LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwire) -- 05/06/12 -- Britain' households are soon to discover smart new ways to save energy and money with First Utility (http://www.first-utility.com/). The UK's leading independent energy supplier has teamed up with leading US smart grid software company Opower to create a programme which could reduce UK households' energy bills by as much as GBP 400 million each year. The programme, set to launch in 2012, will be the first of its kind in the UK.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg recently referenced the partnership in a speech on the green economy, commenting on how the programme could help Britain's households to save money and energy in the same way Opower has helped American households to reduce their consumption.

"In the States, (Opower has) helped reach around 11 million homes, so far saving people around $85m. We want to see what the same approach could achieve here," stated Mr Clegg.

Using Opower's software First Utility will translate its customers' smart meter data into a range of tools to shows households how, when and where they make savings on their gas and electricity usage.

Customers will be able to receive the valuable insights in a variety of ways: by post, email and text messages, as well as by logging into their online First Utility account.

"We know that household budgets are under increasing pressure, and that energy bills are part of that," said Mark Daeche, founder of First Utility. "At First Utility, we are able to provide cutting-edge home energy management tools enabled by our smart meters. First Utility have partnered with Opower to help us deliver the best utility customer experience in the UK, and help our customers save on their bills."

Find out about the home energy services offered by First Utility at: http://www.first-utility.com/home-energy/our-tariffs.

About First Utility

First Utility is the smarter independent utilities supplier, offering gas and electricity services to a range of consumer and business customers. It is the only energy provider to roll out smart meters to all its customers, throughout the UK. It is through the use of smart metering technology that First Utility can empower consumers to manage and reduce their own energy consumption and bills. First Utility is headquartered in Warwick.