LOS ANGELES, April 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- For the second consecutive year, Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) has received the highest business customer satisfaction ranking among natural gas utilities in the Western United States, according to the J.D. Power 2014 Gas Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study^SM.

"The recognition by J.D. Power honors the hard work and dedication of more than 8,000 SoCalGas employees who provide safe, reliable and outstanding service to our customers every day," said Dennis Arriola, president and chief executive officer for SoCalGas. "We are very proud of this achievement and I want to thank our employees for putting SoCalGas on top two straight years. We also thank our business customers for acknowledging our commitment to providing safe, reliable and affordable service to them and the communities we serve."

Now in its ninth year, the study measures customer satisfaction among business customers with their gas utility company in four regions: East, Midwest, South and West. Each of the 54 brands included in the study serve at least 25,000 business customers, or 3.5 million in total. Overall satisfaction is measured by examining six factors: billing and payment; corporate citizenship; price; communications; customer service; and field service.

In addition to receiving the study's highest regional ranking, SoCalGas was a strong performer in Billing and Payment, Communications, Corporate Citizenship and Price, earning the top ranking for those factors in the West Region. The 2014 Gas Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study is based on responses from more than 9,500 online interviews with business customers. The study was fielded from May through July 2013 and October through December 2013. More information on the J.D. Power study can be found at www.jdpower.com.

About Southern California Gas Co.

Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) has been delivering clean, safe and reliable natural gas to its customers for more than 140 years. It is the nation's largest natural gas distribution utility, providing safe and reliable energy to 20.9 million consumers through 5.8 million meters in more than 500 communities. The company's service territory encompasses approximately 20,000 square miles in diverse terrain throughout Central and Southern California, from Visalia to the Mexican border. SoCalGas is a regulated subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE). Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company.

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SOURCE Southern California Gas Co.