kWh of renewable energy, with 5% of the power to come from new wind resources. Toyota became one of the first large companies to commit to green power shortly after the California market opened to competition. The GreenMountain.com deal replaces an earlier green power purchase agreement with Edison Source, which stopped marketing green power in November 1999.
News Release - Toyota Goes 'Greener' With Green Mountain Energy(SM) - No longer online at greenmountain.com
April 2000 - GreenMountain.com announced the availability of Solar For the Future, described as "the first power blend in the nation that specifically supports the development of new solar facilities." The new product is a blend of 100% "eligible" renewable energy sources, with 5% coming from newly developed resources, and is priced at the California Power Exchange price plus a monthly service charge of $6.95.
For every 1,000 customers who sign up to purchase Solar for the Future, GreenMountain.com will install 10 kW of solar generation in California. The first solar project to be developed will be a 100-kW photovoltaic system located atop a new solar panel manufacturing plant in Berkeley, CA.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Customers Spur Development of Largest Solar Power Facility in Bay Area - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Release - Green-e Certifies GreenMountain.com's Solar for the Future - No longer online at green-e.org
More Information - Powerlight, Greenmountain.Com Unveil New Solar Plant, Solar Power Product - No longer online at powerlight.com/
Greenmountain.com Contact: Karen Woodbury (415) 439-5310
March 2000 - After several months of competition with little customer switching, New Jersey customers finally have some green power choices. Conectiv Energy is offering two renewable energy products to customers in the service territory of Conectiv Power Delivery. And GreenMountain.com, which already serves 100,000 customers in Pennsylvania and California, announced that it, too, will begin offering two green power options in the Garden State.
Both Conectiv products are Green-e certified. Natures Power 100 is a 100% renewables blend made up of power produced from landfill methane and from a number of small hydroelectric facilities, all located in Virginia. Natures Power 50 is generated from 50% conventional resources and 50% renewable resources25% from biomass and 25% from small hydroelectric facilities. Natures Power 100 is priced about 10% higher than the "price to compare" while Natures Power 50 costs about the same as staying with the default provider. The two products are also available to business customers at a 2% price premium for the 50% renewables product and a 10% premium for the 100% renewables product.
The two Greenmountain.com products are EcoSmart, containing 50% large hydro, 49% natural gas, and 1% new renewables, and EnviroBlend, containing 50% large-scale hydro and 50% renewable energy sourcesabout 4% of the renewable power will come from the companys 10.4-MW Pennsylvania wind project scheduled for completion later this spring. The EnviroBlend product is Green-e certified.
News Release - Greenmountain.Com Brings Cleaner Energy to New Jersey Consumers - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Release - New Jersey Gains the Power to Choose Green-e Certified Electricity
News Release - Energy competitor hopes to clean up with higher prices - No longer online at bergen.com
Conectiv Energy Contacts: Joan Nowak (302) 224-7412; Steve Huntoon (610) 238-4460
Greenmountain Contact: Kevin Ellis (802) 846-6163
January 2000 - The Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) has entered into a contract with GreenMountain.com to purchase green power for more than half a dozen state government accounts, representing about 5% of the DGS aggregated power purchase for 2000. A portion of the 37.5 million kWh annual purchase will be supplied from Green Mountain's 10-MW wind farm currently under construction in Garrett, Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania agencies that will receive cleaner electricity include the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, Capitol Complex buildings in Harrisburg, state office buildings in Pittsburgh, Scranton, and Reading and Pennsylvania's 14 universities.
News Release - Pennsylvania Government Nation's 1st State to Buy Green Power - No longer online at greenmountain.com
October 1999 - Pennsylvania Attorney General Mike Fisher announced that his Bureau of Consumer Protection reached a settlement with Greenmountain.com concerning allegations that consumers were mislead by erroneous electricity price comparisons contained in a company mailing.
The two parties reached an "Assurance of Voluntary Compliance" agreement under which Green Mountain denies any wrongdoing but is required to send letters to the 3.5 million consumers that received the direct mailing, clarifying its rates and informing consumers of their right to cancel service. Green Mountain will also pay $100,000 to be used "for future public protection purposes and the costs of the investigation."
News Release - GreenMountain.com electric supplier to change ads and clarify rates to Pennsylvania consumers
News Article - The utility's stated rate comparison was erroneous. - Payment Required from Philadelphia Inquirer
September 1999 - In October, GPU Solar completed construction of the first grid-connected solar facility to serve California's competitive electric market. Only one month earlier Green Mountain Energy announced that it had into an agreement with GPU Solar and Real Goods to build a 132-kW solar plant at the Real Goods Solar Living Center in Hopland, CA. GPU Solar, a joint venture between Astropower and GPU International, will own, and operate the plant, and Green Mountain will purchase the electricity for its 100% Renewable2.0 energy product.
