Providence Energy Selected to Manage Energy Savings Project at Salve Regina University.

PROVIDENCE, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 6, 1997--In an innovative move to cut its energy bills, Salve Regina University has selected Providence Energy Corporation to provide energy management services for the development and implementation of a comprehensive energy plan.

The plan includes utilization of the latest energy management technology, installation of insulation, conversion of many campus buildings to natural gas, and a variety of other energy measures.

"This partnership between Providence Energy and Salve Regina University is an excellent example of how the company's full range of energy expertise and service can bring broad benefits to our customers," said James H. Dodge, Chairman and CEO of Providence Energy. "We're delighted to be working with the University in a program that will result in substantial cost savings for the school."

The formal agreement between the University and the Corporation is the result of an extensive energy audit that included an analysis of 38 campus buildings and each building s consumption of natural gas, electricity and heating oil. Each building was evaluated on the basis of how much energy could be conserved and what the cost savings per building would be. Additionally, problem areas such as outmoded heating systems and single zone heating in large buildings were studied for remedial action that would result in greater comfort and reliability.

"We have a number of older buildings on our campus, many dating back to the 19th century," said William B. Hall, Vice President, Business and Financial Affairs, of Salve Regina. "The cost of operating those buildings is continuing to grow. We were looking for ways to reduce those costs and Providence Energy came back to us with a very interesting proposal that will modernize our facilities and maximize our control over energy spending."

The cost of the project, which is just beginning and is expected to be completed in about six months, is estimated at $1.5 million. "We believe that this project will have both immediate and long-term benefits and that it will pay for itself," said Mr. Hall.

"One key aspect of the project provides the University with a centralized energy management system that will be infinitely easier to control than traditional heating systems that required scores of wall thermostats and stand alone controls," said James A. Grasso, Vice President of Public and Government Affairs at Providence Energy.

Salve Regina is a coeducational liberal arts university in Newport, Rhode Island, offering over 40 major concentrations to more than 1,600 undergraduate students and 16 major concentrations to over 500 graduate students. The University maintains a campus situated in Newport s Historic Ochre Point District, and among its 26 properties are several buildings of historic value including Ochre Court, designed in the late 1880 s by Richard Morris Hunt, and the William Watts Sherman House, an 1876 design by Henry Hobson Richardson which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Providence Energy Corporation is a diversified energy services company. The Corporation owns and operates two natural gas distribution companies, the Providence Gas Company, which is the largest natural gas distributor in Rhode Island, and North Attleboro Gas Company in Massachusetts. The Corporation has recently joined with the Southern Company of Atlanta, Georgia, to form a new company, Providence-Southern, LLC, to market natural gas and electricity throughout the New England market.

CONTACT: Providence Energy

James A. Grasso

[phone], Ext. 2340

or

Providence Energy

Maryann Pernorio

[phone], Ext. 2274