AKRON, Ohio, May 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A green option will be available to FirstEnergy's Ohio utility customers under a proposed program filed today with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). Customers interested in supporting renewable energy could do so through an added charge on their monthly electric bill beginning as early as this summer. The green product program would offer customers of Ohio Edison, The Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company and Toledo Edison the option to purchase Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs). A single REC is equivalent to one megawatt-hour of electricity produced from a qualifying resource. The company designed the program in collaboration with the staff of the PUCO and the Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel. If approved by the PUCO, the program could be in place as early as this summer.
"We are pleased to offer a cost-effective way for customers to support alternative energy in our region," said Anthony J. Alexander, president and chief executive officer of FirstEnergy. "If approved, this program also could help begin the process of encouraging future development of alternative energy sources."
Under the program, the company will purchase up to 150,000 RECs from qualifying resources. Customers will have the option of purchasing the RECs in 100 kilowatt-hour blocks, and may purchase from 2 to 50 blocks each month. Customers can discontinue their participation at any time. The price of the RECs will be primarily determined by the outcome of a competitive process in which companies offering RECs will be invited to submit bids. The green product program is offered as part of a stipulation filed in the companies' remand proceeding before the PUCO, which was instituted to permit the companies to offer customers another means to participate in the competitive market.
FirstEnergy is a diversified energy company headquartered in Akron, Ohio. Its subsidiaries and affiliates are involved in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, as well as energy management and other energy-related services. Its seven electric utility operating companies comprise the nation's fifth largest investor-owned electric system based on serving 4.5 million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey; and its generation subsidiaries control more than 14,000 megawatts of capacity.
Forward-Looking Statements: This news release includes forward-looking statements based on information currently available to management. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties. These statements typically contain, but are not limited to, the terms "anticipate," "potential," "expect," "believe," "estimate" and similar words. Actual results may differ materially due to the speed and nature of increased competition and deregulation in the electric utility industry, economic or weather conditions affecting future sales and margins, changes in markets for energy services, changing energy and commodity market prices, replacement power costs being higher than anticipated or inadequately hedged, the continued ability of FirstEnergy's regulated utilities to collect transition and other charges or to recover increased transmission costs, maintenance costs being higher than anticipated, legislative and regulatory changes (including revised environmental requirements), and the legal and regulatory changes resulting from the implementation of the Environmental Policy Act of 2005 (including, but not limited to, the repeal of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935), the uncertainty of the timing and amounts of the capital expenditures needed to, among other things, implement the Air Quality Compliance Plan (including that such amounts could be higher than anticipated) or levels of emission reductions related to the Consent Decree resolving the New Source Review litigation, adverse regulatory or legal decisions and outcomes (including, but not limited to, the revocation of necessary licenses or operating permits and oversight) by the NRC (including, but not limited to, the Demand For Information issued to FENOC on May 14, 2007) and the various state public utility commissions as disclosed in our SEC filings, the timing and outcome of various proceedings before the PUCO (including, but not limited to, the Distribution Rate Cases for the Ohio Companies and the successful resolution of the issues remanded to the PUCO by the Ohio Supreme Court regarding the Rate Stabilization Plan) and the PPUC (including the transition rate plan filings for Met-Ed and Penelec and the Pennsylvania Power Company Default Service Plan filing), the continuing availability and operation of generating units, the ability of generating units to continue to operate at, or near full capacity, the inability to accomplish or realize anticipated benefits from strategic goals (including employee workforce initiatives), the anticipated benefits from voluntary pension plan contributions, the ability to improve electric commodity margins and to experience growth in the distribution business, the ability to access the public securities and other capital markets and the cost of such capital, the outcome, cost and other effects of present and potential legal and administrative proceedings and claims related to the August 14, 2003 regional power outage, the successful structuring and completion of a potential sale and leaseback transaction for Bruce Mansfield Unit 1 currently under consideration by management, any final adjustment in the purchase price per share under the accelerated share repurchase program announced March 2, 2007, the risks and other factors discussed from time to time in our SEC filings, and other similar factors. We expressly disclaim any current intention to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
FirstEnergy Corp.
CONTACT: Ellen Raines of FirstEnergy Corp., +1-330-384-5808Web site: http://www.firstenergycorp.com/