News Release - GPU Solar Announces Start-Up of Solar 2000 - Mendocino - No longer online at GPU Solar
News Release - GreenMountain.com Announces First Commercial Solar Plant to be Constructed as a Result of Customer Choice
News Release - Consumer Demand Prompts New California Solar Plant
GreenMountain Contact: Karen Woodbury (415) 439-5310 Real Goods Contact: Tanya Queen (707) 521-4462 GPU Solar Contact: Pat Dool (973) 263-6951
August 1999 - According to an August 13th Reuters story, GreenMountain.com will not participate in New Jersey's newly restructured electricity market. A company source cited the state's "over regulation of de-regulation" as the reason for not entering the market.
On July 26th, the state Board of Public Utilities, in adopting consumer protection rules, decided to require marketers to obtain a signature from customers wishing to switch suppliers. These rules essentially limit the use of the Internet for signing up customers, which is a key corporate strategy for Green Mountain. A signature requirement also significantly raises the cost of obtaining customers. According to the article, Green Mountain is instead looking to expand its marketing efforts into Massachusetts, New York, and Maryland.
The opening of the New Jersey market, originally scheduled for August 1, 1999, has been delayed until at least mid-October. At the July 26th meeting, the BPU also granted provisional licensing to 19 gas and electric suppliers and approved interim environmental information disclosure standards designed to inform customers about the environmental impacts of their power purchases.
GreenMountain.com Contact: John Holtz (609) 304-2770
June 1999 - GreenMountain.com, formerly Green Mountain Energy Resources, announced plans to build a 10-MW wind farm in southwestern Pennsylvania to serve its Pennsylvania customers. Construction of the project will begin in September with completion scheduled for January 2000. American National Wind Power, Inc will build, own and operate the facility, which will consist of from 10 to 15 large wind turbines.
The facility is the first large renewable energy project to be constructed for Pennsylvania's newly competitive electricity market. In April 1999, Green Mountain completed installation of a 43-kW photovoltaic system as a component of its green power marketing efforts.
News Release - GreenMountain.com to Develop Pennsylvania's First Wind Farm
News Release - GreenMountain.com Announces Ground Broken on Green Mountain Wind Farm
June 1999 - GreenMountain.com, formerly Green Mountain Energy Resources, has entered into an agreement with Applied Power Corporation to design and install solar electric systems for Philadelphia-area residents. The first 30 systems installed on residences within 50 miles of Philadelphia will be eligible for discounts of up to $5,800 through grants provided by the U.S. Department of Energy. The discount is based on price reductions of $2.94 per watt for thin-film systems or $1.00 per watt for crystalline systems. The systems can provide between 20% and 40% of the power for an average residence and will save customers from $17 to $30 per month in electricity costs.
News Release - Green Mountain Solar Systems Offered to Homeowners at Reduced Cost
April 1999 - The first source of new renewable energy built for Pennsylvania's competitive electricity market began operating on Earth Day. The 43-kW solar facility was installed by Green Mountain Energy, a competitive green power marketer, and Sun Power Electric, a non-profit developer of solar systems. The solar plant, which will generate 50,000 kWh of electricity annually for Green Mountain's Pennsylvania-based customers, is located on the roof of BJ's Wholesale Club in Conshohocken, PA.
The system represents the second solar partnership between Sun Power Electric and B.J.'s Wholesale Club. A similar system has been operating in N. Dartmouth, MA since December 1998.
News Release - Largest Solar Generation Facility in Pennsylvania Dedicated On Earth Day
Green Mountain Contact: Joseph D'Eramo (617) 520-7018
March 1999 - Green Mountain Energy announced that it has created two new green power blends for the California electricity market. First, Green Mountain has created 100% Renewable Power2.0sm, which, in addition to having 100% renewables content, will contain 5% new renewables and be priced approximately 5% below the California Power Exchange price.
Green Mountain's Wind for the Futuresm product has also been improved; 25% of the power content will now come from new wind turbines. The remainder of the electricity in Wind for the Future2.0sm will be supplied by small-scale hydro, biomass, geothermal and landfill gas. The Union of Concerned Scientists became the first customer for the new wind product, which it will use to power an electric car charging station in Berkeley, California.
News Release - Green Mountain Roars into March - No longer online at greenmountain.com
News Release - New Inductive Charging Station Powers Electric Car with Green Energy - No longer online at ucsusa.org
January 1999 - The University Students' Cooperative Association (USCA), a non-profit housing cooperative owned and operated by and for students primarily at the University of California at Berkeley, will purchase 100 percent renewable electricity from Green Mountain Energy. The USCA maintains 17 houses and three apartment buildings housing about 1,300 students. According to a USCA board member, the green power purchase decision represents the "strongest statement possible in favor of socially and environmentally conscious choices."
