Connecticut Light & Power (CL&P) Chooses Accenture to Conduct CL&P’s Plan-It Wise Energy Program

Results of smart-meter rate pilot will be used to enhance customer service

NEW YORK and BERLIN, Conn. (USA) -- Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has teamed with Connecticut Light & Power Company (CL&P), a subsidiary of Northeast Utilities (NYSE: NU), to conduct CL&P’s Plan-It Wise Energy Program, a pilot program using smart meters to test residential, commercial and industrial customers’ interest in, and response to, peak time-based energy rates.

The pilot, approved by Connecticut’s Department of Public Utility Control, is scheduled to begin in June. CL&P will use findings from the pilot to determine how to best advance the goals of the Connecticut Electricity and Energy Efficiency Act, including lowering Connecticut’s peak energy demand.

With approximately 3,000 CL&P customers participating, the program will be the largest customer-focused smart-metering pilot of its kind in North America. Smart meters are meters located in the home or office that can identify electricity consumption in more detail than conventional meters and automatically send that information back to the utility for monitoring and billing.

Accenture will work with CL&P to implement the smart-metering infrastructure and design and manage the pilot, including the enrollment of customers, customer care programs, employee education, customer bill calculations and meter data management. Accenture will also validate the rate tests to help analyze customer response to various dynamic pricing options, and estimate the amount of demand response energy saved.

“In these times of change, Northeast Utilities is excited about the opportunity this pilot provides to advance the goals of the Connecticut Electricity and Energy Efficiency Act. The pilot will empower customers with actionable information to manage their energy usage and costs more effectively,“ said Jessica Brahaney Cain, CL&P’s Plan-It Wise Energy Program director. ”This pilot will provide an understanding of the customer response to time-based rates, deploying a smart-metering solution to meet the pilot’s objectives. Accenture’s experience and assets in smart metering will help us gain the invaluable insights we need.”

David M. Rouls, a senior executive in Accenture’s Utilities industry group who leads the company’s networked assets solutions practice, said, “Electricity consumption, energy sources and reliability of supply and costs are key issues for the utilities industry and its customers alike. The rate pilot’s findings should help CL&P transform its operations and optimize its infrastructure investments while helping customers manage their energy costs and consumption and providing them with the information needed to manage their personal carbon footprint.”

CL&P and Accenture will run the Plan-It Wise Energy Program through November, with the active customer pilot running from June through August 2009. Accenture will manage a cross-functional team to execute the rate pilot; the team includes Comverge, a provider of demand response technology and energy efficiency solutions; GoodCents, a demand response program operations company; The ITM Group, a utility focused IT solutions provider; Sensus, an advanced metering, home automation and smart grid systems provider; and Trilliant, an advanced metering and intelligent network solutions provider.

About Connecticut Light and Power Company
The Connecticut Light and Power Company (CL&P) has been part of everyday life in Connecticut for more than 100 years, providing safe and reliable electric service to homes, neighborhoods and businesses. With 1.2 million customers in 149 cities and towns, CL&P is an active member in the communities it serves, offering programs in energy conservation, economic development and environmental stewardship. CL&P is part of the Northeast Utilities System (NYSE: NU). For more information, please visit www.cl-p.com.

About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. With more than 186,000 people serving clients in over 120 countries, the company generated net revenues of US$23.39 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2008. Its home page is www.accenture.com.