Release Date: February 6, 2007
Contact: PG&E News Department (415) 973-5930

PG&E Partners with City and County of San Francisco on $11.5 Million Energy Watch Program Program to Help San Francisco Residents and Businesses Achieve Milions of Dollars in Energy Savings and Combat Climate Change

SAN FRANCISCO Pacific Gas and Electric Company and the City and County of San Francisco (CCSF) announced today a collaborative effort to deliver energy savings and energy efficiency education programs to residential and commercial customers in San Francisco. Running from 2006 through 2008, the $11.5 million San Francisco Energy Watch program will help San Francisco achieve millions of dollars in energy savings and combat climate change.

With a shared commitment to making this the greenest city in the nation, were thrilled to partner with San Francisco on the Energy Watch Program, said Helen Burt, senior vice president of customer care at PG&E. We look forward to partnering with San Francisco to help our customers develop innovative energy efficiency programs that reduce energy use and combat climate change.

Implemented by the San Francisco Department of the Environment (SF Environment), the San Francisco Energy Watch partnership will provide incentive programs, training, education, and technical assistance for small businesses and residential customers. Over a three-year period, the program is designed to achieve energy savings of over 43 million kilowatt hours of electricity and 335,000 therms of natural gas.

Energy efficiency is a top priority for meeting San Franciscos environmental goals, said Gavin Newsom, Mayor of San Francisco. The San Francisco Energy Watch Program is a great example of how two innovative organizations can partner to create real solutions that directly protect public health and improve our quality of life.

Under the Energy Watch Program, the SF Environment will act as an energy service provider to San Francisco customers by identifying a full range of options for potential energy upgrades to their property. In this way, customers can take advantage of incentives for a set of measures they can afford now, and be entered into SF Environments database for further upgrades during the course of the program cycle. This comprehensive approach avoids lost energy-saving opportunities, increases customers awareness of how to reduce their energy use, and reduces marketing costs by allowing SF Environment to maintain continuous contact after the initial marketing response.

By partnering together with San Francisco through the Energy Watch Program, PG&E will continue as a world leader in energy efficiency programs. With a commitment of $1 billion in energy efficiency programs from 2006 to 2008, PG&E has the largest and most successful energy efficiency programs in the nation. The company now has energy efficiency partnerships with 22 local and statewide organizations. Since its inception in 1976, PG&Es energy efficiency programs have helped its customers save $9.9 billion in energy reductions and prevented 61 million tons of carbon dioxide, the leading contributor to climate change, from entering the atmosphere.

In addition to the Energy Watch Program, PG&E has also committed over $7.5 million in solar projects in San Francisco, including its own service center. To date, the company has already helped connect over 500 solar systems in San Francisco, the most of any city in its service territory.

PG&Es energy efficiency programs are part of the companys climate change strategy and overall environmental leadership. PG&Es greenhouse gas emissions are among the lowest of any utility in the United States. Currently, more than 50 percent of the energy PG&E delivers to customers comes from generation sources that emit no carbon dioxide, including renewable resources like wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal power.