News Release - Renewable Energy Goes to College - No longer online at greenmountain.com
November 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources introduced three new electricity products for the Pennsylvania market designed to meet customer demand for cleaner power and actually bring new renewable power on-line. Green Mountain will offer two Green-e certified products one consisting of 50% and the other consisting of 100% renewable energy. The third product is designed to promote the development of new renewable energy sources by offering a mix of natural gas or small hydro with 1% new renewable energy.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Announces Three New Pennsylvania Electricity Choices - No longer online at greenmountain.com
October 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources announced ground breaking for two new, 700-kW wind turbines in San Gorgonio Pass as a direct outcome of customers selecting it's Wind for the FutureSM green electricity product in California's retail electricity market. The turbines will be owned by PacifiCorp, which will provide the wind power to GMER. One of the two turbines will serve customers of Working Assets. Earlier this year, Working Assets endorsed GMER as its power provider of choice in California.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Breaks Ground with Deregulation's First New Renewable Generation Source
October 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources (GMER) announced that it will contract with Sun Power Electric to build a 50-kW solar plant to serve GMER customers in Pennsylvania's competitive electricity market. Beginning January 1, 1999, at least two-thirds of Pennsylvania's electricity customers will be able to choose their electricity supplier, with the remaining customers eligible to choose in 2000. GMER stated that it will build additional solar capacity in Pennsylvania as it signs up customers, "with the goal of eventually building the largest network of solar plants in the eastern United States."
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Resources Announces Plans to Construct Pennsylvania's Largest Solar Power Plant - No longer online at greenmountain.com
July 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources (GMER) recently launched Green Mountain Solar, a new product offering rooftop photovoltaic systems for California homeowners. The systems will be designed and supplied by Applied Power Corporation (APC), an Olympia, Washington-based solar electric system integrator. The rooftop systems will enable residential customers to produce between 20% and 50% of their total electricity needs. The remainder of the power will be supplied by GMER or the supplier of the customer's choice. Because of various subsidies, the PV system costs will be reduced by at least one-half from typical market prices. Participants can also take advantage of California's net metering law, enabling them to further reduce their electricity bills. For more information on Green Mountain Solar, please contact John Quinney (802) 846-6186.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Resources Announces New California Solar Rooftop Systems
July 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources announced that it will participate in Pennsylvania's electricity retail choice program, for which customers can begin enrolling on July 1, 1998 and will start receiving power in January 1999. GMER will supply several power blends that are cleaner than the Pennsylvania system average and feature electricity from renewable energy sources.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Resources Announces Participation in Pennsylania's Electricity Retail Choice Program
April 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources (GMER) and NGC Corporation announced an agreement for NGC to supply wholesale power for a large portion of GMER's retail electric business in California. NGC will supply power for two of the three green power products that GMER is marketing: the "Water Power" blend and the "75% Renewable Power" blend. The power will come from various generating facilities in California and the western region, including small hydro, geothermal, and biomass power. GMER notes that this agreement will complement a pre-existing power supply agreement with PacifiCorp.
News Release - Green Mountain Energy Resources and NGC Corporation Announce Power Supply Deal
March 1998 - Green Mountain Energy Resources reports that 75% of customers who have switched to one of three green options offered by the company have chosen the more expensive products with better environmental attributes, while 25% have chosen the least expensive option. Kevin Hartley, vice president of marketing states, "Our least expensive product offering is not the most popular�clearly shattering the myth that price is the most important factor in a customer's decision to switch."
December 1997 - Following a fall test-marketing effort, Green Mountain Energy Resources (GMER) will begin a major marketing campaign to purchase one of three green energy blends being offered by the company at a 1-2¢/kWh premium.
November 1997 - Green Mountain Energy Resources (GMER) announced the creation of three new electricity products for the California market:
"75% Renewable Power," which will support renewable resources in California and the West, including small-scale hydro, biomass, and geothermal — three-fourths of the energy will come from qualifying renewables and 25% will come from large-scale hydro and system power.
"Water Power," a power blend which will rely on 90% hydropower generated from a mix of large- and small-scale hydro facilities in California and the West — the remaining 10% will come from system power.
Wind for the FutureSM, which will help build a market for construction of new wind turbines—one turbine will be built for every 3,000 customer subscribers. Power from the newly constructed wind turbines will account for 10% of the energy with the remainder supplied from the "75% Renewable Power" product.
Separately, GMER announced that Oregon-based PacifiCorp will be its first wholesale power supplier for the California market. Under the agreement, PacifiCorp will supply renewable energy from a variety of small hydro, geothermal, and biomass resources in the west. Further details of the deal were not announced.
News Release - PacifiCorp and Green Mountain Energy Resources Sign Deal
July 1997 - Green Mountain Energy Resources (GMER), a subsidiary of Vermont-based Green Mountain Power Corporation, has registered with the California Public Utilities Commission to be an electricity provider when the state's utility market opens to competition in January 1998.
Noting that "the lights will work no matter who's providing the power," GMER says it "is committed to enhancing the demand for cleaner energy through renewable power sources that are less polluting to the environment." The goal of the company "is to unleash the demand for renewable energy from natural sources like the sun, wind, and rivers. If more people demand cleaner power alternatives, eventually we can turn more renewable power plants on and turn off some of the most environmentally damaging ones."
GMER Contact: Debbie Curley (650) 463-8689
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