The United Illuminating Company recognized for protecting the environment through promotion of energy-efficient products
NEW BRITAIN, Conn. (April 7, 2015) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized The United Illuminating Company with a 2015 ENERGY STAR Award for Excellence in ENERGY STAR Promotion for its outstanding efforts to promote energy-efficient products. The United Illuminating Company accomplishments will be recognized in Washington, D.C. on April 20, 2015.
The United Illuminating Company, an ENERGY STAR® partner since 1999, is being honored for its work to educate consumers about the importance of energy efficiency and increase awareness of ENERGY STAR programs and products as part of the Energize Connecticut initiative.
The United Illuminating Company is receiving ENERGY STAR® recognition for an initiative to advance the market for ENERGY STAR® LED lighting targeted to serve hard to reach communities in Connecticut. Key accomplishments in 2014 include:
• Offering “The Great Light Bulb Exchange,” a six month promotion targeted to customers in hard-to-reach segments of UI’s market—specifically, elderly, low-income, and bilingual customers who had not yet made the switch from incandescent lighting to ENERGY STAR® certified lighting.
• Focusing “The Great Light Bulb Exchange” on six hard-to-reach municipalities in Connecticut, and partnering with lighting manufacturers and retailers to help customers in these communities exchange in excess of 4,000 incandescent bulbs for ENERGY STAR® LED bulbs, realizing an estimated lifetime savings of about 5.3 million kWh and $1 million in lifetime utility bill savings.
• Influencing the market for ENERGY STAR® LED bulbs beyond the targeted communities, driving the sale of more than 175,000 ENERGY STAR® LEDs, a 500 percent sales lift from the same timeframe in 2013.
“The United Illuminating Company is honored to receive this award highlighting our commitment to energy efficiency,” said Pat McDonnell, senior director of conservation and load management, UIL Holdings Corporation. “Through our partnership with ENERGY STAR®, we are getting more tools in the hands of consumers to help them save energy, while making a positive impact on the environment.”
Since its inception in 1992, ENERGY STAR® and its partners have helped prevent a total of more than two billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. In 2013 alone, ENERGY STAR® and its partners provided more than $11 billion in societal benefits due to reducing damages from climate change.
“The United Illuminating Company’s efforts to promote ENERGY STAR® products are helping consumers make smarter buying decisions,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “The United Illuminating Company is helping Americans save money, save energy, and do their part to reduce our nation’s greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change.”
ENERGY STAR® has 16,000 partners working to protect the environment through greater energy efficiency, including manufacturers, retailers, public schools, hospitals, real estate companies, and home builders.
For a complete list of 2015 winners and information, and more information about ENERGY STAR’s® awards program, visit www.energystar.gov/awardwinners.
About UIL Holdings Corporation:
Headquartered in New Haven, Connecticut, UIL Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UIL) is a diversified energy delivery company serving more than 725,000 electric and natural gas utility customers in 67 communities across two states, with combined total assets of over $5 billion.
UIL is the parent company of The United Illuminating Company (UI), The Southern Connecticut Gas Company (SCG), Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation (CNG), and The Berkshire Gas Company, each more than 100 years old. UI provides for the transmission and delivery of electricity and other energy related services for Connecticut's Greater New Haven and Bridgeport areas. SCG and CNG are natural gas distribution companies that serve customers in Connecticut, while Berkshire Gas serves natural gas customers in western Massachusetts. UIL employs more than 1,900 people in the New England region.
About Energize Connecticut:
Energize Connecticut helps you save money and use clean energy. It is an initiative of the Energy Efficiency Fund, the Connecticut Green Bank, the State, and your local electric and gas utilities, with funding from a charge on customer energy bills. Information on energy-saving programs can be found at EnergizeCT.com or by calling 1.877.WISE.USE.
About ENERGY STAR®:
ENERGY STAR® is the simple choice for energy efficiency achievements. For more than 20 years, people across America have looked to EPA’s ENERGY STAR program for guidance on how to save energy, save money, and protect the environment. Behind each blue label is a product, building, or home that is independently certified to use less energy and cause fewer of the emissions that contribute to climate change. Today, ENERGY STAR is the most widely recognized symbol for energy efficiency in the world, helping families and businesses save $300 billion on utility bills, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by two billion metric tons since 1992. Join the millions who are already making a difference at energystar.gov.