Reported by Staff

SALT LAKE CITY – The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory ranked Rocky Mountain Power’s Blue Sky program second in the nation for total number of participating customers in its annual assessment of leading utility green power programs released earlier this week. The company also ranked third in the nation for green power program sales volume. Its Blue Sky program has been in the top five in both categories for the past eight years.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory reports there are more than 850 utilities across the United States now offering green power programs. The company’s No. 2 ranking for customer participation is up one spot from its previous No. 3 ranking in that category. The company’s rankings are based on Blue Sky participation by Rocky Mountain Power and Pacific Power customers in six states. As of December 2009, more than 72,800 customers were enrolled in the Blue Sky program.

“We are pleased with the sustained excellence of our Blue Sky program and wish to recognize our participating customers for their commitment to encouraging the development of renewable energy in the region, said Karen Gilmore, Rocky Mountain Power vice president of customer services. “By supporting Blue Sky, customers are also helping to influence the future of energy production, preserve the environment and conserve resources for future generations.”

The Blue Sky program provides an easy and convenient way for Rocky Mountain Power customers to support renewable energy in the region, for as little as $1.95 per month. When a customer enrolls in Blue Sky the company purchases Green-e Energy Certified renewable energy certificates on their behalf from wind energy facilities in the western United States. Blue Sky funds also help support the development of smaller projects in local communities that can include wind, solar, geothermal, low-emission biomass or other certified renewable energy sources.

During the past year, Blue Sky participation by Rocky Mountain Power customers in Utah, Wyoming and Idaho grew by 6.6 percent to 31,734 customers enrolled in the prFogram. Total renewable energy purchases by Rocky Mountain Power’s Blue Sky customers in these three states increased by 25 percent to more than 193 million kilowatt-hours for 2009. The company does not profit financially by offering Blue Sky renewable energy to its customers.

Blue Sky was named 2007 Green Power Program of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy. To learn more about Blue Sky or to sign up, visit www.rockymountainpower.net/bluesky or call 1-800-769-3717.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s news release about its utility green power program assessment and rankings is available online at: http://www.nrel.gov/news/press/2010/838.html. (Note that the #2 and #3 rankings listed as PacifiCorp include Rocky Mountain Power and Pacific Power.)

Separate from Blue Sky, Rocky Mountain Power is investing in cost-effective renewable energy to serve its customers’ growing electricity needs, as part of a diverse resource mix that includes coal, natural gas, hydroelectric, and renewable wind and geothermal resources. As part of PacifiCorp, the company is the second largest utility owner of wind energy resources in the nation.