New York, NY (March 17, 2008) --- States participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), an agreement among the Governors of ten Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states to reduce greenhouse gases from power plants, announced today that the first ever CO2 allowance auction in the nation for a mandatory emissions reduction program will take place on September 10, 2008.

The states participating in RGGI have agreed to participate in quarterly uniform regional auctions for the allowances that each state will be offering for sale. The second quarterly auction is scheduled to be held on December 17, 2008. The first compliance period for the RGGI cap-and-trade program will begin January 1, 2009. In conducting regional auctions, the RGGI states have come to agreement on a number of design elements. More information about these design elements can be found at http://www.rggi.org.

“Climate change is the most significant environmental problem of our generation”, said Pete Grannis, the Chair of RGGI, Inc. and Commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. “Absent federal leadership, the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states of RGGI are taking action to cut greenhouse gas emissions and reduce their impact on the environment. Our CO2 auction will be the first in the nation and it is one that should be replicated at the federal level,” continued Grannis.

To support the implementation of the RGGI program by the participating states, RGGI, Inc., through a competitive selection process, has selected several companies that will each deliver critically important services. World Energy Solutions, Inc. was selected to provide services related to the design and implementation of a regional allowance auction. Perrin Quarles Associates, Inc. (PQA) was selected to provide services related to the development and implementation of an emissions and allowance tracking system. ICF International was selected to provide services to support the implementation of the emissions offset component of the RGGI program, including the development of model application and submittal documents and model guidance documents. Greenhouse Gas Management Institute was selected to provide services related to the development of an accreditation process for independent verifiers of offset projects.

These selections are tentative pending the outcome of a contract negotiation process and final agreement of contract terms and conditions.

“We look forward to working with all of these vendors in support of the implementation of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative’s CO2 cap-and-trade system,” said Chairman Grannis.

About RGGI, Inc.

RGGI, Inc. was created in September 2007, to provide technical support to the states participating in RGGI, in order to facilitate the administration of the regional RGGI cap-and-trade program. RGGI, Inc. is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization. More information about RGGI, Inc. is available at http://www.rggi.org/ro.htm.

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