Hampton, NH – March 27, 2000: Unitil Corporation (AMEX: UTL) (www.unitil.com) today announced a Pilot program partnership with the New York City Housing Authority in which the Authority will utilize the Usource Internet energy procurement system for acquisition of its current gas requirements. An initial acquisition of 6 Billion Cubic Feet of natural gas will be posted for bid, to be followed by additional gas purchases over time.
The New York City Housing Authority is one of the largest energy consumers in the City of New York and provides utility services to housing units throughout the City. Acquiring its energy requirements through the Usource Internet procurement system is expected to provide savings in energy costs and the costs of acquisition and administration.
"We are pleased to be doing business through Usource – the system streamlines our RFQ bidding acquisition process and gives us access to the full range of potential suppliers," according to John G. Martinez, Chairman of the New York City Housing Authority. "We will be very interested in seeing the response to the initial posting of our natural gas needs."
"The New York Housing Authority has proven it is in the vanguard of public agencies by choosing to do business over the Internet," said Unitil CEO Robert G. Schoenberger. "Unitil is committed to providing the Authority with exceptional service and a highly effective, cost-efficient energy procurement experience. We truly believe this is the way the energy business will be done in the future."
Usource allows large commercial/industrial customers to post their energy needs on the Internet for evaluation and bid by over 50 pre-qualified suppliers. If the supplier offers a price the buyer wants, and the supplier meets the buyer’s terms and conditions, the deal is done. Unlike many Internet sites that merely compare prices for standard offers by suppliers, Usource is a live marketplace in which suppliers make firm bids against firm commitments by customers to buy their electricity and gas. Usource runs on the sophisticated transaction-based software and energy commodity Exchange developed and licensed by Enermetrix.com. (http://www.enermetrix.com/), a privately held company headquartered in Maynard, MA.
Unitil is a public utility holding company with subsidiaries providing electric service in New Hampshire and electric and gas service in Massachusetts and energy services throughout the Northeast. The Usource product line is operated by its subsidiary Unitil Resources, Inc., and is available at www.unitil.com. Unitil’s other subsidiaries include Concord Electric Company, Exeter & Hampton Electric Company, Fitchburg Gas and Electric Light Company, Unitil Power Corp., Unitil Realty Corp. and Unitil Service Corp.
For more information on Usource, visit Unitil at www.unitil.com or call Todd Black, Vice President, Sales and Marketing at 603-773-6530.
Contact
Todd Black
black@usourceonline.com
Corporate Office
Liberty Lane West
Hampton, NH 03842-1720
800/999-6501
