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GE not only produces appliances that are energy efficient, but now will introduce innovative products that efficiently consume power more intelligently

Receives fourth straight EPA/DOE ENERGY STAR® Sustained Excellence Award

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — The U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have awarded GE Consumer & Industrial the ENERGY STAR® Sustained Excellence award for the fourth straight year. Also this marks the sixth year GE has been acknowledged as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year. These awards recognize GE's tremendous efforts to create high-performance household appliance and lighting products that help reduce energy spending and protect the environment.

In 2008, the number of ENERGY STAR qualified appliance base models was up 26.5% from the previous year for a total of 563 models. In fact, 54% of the GE appliance products are ENERGY STAR qualified. The number of ENERGY STAR qualified lighting models grew in 2008 to a total of 271. The majority, 99.3%, of the 2008 GE Compact Fluorescent lamp sales were ENERGY STAR qualified models.

"The ENERGY STAR awards represent achievements the Department of Energy is proud to recognize as they represent notable progress or sustained excellence in working to secure our energy future,” explained Richard H. Karney, DOE ENERGY STAR Program Manager. “In 2009, our partners receiving these awards demonstrated superb commitment to advancing the adoption of energy efficient products and addressing our environmental challenges," he continued.

GE has been an active supporter of the ENERGY STAR program through a variety of methods, including broad consumer and customer education, participation in national and regional ENERGY STAR events, and the promotion of ENERGY STAR products to consumers and homebuilders.

New Energy-Saving Products from GE:

GE has introduced the world's first truly incandescent-shaped Energy Smart® CFL bulb. Miniaturized electronics developed by GE Consumer & Industrial engineers and scientists are the enabling technology of a new covered GE Energy Smart compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb featuring the GE Spiral® CFL inside the glass bulb. With this new CFL-an exclusive design achievement that GE has protected with more than a dozen U.S. patent applications-the electronics fit in the neck of the bulb. The result is a profile that's virtually identical to a standard incandescent light bulb. GE anticipates its new 15-watt incandescent-shaped covered Energy Smart® CFL will appeal to people that want the energy savings and long-life performance of a GE Energy Smart® Spiral® CFL with the appearance, size and fit of a traditional incandescent bulb.

In April 2008, GE was proud to introduce two innovative water heaters that were the first to meet new 2009 ENERGY STAR requirements. GE was one of the key participants in the criteria-development process and urged the DOE to adopt aggressive standards for high –efficiency ENERGY STAR water heaters. The GE Tankless Gas Water Heater, currently available, and the GE Hybrid Electric Water Heater, available later this year, represent the latest in a series of GE appliances designed to help energy efficiency in the home.

The innovative new GE Hybrid Electric Water Heater is designed to provide the same hot water homeowners are accustomed to, but requires only about half the energy to produce it. For example, based on the same standard tank water heater that uses approximately 4800 kWh per year, the new GE Hybrid Electric Water Heater is designed to:

Use less than half of that energy – or about 2300 kWh per year–a savings of approximately 2500 kWh per year
Save approximately $250 per year—based on 10 cents per kWh.

GE Is Leading the Way in Energy Management too:

“Now that ENERGY STAR® appliances are recognized by 75 percent of American consumers, the next step is to reshape when energy is being used,” said Kevin Nolan, Vice President Technology for GE Consumer & Industrial. “Peak hour energy demand is growing faster than total energy demand. It is imperative that we begin to shift some of the energy load from peak hours to other parts of the day -- helping to avoid the need to build new power plants to meet the demand,” he explained.

In the first Quarter of 2009, GE will introduce a suite of “smart” appliances or Energy Management Enabled Appliances These GE appliances will be enabled to receive a signal from the local utility companies that are participating in tiered rate programs to help consumers manage their peak energy usage. The appliances will receive the control signal that utility rates are high and react based on the appliance’s internal programming.

Within 10 years, energy management enabled appliances could easily occupy the market space held by ENERGY STAR qualified products today. GE is investing in these appliances today, and – by doing so – will be ready to help consumers use less energy and reduce their utility costs in the future.

Currently most utility company rates are the same throughout the day. However, many utility companies across the country are considering a time-of-use pricing structure so that consumers can avoid using energy during critical peak hours (typically between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.) and save money.

“At GE, we believe that peak load reduction is the next opportunity in energy saving appliances. We believe that smart, energy management enabled appliances will be the next phase of innovation,” explained Nolan. “It’s not enough to simply use less power, as ENERGY STAR encourages today, we now need to consume our power more intelligently.”

GE Consumer & Industrial spans the globe as an industry leader in major appliances, lighting and integrated industrial equipment, systems and services. Providing solutions for commercial, industrial and residential use in more than 100 countries, GE Consumer & Industrial uses innovative technologies and ecomaginationSM, a GE initiative to aggressively bring to market new technologies that help customers and consumers meet pressing environmental challenges, to deliver comfort, convenience and electrical protection and control. General Electric (NYSE: GE), imagination at work, sells products under the Monogram®, Profile™, GE®, Hotpoint®, SmartWater™, Reveal® and Energy Smart® consumer brands, and Entellisys®, Tetra®, Vio™ and Immersion® commercial brands. For more information, consumers may visit www.ge.com.

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