PORTLAND, Ore. —
Pacific Power customers in Oregon, Washington and Wyoming concerned about the impact of their
electricity use on air quality can now choose "Blue Sky" to lessen that impact.
Blue Sky, the utility's new renewable energy program, allows customers to purchase "shares" of renewable energy for just
a few extra dollars a month on their electricity bills. Each share represents 100 kilowatt hours of renewable energy - about
the amount of electricity it takes to run the average family's color television for two months.
Buying just one share of Blue Sky every month for a year has the same environmental benefits as not driving a car 2,400
miles or planting a half-acre of trees.*
Renewable energy is generated from resources that have a lower impact on air quality than other sources of generation,
such as solar power, wind power and geothermal power. Blue Sky will fund renewable energy generated entirely from wind power.
"As a company, we are committed to reducing the impact of our business on the environment and to providing environmental
leadership," said CEO Alan Richardson. "Blue Sky is part of that leadership."
Pacific Power's parent company, PacifiCorp, merged with ScottishPower in 1999. Blue Sky fulfills a commitment made during
the merger process. The company has also committed to building 50 megawatts of renewable energy over the next five years,
in addition to that produced by Blue Sky, almost doubling its existing renewables capacity.
PacifiCorp has a history of generating renewable energy. The company's 41-megawatt Wyoming Wind Energy Project, located
near Foote Creek Rim between Laramie and Rawlins, opened in 1999. It generates enough electricity to serve 15,000 homes. Utah's
Blundell geothermal plant, located near Milford, Utah, generates enough electricity for 3,700 homes.
Customer investment in Blue Sky will fund the construction of new wind turbines somewhere in PacifiCorp's service area.
The more Blue Sky purchased, the more wind power built. The company expects to have picked a location for a new wind farm
somewhere in their five-state western U.S. service territory by this fall.
"We are supporting Blue Sky because we believe it's the right thing to do," said Richardson. "I think customers should
support green power programs from any company that provides them."
Customers can sign up for Blue Sky by calling (80) 842-8458 or can register online at www.pacificorp.com/bluesky.html
PacifiCorp serves 1.5 million customers with electricity and related services in six western states.
*Calculations based on information from EPA's Green Lights Program.
