GPU CEO joins Energy Secretary O'Leary in Costa Rica.PARSIPPANY, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 8, 1995--The chairman and chief executive officer of General Public Utilities Corp. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :GPU GPU: see secret police. (Graphics Processing Unit) A specialized logic chip devoted to rendering 2D or 3D images. Display adapters contain one or more GPUs for fast graphics rendering. ) says that GPU is ready to invest in projects in Central America Central America, narrow, southernmost region (c.202,200 sq mi/523,698 sq km) of North America, linked to South America at Colombia. It separates the Caribbean from the Pacific. that provide a fair return on GPU's investment and have a demonstrable and positive impact on the environment. At the invitation of Energy Secretary Hazel R. O'Leary Hazel Rollins O'Leary (born May 17, 1937) was the seventh United States Secretary of Energy from 1993 to 1997. She was the first woman and first African American to hold the positon. She is to date the only woman and only African American to serve as Secretary of Energy. , James R. Leva, who is also GPU's president, is participating in an international roundtable discussion in Costa Rica Costa Rica (kŏs`tə rē`kə), officially Republic of Costa Rica, republic (2005 est. pop. 4,016,000), 19,575 sq mi (50,700 sq km), Central America. that will focus on reducing greenhouse gases and contributing to Central American Central America A region of southern North America extending from the southern border of Mexico to the northern border of Colombia. It separates the Caribbean Sea from the Pacific Ocean and is linked to South America by the Isthmus of Panama. nations' economic and social development. The three-day conference, "International Prospects for Joint Implementation, A Workshop for the Americas," is being sponsored by the DOE, several other U.S. government agencies and agencies of the government of Costa Rica. Leva will be part of a roundtable discussion on Friday that will provide additional emphasis on the importance of project development in conjunction with the U.S. Initiative on Joint Implementation, which is provided for in the 1992 U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. The roundtable discussion will be chaired by Secretary O'Leary and Jose Maria Figueres, president of Costa Rica. "I'm delighted to join Secretary O'Leary in this historic opportunity," Leva said. "GPU has made a firm commitment to improving the environment by signing the DOE Climate Challenge Program Accord. This trip affirms our commitment to reduce or sequester sequester v. to keep separate or apart. In so-called "high-profile" criminal prosecutions (involving major crimes, events, or persons given wide publicity) the jury is sometimes "sequestered" in a hotel without access to news media, the general public or their greenhouse gases. "By going to Costa Rica, GPU is sending a message that we are interested in forming partnerships so we can invest in the region in a way that preserves the environment and produces a healthy return for GPU," Leva said. Secretary O'Leary said, "It is my hope that this workshop will serve as a catalyst for new projects with ample opportunity for project developers, intermediaries and investors to meet and discuss project opportunities. "The U.S. can play a major role in shaping the international joint implementation regime through pilot projects, and establish a leadership position in what I believe will be a growing market," she said. One of only two U.S. electric utility executives to participate in the roundtable discussion, Leva said that GPU is participating in a groundbreaking project in South America. "Through our Energy Initiatives subsidiary, we are 25 percent investors in a 750-megawatt gas-fired, combined-cycle plant in Colombia that will not only be the cleanest plant in that country, but whose emission levels will be below Colombian requirements," Leva said. "More importantly, this project exemplifies the kind of role we would like to play in Costa Rica and Central America: sound business investments that protect the environment," he added. When it signed the Climate Challenge Program Accord in February, GPU committed to reducing or avoiding an average of 1.4 million tons of carbon dioxide carbon dioxide, chemical compound, CO2, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is about one and one-half times as dense as air under ordinary conditions of temperature and pressure. emissions annually between 1991 and 2000. In 1995 alone, GPU will spend some $21 million on 28 research and development programs designed to avoid, reduce or sequester greenhouse gases. GPU is participating in all five Climate Challenge Accord initiatives: the International Utility Efficiency Partnership, the Utility Forest Carbon Management Program, the Geothermal Heat Pump A geothermal heat pump system is a heating and/or an air conditioning system that uses the Earth's ability to store heat in the ground and water thermal masses. This system will take advantage of a land mass as a heat exchanger to either heat or cool a building structure. Consortium Inc., the EnviroTech Investment Fund and EV America. Co-sponsors of the workshop are the DOE, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and , the Central American Commission for Environment and Development, the Costa Rican Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mines, the Costa Rican Coalition for Development Incentives and the Costa Rican Forestry Chamber. CONTACT: General Public Utilities Corp. John T. Fidler, 201/263-6500 or 201/263-6479 |
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