SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (Jan. 7, 2004) -- The Edison Electric Institute today honored Progress Energy as a winner of the association's "Emergency Response Award" for outstanding efforts to restore electric power to its customers in the wake of a catastrophic ice storm that wreaked havoc in central North Carolina last December. This marks the fourth time Progress Energy has won the award since the program's inception six years ago. The only company to receive the award four times, Progress Energy was also commended for its response following Hurricanes Bonnie (1998) and Floyd (1999), and the major January 2000 winter storm in the Carolinas.

Given annually to shareholder-owned electric companies, the award recognizes superlative efforts to restore electric service that has been disrupted by severe weather conditions or other natural events. Winners are chosen by a panel of judges following a national nomination process. This year's award was presented during EEI's CEO and Board of Directors meeting in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The 2002 winter storm turned out to be the most devastating ice storm in North Carolina's history. On the evening of December 4, a freezing rain began to fall, and by 8 a.m. Dec. 5, more than 464,000 customers in the company's northern region were without power.

The loss of electrical service, coupled with accumulating ice, downed trees and cold temperatures not only created difficult conditions for area customers, but posed significant challenges to Progress Energy's repair crews as well. However, extensive storm-recovery plans, which are updated and practiced throughout the year, meant that virtually all customers enjoyed restored power within seven days of the start of the full-scale recovery efforts, a remarkable fact considering the widespread nature of the damage.

Recognizing the company for "outstanding work under challenging conditions," EEI president Thomas R. Kuhn commended Progress Energy's extensive storm-recovery plans. "The combination of advance planning and dedicated, hard-working employees significantly reduced the disruption endured by customers throughout central North Carolina."

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Edison Electric Institute (EEI) is the association of United Statesinvestor-owned electric utilities and industry affiliates and associates worldwide. Its domestic members generate approximately three-quarters of all the electricity generated by electric utilities in the country and serve about 70 percent of all ultimate customers in the nation.