SAN FRANCISCO, April 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), working closely with its customers and developers, connected 805 megawatts (MW) of new solar electric power generation to the energy grid last year, a milestone that earned the company top honors from the Solar Energy Power Association (SEPA) as the electric utility that led the nation in the amount of solar added in 2012.
This marks the fifth year in a row that PG&E has been recognized by SEPA as the #1 ranked utility in new solar installations.
"We are pleased at this significant recognition from SEPA and at the ongoing success of our efforts to help our customers enjoy the benefits of solar," said Steve Malnight, Vice President for Customer Energy Solutions at PG&E. "We remain committed to delivering clean, reliable, affordable and safe energy to all of our customers."
PG&E serves over five million electric customers in Central and Northern California. The utility supplies some of the cleanest energy in the United States, with nearly 60 percent coming from sources that are renewable or emit no greenhouse gases. Solar plays a major role as PG&E continues to increase its renewable energy portfolio.
"We are pleased that PG&E maintained its leadership position in solar installations," remarked Julia Hamm, president and CEO of SEPA. "In 2012, new installations from our Top 10 list resulted in almost 1,500 megawatts of additional new solar connected to the grid, a doubling in new solar capacity from two years ago. Both the number of systems and the amount of new capacity made solar electricity the fastest growing electric source in the U.S. in 2012. SEPA will continue to promote our utility leaders and encourage widespread solar adoption to ensure a clean, diverse energy mix for the future."
PG&E helped more than 17,500 customers in Northern and Central California connect 187 MW of solar at their homes and business in 2012, bringing the total number of customer solar installations to more than 80,000. It also connected 618 MW of new large solar projects for the benefit of all customers.
SEPA is an educational non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., dedicated to helping utilities integrate solar power into their energy portfolios. The SEPA Top 10 Utility Solar Rankings report is one of many market intelligence, utility interaction and educational services SEPA provides to its utility and solar industry members. For more information about SEPA, visit its website at www.solarelectricpower.org
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric utilities in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation's cleanest energy to 15 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit http://www.pge.com/about/newsroom/ and www.pgecurrents.com.
SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)