PORTLAND, Ore. — Pacific Power has selected 3 Phases Energy Services to provide renewable energy supply and marketing services for Pacific Power’s Renewable Usage and Habitat green energy options starting Jan. 1, 2004. The selection will have no price impact on customers purchasing either option, nor will it affect Pacific Power’s Blue Sky wind energy program.

"For Pacific Power customers who want to build the market for new renewables, 3 Phases Energy provides an improved, local mix of renewable energy for exactly the same price," explained Amanda Nelson, Pacific Power’s vice president of customer services. "We’re going to offer an attractive, new generation program of wind and biomass drawn from Oregon and the region; plus a small mix of energy from Oregon Solar Projects."

Since the implementation of Oregon Electricity Restructuring (Senate Bill 1149) on March 1, 2001, Green Mountain Energy Company has been providing supply and marketing services for the Renewable Usage and Habitat products.

As required after 22 months by the Oregon Public Utility Commission, Pacific Power issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) last June in order to give other providers a chance to bid on the options. Subsequent to the RFP process, 3 Phases Energy was selected on the basis that it has a larger portfolio of local, newer renewable energy choices, and it could provide the services without increasing the cost to customers. The contract with 3 Phases Energy will run for three years. 3 Phases Energy is headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in San Francisco and soon in Portland.

The new agreement with 3 Phases Energy will improve upon the existing Renewable Usage and Habitat products by increasing the amount of new wind energy by 200 percent, adding biomass and a small amount of solar. "New wind" is energy generated by wind farms built after July 1999. The majority of the wind energy will come from the nearby Stateline wind farm on the Oregon and Washington border.

"3 Phases Energy is excited to serve Pacific Power's customers with a forward-looking, local portfolio of renewable energy options," said Erik Rothenberg, Chief Green Officer of 3 Phases Energy. "By supporting new local renewables, communities across Oregon will make a direct impact on their state, their communities and their environment."

Pacific Power and 3 Phases Energy will also seek to increase participation in the program, by making available facility tours and providing enhanced information on the renewable energy facilities.

The price of all three renewable energy products will remain the same:

Renewable Usage:   Customers can purchase all their electricity from 100% renewable sources for the additional cost of $0.0078 (less than a penny) per kilowatt-hour (kwh), which is about $.25 per day for the average customer using 1,000 kwh per month. That’s an additional cost of about $7.80 per month.

Habitat:   Like the Renewable Usage option above, this plan lets customers purchase all of their electricity from 100% renewable sources for an additional cost of $0.0078 (less than a penny) per kilowatt-hour. The plan also includes an automatic $2.50 monthly donation to the Pacific Salmon Watershed Fund, which is an Oregon-based nonprofit organization dedicated to the restoration of native salmon habitat. The average additional monthly cost for this option is $10.30.

Fixed Renewable, our Blue Sky ^SM option:   Customers can purchase fixed 100 kilowatt-hour increments of new wind power, called blocks, for just $1.95 per block per month.

Customers can sign-up online or call 1-800-769-3717, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

"Working with 3 Phases Energy will help us build even more excitement around the advances being made in renewable energy," Nelson said. "For example, Pacific Power is partnering with the Energy Trust of Oregon and Eurus Energy to bring a new 41-megawatt wind farm in Oregon online this year."

Nelson also mentioned the company’s national third-place ranking for customer participation in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Top 10 list of "green pricing" programs. Throughout its service territory, 22,834 customers signed up for one of its renewable power options. In Oregon, 15,356 Pacific Power customers are enrolled in a renewable option: 9,177 in Renewable Usage, 4,036 in Fixed Renewable (Blue Sky), and 2,143 in Habitat.

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