Direct Energy Steps In To Keep Lights On For Harrisburg Holiday Parade

Pittsburgh, PA (11/3/2011) - Direct Energy announced today that it will be the grand sponsor for Harrisburg's annual holiday parade later this month. Once cancelled due to a lack of funding, the popular holiday tradition for most families in the Greater Harrisburg Region has been resurrected with last minute assistance from Direct Energy and other private sponsors. Beginning at noon on Saturday, November 19th, this year marks the 25th anniversary of the Harrisburg Holiday Parade.

"We are fully committed to helping the communities in which we live and work," says Cory Byzewski, Vice President for Direct Energy. "We wanted to ensure that the city of Harrisburg has its historic parade and this is just one more way for Direct Energy to serve its customers in the community."

Since Direct Energy's business and US North residential groups made the decision in 2009 to establish its North American headquarters in Pittsburgh, the company has seen its work force grow by over 100 people. Today, Direct Energy has almost 400 employees in its Pittsburgh office in Liberty Center. Direct Energy has a positive economic impact of $45 million annually in the state of Pennsylvania, and has committed hundreds of thousands of dollars to help improve education and energy efficiency outreach throughout the state.

As a reflection of Direct Energy's dedication to community investment, it is active with charitable organizations across the state of Pennsylvania. Its employees provided over 4,000 hours of community volunteering in 2010 across the Commonwealth. Locally, Direct Energy partnered with Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13 (IU 13) to help local school districts cut costs on electricity. Additionally, Direct Energy played a role in assisting the Pennsylvania Energy Consortium (PENCON) save money to provide additional funding for its members using Direct Energy's PowerPortfolio™ product.

About Direct Energy

Direct Energy is one of North America's largest energy and energy-related services providers with more than 6 million residential and commercial customer relationships. Direct Energy provides customers with choice and support in managing their energy costs through a portfolio of innovative products and services. A subsidiary of Centrica plc (LSE:CNA), one of the world's leading integrated energy companies, Direct Energy operates in 45 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia and 10 provinces in Canada.

For additional information, contact:

Julie Hendry
Direct Energy
1-412-667-6133
julie.hendry@directenergy.com