Sam's Club, PG&E and Sylvania Partner to Reduce California's Carbon Footprint

BAKERSFIELD, Calif., Oct. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Sam's Club, one of the nation's largest warehouse clubs, OSRAM SYLVANIA, the North American lighting leader, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), the largest combination natural gas and electric utility, have joined together to save California consumers millions of dollars each year through a special program highlighting ENERGY STAR (R) qualified SYLVANIA compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). The bulbs are available in five California Sam's Club locations: Bakersfield, Concord, Fresno, Vacaville and Yuba City.

As part of this program, SYLVANIA is offering special savings on energy- saving CFLs at the participating Sam's Club locations. California residents who purchase the CFL's will see long term savings on their utility bills as a result of switching to these more efficient bulbs. The program directly reflects the three companies' commitment to helping Californians light their spaces, protect their wallets and help the planet.

All SYLVANIA CFLs sold in Sam's Club carry the ENERGY STAR label for energy efficiency. "SYLVANIA CFLs last about seven years and use 75 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs," explains Cherie Downey residential utility program manager for OSRAM SYLVANIA.

According to the US Department of Energy, Americans use about one-quarter of their electricity consumption on lighting, at a cost of more than $37 billion annually. By simply changing some of the incandescent lamps in their homes to CFLs, California residents will see a reduction in monthly electricity bills.

More specifically, ENERGY STAR-qualified CFLs save over $30 in electricity costs per bulb over its lifetime (based on a minimum life of 6,000 hours at $0.10 kWh). According to Jennifer Dolin, OSI environmental marketing manager, the number of Sylvania CFLs sold at Sam's Club during this program to date has eliminated over 19,400,000 pounds of carbon dioxide. Customers will start saving money right away; a grant from PG&E enabled purchasers to save anywhere from 50 to 90 percent off an assortment of Sylvania CFL bulbs. CFL sales at these select Sam's Club locations to date resulted in an achieved energy savings of over 16,370,000 kWh per year and more than $2.4 million electricity costs.

"Sam's Club is very pleased with SYLVANIA's performance and PG&E's support in the program," said Shane Dickerson, Sam's Club market manager. "The success of this incentive really opens doors for furthering this partnership and continuing to service our Members and our environment." Keith Reed, PG&E customer energy efficiency manager, added that "switching to new, energy efficient CFLs is the easiest way to conserve energy, save money and reduce CO2 emissions."

About Sam's Club

Sam's Club is a division of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., . The first Sam's Club opened its doors in Midwest City, Oklahoma in 1983. Today, Sam's Club serves more than 47 million U.S. members with locations nationwide, and in Brazil, Canada, China, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Sam's Club offers exceptional values on merchandise and services for business owners and consumers. Online merchandise and club information is available at samsclub.com.

About Pacific Gas and Electric Company

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, incorporated in California in 1905, is one of the largest combination natural gas and electric utilities in the United States. Based in San Francisco, the company is a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation. Pacific Gas and Electric Company's primary business is the transmission and delivery of energy. The company provides natural gas and electric service to approximately 15 million people throughout a 70,000- square-mile service area in northern and central California. Pacific Gas and Electric Company and other utilities in the state are regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission.

About OSRAM SYLVANIA

OSRAM SYLVANIA is a leader in lighting solutions and specialty products that feature innovative design and energy saving technology. The company sells products for homes, businesses and vehicles primarily under the SYLVANIA brand name, and also under the OSRAM brand. Headquartered in Danvers, Mass., OSRAM SYLVANIA is the North American operation of OSRAM GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Siemens AG. For more information, visit http://www.sylvania.com/.