FortisBC earns national ENERGY STAR award
By Contributor
FortisBC’s unique approach in encouraging customers to save energy and purchase ENERGY STAR products has earned it the ENERGY STAR Utility of the Year (Regional) award at a ceremony this week in Ottawa.
“Providing our electricity customers with rebates for the most energy efficient products available is an important way we help them conserve energy,” stated Tom Loski, vice-president, customer service, FortisBC. “We’re proud that our approach of working directly with customers and retailers through our PowerSense program has earned national recognition. We’re also proud of the energy savings our customers have been able to attain and look forward to continued success in this area.”
Presented by the Ministry of Natural Resources, the ENERGY STAR Market Transformation Awards recognize leadership in promoting energy efficiency in Canada and are presented to utility providers, manufacturers, retailers and other organizations that have shown leadership and commitment in manufacturing, marketing and promoting energy efficient products.
The FortisBC PowerSense program achieved recognition through the popular 2011 laundry line campaign which encouraged customers to use laundry lines rather than clothes dryers, and to select Tier 3 ENERGY STAR-qualified clothes washers. PowerSense distributed 10,000 free laundry lines to customers throughout its service area at 51 events in 32 communities from June to August. As a result of the campaign, FortisBC customers purchased 918 ENERGY STAR-qualified washers during the program: an increase of almost 300 per cent over the same period in 2010. FortisBC plans to repeat the campaign again this year.
In addition to clothes washer rebates, the FortisBC PowerSense program also provides rebates to FortisBC electricity customers on top tier ENERGY STAR-qualified dishwashers, refrigerators, freezers, windows and doors. FortisBC also collaborates with a number of retail chains in southern B.C. to implement seasonal rebate programs for ENERGY STAR-qualified light bulbs.
David Anderson, parliamentary secretary to Joe Oliver, announced the winners at an event in Ottawa earlier this week. This year, 12 organizations in 13 categories were recognized for their excellence in advancing the ENERGY STAR brand in Canada. FortisBC joined Hydro-Quebec as the two utilities recognized.
For more information on energy efficiency tips, rebates and programs to help save energy in homes or businesses, contact a local PowerSense representative by calling 1-866-436-7847, emailing powersense@fortisbc.com or visiting fortisbc.com.
FortisBC is committed to helping customers conserve energy and get the most out of their energy dollar by providing both financial incentives and advice on energy efficient technologies and practices. Since its inception in 1989, FortisBC’s PowerSense program has helped southern interior electricity customers save more than 425 gigawatt hours (GWh), enough electricity to power over 32,000 homes for a year.
This article is a press release from FortisBC.
