CONTACT INFORMATION

Nexus Energy Software
www.nexusenergy.com

Bob Whittemore
BWhittemore@nexusenergy.com

WELLESLEY MA, June 8, 2005 – Southern California Edison (SCE), San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E), and Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) are conducting a joint pilot this summer of enhanced bill information as a method to reduce peak summer electric demand under critical peak pricing rates. The project is part of the California Statewide Pricing Pilot begun in 2003 to evaluate the potential peak demand reduction benefits of time-based rates. This tool will be beneficial and will enhance the value of an advanced meter infrastructure (AMI) currently under consideration for all homes and businesses in California.

Nexus Energy Software was chosen to provide a Web-based energy bill analysis system for customers on the pricing pilot. Based on customer-provided survey information and hourly meter data, customers receive a monthly bill “Scorecard” with a personalized examination of the costs of air conditioning, lighting, and other appliances during critical peak periods, and what can be saved by managing how those appliances are used.

Last year, Nexus prototyped the “Scorecard” software. A refined version is being deployed this year on a larger sample of customers, including a personalized web page for each participant, as well as monthly emails and notices the evening before a “Critical Peak” day, when rates are especially high from 2 to 7 PM. Customers without Internet access will receive mail reports.

Opinion Dynamics and EPRI Solutions are providing market research and evaluation services to determine the effectiveness of the bill information, comparing the participating customers to a control group of similar customers on the same rate.

“The goal is to give us a better understanding of how customers can interact with information that is designed to help them understand their energy use so they can improve their energy use habits,” said Mark Martinez, Manager of Program Development for Southern California Edison.

“Enhanced Information is defined as real-time feedback and specialized energy reports available on the Internet.” “The results from last year's pilot indicated that customer behavior actually did improve and energy usage was reduced,” he added. “In this next phase, we'll investigate new, better-designed applications and examine the persistence of this savings behavior. This is a complicated tariff and a challenge for customers to understand, but with applications that provide a good interactive web experience, we’ll be able to provide state policy makers, utilities, and market researchers with good, solid information on customer behavior and energy savings.”

"Nexus is focused on supporting utilities with Web-based customer communication. We have found that customers respond more to price signals when the energy bill is presented in the customer’s language, with an explanation of how their choices on comfort, lighting, and hot water, for example, affect their bill," said Harvey Michaels, Chairman and CEO of Nexus. "Working with the California utilities on this and other projects, we appreciate that we were chosen to test whether an enhanced energy bill is an important component of the state’s plan to reduce energy costs by encouraging the wise use of energy, as well as a way to encourage customers to use lower-cost Web communications for billing and customer service."

About Nexus Energy Software
Nexus’ proven analytics-based software solutions provide energy companies with greater customer insight and more effective customer interactions across all customer channels, while enhancing key back-office enterprise functions. Nexus’ browser-based product lines work together to transform both energy company and customer views of energy, in order to reduce costs of business services, optimize assets, and reduce natural resources required to meet demand, while becoming more responsive to customer needs.

Nexus' solutions, in use by more than 75 energy companies worldwide, are supported by offices in Boston, San Francisco, Phoenix, and Washington DC metropolitan areas and can be viewed on-line at: www.nexusenergy.com.

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