LIPA Provides Green Choice Incentives for Municipalities
Southampton, N.Y. – December 7, 2006 – Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) Chairman Richard M. Kessel today announced a program to provide an incentive to Long Island municipalities that participate in its Green Choice program. LIPA’s Green Choice program is designed to promote the development and use of renewable energy technologies within New York
State and was modeled on the State’s program.
Municipalities participating in LIPA’s Green Choice program, plus those considering enrolling, are making contractual commitments for large amounts of Green Choice attributes. Since municipalities serve a taxpaying constituent base, LIPA has structured the incentive as a way to lessen the financial outlay that must eventually be absorbed in
municipal budgets and paid for by taxpayers. Residential customers, on the other hand, do not have to enter into contracts, and can either elect to participate in the Green Choice program directly or can consider themselves as supporters of the Green Choice concept since their local municipality is a program participant.
“We’re seeking to provide an equitable way of lowering the financial burden carried by those municipalities that participate in the Green Choice program on a long-term contractual basis with Energy Supply Companies (ESCOs) while helping to stimulate the development of renewable energy technologies that will lessen Long Island’s and New
York state’s dependence on fossil fuel-generated electricity,” said LIPA Chairman Richard M. Kessel.
“The Green Choice incentive is a welcome adjustment to a very valuable program,” Southampton Town Supervisor Patrick Heaney. “The Town of Southampton has long supported renewable energy programs and I commend Mr. Kessel for moving ahead with this newest incentive initiative.”
“The more financially attractive LIPA makes its Green Choice Program, the more relevant reusable energy will be in Long Island’s future. This is a step forward,” said Supervisor Philip Cardinale, Town of Riverhead.
LIPA’s municipal incentive will provide up to 1 cent per kilowatt hour for 50% of the actual Green Attributes payments, up to a maximum of $30,000 to participating municipalities. The incentive is designed to reward municipalities that are currently participating in the program and attract new participants. A total of $300,000 has been set aside
annually for the program for a three-year period and the incentives will be retroactive to January 2006.
Mr. Kessel said that LIPA would develop a Green Choice incentive program for residential customers, and would present a plan to the LIPA Board in early 2007.
LIPA, a non-profit municipal electric utility, owns the retail electric Transmission and Distribution System on Long Island and provides electric service to over 1.1 million customers in Nassau and Suffolk counties and the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens. In term of customers served, LIPA is the 3rd largest municipal electric utility in the nation
and is the 6th largest in terms of electricity delivered. LIPA does not provide natural gas service or own any on-island generation assets.
LIPA Contact Information:
Media Relations: (516) 719-9892
Media Pager: (516) 525-LIPA
media.relations@lipower.org
LIPA News Center
http://www.lipower.org/newscenter
LIPA Green Choice
http://www.lipower.org/residential/green.html
