SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Rolling out it's second year Green-e Verification Report, the non-profit Center for Resource Solutions announced today good news in two key aspects of the nascent green power market: a jump in large customer purchases and the delivery of excess renewable energy from power marketers. In 1999, over 400,000 people in California and Pennsylvania were served by Green-e certified electricity. Green-e certifies renewable energy options against a series of stringent environmental and consumer protection standards. More information on Green-e is available at www.green-e.org.

1. NUMBER OF COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS RISES BY 17% -
Green-e Standards used in RFPs

The 1999 Green-e Verification Report documents an increase in green power purchasing by non-residential consumers. Aggregated Green-e certified product sales data show that 38% of green power demand came from large customers (industrial, small and large commercial, and agricultural) -- up from 21% in 1998. Approximately 27,700 non-residential customers switched to Green-e certified power nationwide.

Companies like Toyota, Birkenstock and Fetzer Vineyards used Green-e certification as a requirement in their green power Request For Proposals, as did cities including Chula Vista and Santa Monica, California and federal agencies like the U.S. Postal Service and Environmental Protection Agency (Richmond, CA). "I am so pleased that leading businesses and government are doing such a wonderful job of setting an example for what can be done in the battle against global climate change. It is these unanticipated actions by individual consumers that will ultimately make the difference," said Jan Hamrin, CRS Executive Director.

2. MARKETERS EXCEED REQUIREMENTS FOR GREEN POWER SUPPLY

The Green-e Verification Report, completed by independent auditors, document that California and Pennsylvania retail electricity marketers selling Green-e certified electricity purchased more renewable energy than they had promised. The results show that 100% of the total electricity purchased for customers of Green-e certified products in California was supplied by renewable resources, despite the fact that three products were offered as only 50-75% renewable. Similarly, two of five Green-e certified Pennsylvania products offered as only 50% renewable were served by over 95% renewable resources.

These results show that electricity service providers have delivered more green power to the grid than promised - a benefit for consumers, renewable power producers and the environment. This finding follows the 1998 Green-e verification results which also documented that Green-e certified products had met and exceeded the program's environmental and consumer protection standards.

3. ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT FROM GREEN-E CERTIFIED ELECTRICITY

By purchasing green power, Green-e certified electricity customers expanded the use of renewable energy with an environmental benefit equivalent to removing 1,083,737 cars from the road in one year. Between California and Pennsylvania, the environmental benefit of Green-e certified electricity was equivalent to emissions from over 1200 tons of sulfur dioxide (a chief cause of acid rain) and 1190 tons of nitrogen oxide (a major contributor to smog).

4. 20 MW NEW RENEWABLES BUILT FOR GREEN-E CERTIFIED ENERGY

The Verification results show that customer demand has helped stimulate the construction of new renewable resources. New renewable activity in 1999 included a 16.5 Megawatt (MW) wind facility in California built by Enron Wind; a 2 MW wind facility in California built by Green Mountain Energy Company; a 10.4 MW wind farm in Pennsylvania and two solar arrays (one in California and one in Pennsylvania) with 232 kW total energy capacity, also built by Green Mountain. The Sacramento Municipal Utility District purchased all of the electricity from a new 8.3 MW landfill gas facility for its Greenergysm program.

These new projects represent over 20MW of new renewables built to supply Green-e certified products in 1999. The CO2 emissions savings from new renewables in 1999 is equivalent to planting 3,800 acres of trees.

5. CUSTOMERS CHOOSE 100% RENEWABLE GREEN-E CERTIFIED ELECTRICITY

Across the nation, most customers who switch to renewable power choose 100% renewable options. Both in California and Pennsylvania, over half of residential and non-residential customers chose to purchase 100% renewable electricity. In California, 95% of residential customers who switched to Green-e certified electricity chose 100% products.

The major renewable sources used to supply Green-e certified products during 1999 include geothermal (using steam from below the earth's surface), biomass (utilizing landfill gas and other waste material as fuel), and small-scale hydropower (below 30 megawatts).