January 3, 2008

Berkeley, CA, USA: Helio Micro Utility Inc. Appoints Vice President of Project Finance

Helio Micro Utility, Inc. (Helio mU), a wholly owned subsidiary of the HelioGroup, has appointed Gregory Rosen to the newly created post of Vice President, Project Finance. The HelioGroup, an integrated renewable energy management company, also includes solar system integrator HelioPower as well as HelioEMS, an energy management solutions provider.

"We are thrilled to welcome Greg to our company," said Mr. Rogoff, the CEO of the HelioGroup. "Greg's expertise and experience will be extremely valuable to the expansion of Helio mU, and he will be instrumental in leading the rollout of new financial products designed to enable our customers to meet their renewable energy goals."

Gregory Rosen is an eight-year veteran of the renewable energy field. Prior to joining Helio mU, Mr. Rosen was most recently a Director of Structured Finance for SunPower Corporation, a multinational leader in solar electric systems. In this position, he arranged and financed dozens of multi-megawatt equipment sales and Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for Fortune 500 companies and government entities, including the largest photovoltaic (PV) system in North America (15MW) at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.

"I'm excited to join Helio mU, and I look forward to expanding the list of large scale projects we finance, while suitably modifying the financing mechanics and risk mitigation techniques used for such projects for residential customers." said Mr. Rosen. Mr. Rosen's initial focus will be on residential retrofit Solar Power Purchase Agreements (Solar PPAs).

"For years, homeowners have been waiting for a straightforward and cost-effective way to use solar power without a huge upfront investment," said Mr. Rosen. "Our new program will offer just that--and finally enable homeowners to enter into Solar PPAs. These kinds of agreements have been available to companies and government entities for the last several years, and we look forward to extending it to residential customers. Unlike existing industry residential Solar PPA programs, the Helio mU program will be available with little or no initial capital outlay by the homeowner. The program assures customers that their systems will be constantly monitored and the equipment maintained for optimum system performance for the life of the agreement. Our Solar PPA's guarantee a set price for energy, thus shielding customers from future cost increases generated by fossil-fuel based energy sources."

In prior years at PowerLight and SunPower, in addition to his financing duties, Mr. Rosen served as a lead developer for several projects including the 0.7 MW City of San Francisco Moscone Center project and the 1.1 MW Alameda County Jail project. He has also developed and managed regulated and voluntary-market Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) portfolios. Previously, Mr. Rosen worked in investment banking and as an environmental advocate at the League of Conservation Voters in Washington, DC. Mr. Rosen holds a Masters Degree in resource optimization from the University of Pennsylvania.

Further details about: Helio Micro Utility