CIN Cinergy Corp

Cinergy/CG&E and Cinergy/ULH&P announced today that they are making special gifts to help lower-income residents with winter heating bills and are doubling their matching gifts for customer donations. Cinergy/CG&E will make a $100,000 donation to the HeatShare fund in Ohio, and Cinergy/ULH&P will make a $25,000 contribution to the WinterCare fund in Northern Kentucky. In addition, customer contributions to the funds will be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis up to $100,000 in Ohio and $25,000 in Kentucky by the Cinergy. With the increased match, HeatShare could reach $300,000 and WinterCare $75,000, if customers donate at the maximum matching level. Previously, the companies matched $1 for every $2 of customer contributions. "With record high natural gas prices predicted for this winter, we need to prepare now to assist lower-income customers who may have difficulty keeping up with heating costs," said Greg Ficke, president of Cinergy/CG&E and Cinergy/ULH&P. "Heating assistance funds are going to be more important than ever. We encourage our customers to help out by partnering with us through donations to HeatShare and WinterCare that we will match." Customers may make donations on their utility bill by adding an amount to their monthly payment and noting it on the HeatShare/WinterCare line in the upper righthand corner of the bill. "It only takes a small contribution like a dollar a month to make a real difference in the lives of the people who are most impacted by higher energy costs," said Ficke. "Our area has shown great generosity to the people whose lives were turned upside down by the hurricanes, and we hope to see similar support for those here at home." HeatShare in Ohio, which is administered by The Salvation Army and generally has funds available in late January, is designed to provide direct financial assistance for low income, elderly and other customers who may not be eligible for other programs or assistance. WinterCare in Kentucky is administered through the Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission for low income and elderly residents with funds available in January. Last year, HeatShare assisted approximately 700 families with $178,000 in customer donations and company matching funds, while WinterCare assisted approximately 400 with $41,000 in customer donations and company matching funds. Cinergy/CG&E and Cinergy/ULH&P are utility affiliates of Cinergy Corp. (NYSE:CIN), which has a balanced, integrated portfolio consisting of two core businesses: regulated operations and commercial businesses. Cinergy's regulated public utilities in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky serve 1.5 million electric customers and about 500,000 gas customers. In addition, its Indiana regulated company owns 7,000 megawatts of generation. Cinergy's competitive commercial businesses have 6,300 megawatts of generating capacity with a profitable balance of stable existing customer portfolios, new customer origination, marketing and trading, and industrial-site cogeneration. Cinergy's integrated businesses make it a Midwest leader in providing both low-cost generation and reliable electric and gas service.