Due to record-demand from its customers, Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities Company have expanded their Holiday Utility Gift (HUG) Certificate program to make the certificates available year-round, beginning this week.

A HUG is a gift certificate that credits the utility account of any LG&E or KU customer. Instead of working like a traditional gift certificate, a HUG is a credit placed directly on a customer's account. The credit is subtracted from the customer's next bill. After a customer purchases a HUG, they receive a gift certificate to present to the recipient indicating the amount of the purchase, which will be credited to the customer's account.

More than 400 HUGs were purchased during the 2005 holiday season, totaling more than $46,000. By way of comparison, in 2004 more than 150 HUGs were purchased, totaling more than $16,000.

"These non-traditional gift certificates have been very popular with customers in past holiday seasons, that's why we made the decision to make this a year-round program," said Dave Vogel, E.ON U.S. Vice President of Retail Services. "This program is one of the many initiatives we've undertaken to help our customers cope with the national issue of rising natural gas costs."

HUGs — now called Home Utility Gift Certificates — will be available during normal business hours at all customer service walk-in centers. In order to credit the proper LG&E or KU account, customers should be prepared to provide the address of the HUG recipient.

HUGs start at $25 and can be purchased by cash or check.



E.ON U.S., headquartered in Louisville, Ky., is a subsidiary of E.ON A.G., the world's largest investor-owned energy services provider. E.ON U.S. is a diversified energy services company that owns and operates Louisville Gas and Electric Company, a regulated utility that serves 318,000 natural gas and 390,000 electric customers in Louisville and 16 surrounding counties, and Kentucky Utilities Company, a regulated electric utility in Lexington, Ky., that serves 518,000 customers in 77 Kentucky counties and five counties in Virginia.