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Puget Energy, Inc. (PSE)

Type	Public (NYSE: PSD)
Founded	Seattle, Washington, 1873
Headquarters	Bellevue, Washington
Key people	Steven Reynolds, Chairman, President and CEO
Industry	Energy, private utility
Products	Electricity and natural gas
Revenue	$2,905. Mil. (2006 Sales)
Employees	2,400
Website	www.pse.com

Puget Sound Energy (PSE) is an energy company providing electrical power and natural gas in the Puget Sound region of the northwest United States. It serves electrical power to more than 1 million customers in Island, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Pierce, Skagit, Thurston, and Whatcom counties. It provides natural gas to more than 720,000 customers in King, Kittitas, Lewis, Pierce, Snohomish and Thurston counties. The company owns fossil-fuel, hydroelectric, and wind-power plants with more than 2,400 megawatts (MW) of capacity. The company's largest power generation asset comes from the Colstrip coal-fired power plants in Montana, which accounts for approximately 60% of the company's owned power generation.^[1]

PSE relies on coal-fired energy generation for 37% of its power supply fuel mix^[2]. PSE is Washington State's largest consumer of coal power and was responsible for approximately 58% of the state's coal power consumption in 2008^[3].

PSE derives approximately 42 percent of its electricity from hydroelectric power.^[4] The company operates these hydroelectric facilities:

• The Baker River Hydroelectric Project on the Baker River, a tributary of the Skagit River in Skagit County. There are two dams on the river, generating 175 MW of electric power.
• Two power plants at Snoqualmie Falls, on the Snoqualmie River in King County. The two power plants generate 44 MW of electric power.
• The Electron Hydroelectric Project on the Puyallup River in Pierce County generates 26 MW of electric power.

PSE derives under 1 percent^[5] of its electricity from renewable sources (besides hydropower). The company owns and operates these wind-power facilities:

• The Hopkins Ridge Wind Facility in southeast Washington’s Columbia County. Hopkins Ridge’s 83 wind turbines generate 150 MW of electric power.
• The Wild Horse Wind Farm in central Washington’s Kittitas County. Wild Horse’s 127 wind turbines generate 229 MW of electric power.

History

The company was formed in 1997 when the region's largest natural gas supplier, Washington Natural Gas, merged with the region's largest non-governmental supplier of electricity, Puget Sound Power & Light (commonly referred to as "Puget Power" until the merger).

In 2008, PSE proposed a merger into Puget Holdings, an investor group led by the Macquarie Group, which specializes in privatizing public companies, utilities and roads.

References