(Allentown, PA) - There’s a new financial rebate program to help small business owners ease the expense of implementing energy-efficiency measures in their shops or stores. Sustainable Energy Fund (SEF) and PPL Electric Utilities are co-sponsoring the Small Business Lighting Retrofit Rebate Program.

If a company or business has less than 100 employees, has operated at the same location as a PPL Electric Utilities customer for at least three years, and has a good-standing credit history with PPL Electric Utilities, it may be eligible to apply to SEF for this lighting rebate program. For other specific qualifications to be eligible for this program, please visit www.thesef.org.

Lighting retrofits are one of the best ways a business can realize energy savings for the future. Lighting upgrades generate solid kWh savings, have straight-forward calculations, and cost less than larger energy efficiency measures. Qualified project applicants must use Energy Star qualified products. To research lighting product information, please visit www.energystar.gov/smallbiz.

"SEF is pleased to partner with PPL Electric Utilities to offer a rebate for businesses that want to upgrade their lighting systems," says Jennifer Hopkins, president of SEF. "This rebate will help offset the immediate expense while the energy savings will benefit the company into the future."

Only one rebate is available per business entity name for a project that will cost at least $5,000. For eligible projects which cost between $5,000 and $10,000, at the completion of the project, a business owner will receive a rebate based on 20% of the project’s total cost.

In this rebate program there is a cap of $2,000 per business. A Small Business Lighting Retrofit Application must be filled out and submitted to SEF to confirm eligibility. The deadline for submitting applications is August 31, 2008.

After the work is completed SEF requires business owners to submit documentation of the scope of work, proof of purchase of all installed energy efficient products, and a copy of the electrical certification report. The rebate will be paid after you submit documentation to SEF that all program requirements have been met. An electrical energy audit will be conducted on a random sampling of completed projects. This will not be at the expense of any business owner.

For further information and an application, please visit www.thesef.org/programs. You may also send an email to jmarakovits@thesef.org or call (610) 264-4440 ext. 15 with questions. Please complete and return the application with the requested items as listed on the rebate application.

ENERGY STAR was introduced by EPA in 1992 as a voluntary, market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. Today, the ENERGY STAR label can be found on more than 50 different kinds of products, new homes as well as schools and commercial buildings. Products that have earned the ENERGY STAR prevent greenhouse gas emissions by meeting strict energy-efficiency specifications set by the government. In 2007 alone, Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, saved more than $16 billion on their utility bills while reducing the greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of 27 million vehicles. For more information, visit: www.energystar.gov

Sustainable Energy Fund was established in 1999 as part of a settlement approved by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. It is a private, 501(c) 3 non-profit organization that promotes energy efficiency, renewable energy, and energy education initiatives in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, with a focus on eastern and central PA.