SAN DIEGO, May 8, 2009 – Just one year after setting an ambitious goal of concentrating 30 percent of their purchases with diverse business enterprises (DBEs), San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and Southern California Gas Co. (The Gas Company) today announced that they have achieved the milestone ahead of schedule.

        “This is a significant accomplishment for SDG&E and The Gas Company," said Debra L. Reed, president and chief executive officer of SDG&E and The Gas Company.   "We’re proud of our long-standing commitment to develop a diverse employee and supplier base that reflects the communities in which we operate.”

        Together, SDG&E and The Gas Company spent a combined total of $369 million on purchases with women, minority, and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses in 2008 – a 20-percent increase in spending over 2007.

        The 30 percent in spending with diverse suppliers in 2008 substantially exceeded the 21.5-percent benchmark set by the California Public Utilities Commission.

        In 2008, SDG&E and The Gas Company significantly expanded their technical assistance and supplier-development programs by partnering with local universities to offer courses to build business acumen.  These courses include financial management, management development, operations and strategic planning.  The utilities also launched a successful in-house workshop for suppliers on access to capital resources.  The programs include one-on-one coaching and refresher courses to help build business acumen. 

        Over the past 15 years, SDG&E and The Gas Company have spent more than $6 billion with diverse suppliers.

        The Gas Company is the nation’s largest natural gas distribution utility, providing safe and reliable energy to 20.5 million consumers through 5.7 million meters.  SDG&E is a regulated public utility that provides safe and reliable energy service to 3.4 million consumers through 1.4 million electric meters and 840,000 natural gas meters in San Diego and southern Orange counties. 

        The Gas Company and SDG&E are subsidiaries of Sempra Energy.  Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2008 revenues of nearly $11 billion.  The Sempra Energy companies’ 13,600 employees serve more than 29 million consumers worldwide.

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