Progress Energy Florida helps Clearwater neighbors save energy and money

CLEARWATER, Fla. (June 22, 2009) -- Progress Energy Florida's innovative Neighborhood Energy Saver program is expanding to Clearwater. The project assists families in low-income neighborhoods save money on their energy bills by helping them use energy more wisely.

In partnership with the Florida Department of Community Affairs and the City of Clearwater, Progress Energy is installing energy-efficient improvements in nearly 900 homes at no cost to homeowners. As part of the project, customers also will learn simple, effective ways to manage their energy use and the importance of energy efficiency to their pocket book and the environment.

The Progress Energy Neighborhood Energy Saver program kick-off will take place June 22 at 6 p.m. at the North Greenwood Recreation Center, 900 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue in Clearwater. Residents will learn about the program and the energy-efficiency improvements, that, when used in conjunction with energy-saving practices, may save homeowners up to $150 a year in energy costs.

Progress Energy Neighborhood Energy Saver team members will install improvements beginning June 23 and will continue through the end of August 2009.

"In today's economy, virtually everyone is looking for new, effective ways to cut costs," said Michael Lewis, senior vice president of Energy Delivery for Progress Energy Florida. "By providing our customers the tools and knowledge to better manage their energy consumption, our Neighborhood Energy Saver program empowers customers to reap significant energy and cost savings without spending a dime."

Each participant will receive up to 16 improvements at no cost, including:

• water heating wraps and insulation for water pipes,
• low-flow faucet aerator and low-flow showerhead,
• refrigerator coil brush and refrigerator thermometer,
• wall plate thermometer,
• HVAC winterization kit,
• water heater temperature check and adjustment, and
• HVAC filters and a filter-change calendar.

Progress Energy Florida also helps reduce energy loss through the installation of door sweeps, caulking, foam insulation, weather stripping and clear patch tape. In addition, the company provides up to five compact fluorescent light bulbs. All measures are at no cost to program participants.

This program targets homes and apartments in the area bordered by Marshall Street, Palmetto Street, North Myrtle Avenue and North Betty Lane. A flyer showing the eligible area is available.

The area outlined above is one of three Florida communities benefitting from the Neighborhood Energy Saver program in 2009. In February, the Neighborhood Energy Saver program expanded to Winter Garden. Later this year, select Haines City residents will also have the opportunity to participate in the program. Federal and state guidelines and census data are used to objectively select communities where the program would be most beneficial.

The Neighborhood Energy Saver program began as a pilot project in 2006, in St. Petersburg's Palmetto Park community. The program was so successful, the company expanded it statewide, to include Apopka, Deland, Perry, Sebring, East Orlando and in other St. Petersburg communities. The Southeastern Electric Exchange awarded the project the 2007 Industry Excellence Award in the Rates & Regulation category. To date, Progress Energy has worked in nearly 5,000 homes to install almost 90,150 energy-efficiency improvements working directly with our customers to educate families on using energy wisely and saving money.

Since 1981, our customers have saved $1 billion by participating in our energy-efficiency programs -- a savings that represents enough electricity conserved by customers to power more than 900,000 homes for a year. These programs have helped eliminate almost 7.6 million tons of CO2 (equal to removing more than 2 million cars off the road every year). Energy efficiency is critical to meeting our state's long-term energy needs. It is the quickest, easiest and most environmentally-friendly way to reduce energy use. During the next decade, the utility anticipates these measures will avoid the need for an additional 1,500 MWs of new generation. For more information on energy-efficiency tips that all homeowners can benefit from, visit www.savethewatts.com.

For more information on energy efficiency tips that all homeowners can benefit from, visit www.savethewatts.com.

Progress Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Progress Energy (NYSE: PGN), provides electricity and related services to more than 1.6 million customers in Florida. The company is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Fla., and serves a territory encompassing more than 20,000 square miles including the cities of St. Petersburg and Clearwater, as well as the Central Florida area surrounding Orlando. Progress Energy Florida is pursuing a balanced approach to meeting the future energy needs of the region. That balance includes increased energy-efficiency programs, investments in renewable energy technologies and a state-of-the-art electricity system. For more information about Progress Energy, visit www.progress-energy.com.

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Media contact: Progress Energy Florida 24-hour media line, 866.520.6397
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