Progress CEO Stresses Importance of Telecom and IT Roles at Energy and Water Utilities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 5, 2008

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact: Kristy Weinshel
202.833.6815
kristy.weinshel@utc.org

ORLANDO, FL. – UTC TELECOM 2008, the annual conference of the Utilities Telecom Council, a trade association that serves as the premier source of telecom and IT advocacy, started its opening general session today with a keynote address from Jeff Lyash, President & CEO, Progress Energy Florida, Inc. During the speech, Lyash stressed the importance of telecom and IT professionals at critical infrastructure organizations. He also recognized the important role they will continue to play as utilities look to upgrade aging infrastructure in the future. In addition to Lyash, attendees hear from UTC’s Chairman of the Board, Jeff Selman. During the speech, Selman listed out the strategic priorities of UTC which mirror the strategic direction of the industry. He outlined UTC’s goal of making sure our members are prepared for where the industry is heading in the future. The final keynote, Larry J. Sabato, Election Analyst and University Professor, outlined the impact of the election on both the critical infrastructure industry and attendees personally. Sabato’s insights on the election further supported the strategic direction UTC is taking in regards to reliability issues, economic conditions, technology issues, greening initialtive and workforce issues.

Monday’s program featured educational sessions covering a broad range of issues based on the symposia and workshops specifically: Workforce Mobility Symposium, Smart Meters/Smart Grids Symposium, Control Systems Symposium, Community Development Symposium, Enterprise IT Symposium, Utility Telecom Transport Technologies Symposium, Legal/Regulatory Compliance Workshop and NERC CyberSecurity Workshop.

More information on speakers and topics can be found on www.UTCTELECOM2008.utc.org. UTC TELECOM 2008 continues until May 7, 2008 at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort.

Utilities Telecom Council
Celebrating its 60th year in 2008, the Utilities Telecom Council (UTC) is a global, full-service trade association dedicated to creating a favorable business, regulatory, and technological environment for entities that own, manage, or provide critical telecommunications systems in support of core services. Founded in 1948, UTC has evolved into a dynamic organization that represents the broad communications interests of electric, gas, and water utilities; natural gas pipelines; other critical infrastructure entities and other industry stakeholders. Visit www.utc.org for more information on UTC and its services.