BNY Mellon Leads Financial Services Industry with Five-Year Renewable Energy Commitment

NEW YORK, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- BNY Mellon (NYSE: BK), the global leader in asset management and securities servicing, announced today that it will purchase  1.125 million Renewable Energy Credits, or  RECs, from NextEra Energy Resources as part of a five-year investment in alternative energy. BNY Mellon's investment is equivalent to 225 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, or 75 percent of the company's projected U.S. electric utility use in 2010.

As a result of BNY Mellon's investment, and based on a national average emissions rate, the company will avoid the indirect carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of more than 30,000 passenger vehicles per year, or the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power more than 20,000 average American homes annually.

A REC purchase ensures that the associated amount of electricity a company or an individual uses is replaced on the power grid with renewable electricity. BNY Mellon has chosen Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources, North America's largest producer of wind and solar power, as its REC supplier. The five-year agreement provides that 100 percent of the revenue from the company's purchase will be directed to the EarthEra Renewable Energy Trust, which uses all funds received to build new renewable energy projects in the United States, such as wind and solar power. These clean resources generate electricity without producing carbon dioxide or other harmful pollutants.

"EPA commends our leading Partners for their continued commitment to protecting the environment by using green power," said Susan Wickwire, Chief of the Energy Supply and Industry Branch, Environmental Protection Agency. "By supporting green power, BNY Mellon is reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, supporting clean energy technologies and contributing to a clean energy future."

BNY Mellon's voluntary investment in green power supports the U.S. EPA's Fortune 500 Green Power Challenge in which Fortune 500 Corporations have been challenged to collectively purchase 10 billion kWh of green power. BNY Mellon's purchase of RECs is among the largest to date by a global financial services company and places it into the EPA's Green Power Leadership Club, whose members purchase 10 times the Partnership's minimum requirement.

"Environmental sustainability is one of the core pillars of our corporate social responsibility program," said Thaddeus "Chip" Logan, managing director of BNY Mellon's corporate facilities services division. "By adopting a 'greener' operating model through investments like this, we are helping to drive the development of environmentally sound and sustainable power sources."

BNY Mellon's commitment to environmental sustainability extends corporate-wide with a host of successful initiatives designed to reduce energy consumption, such as the EPA's ENERGY STAR award and the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED certification programs. The company also provides environmental investment products and services to the financial markets, and has established an employee culture that values and recognizes the benefits of environmentally sustainable operations. In 2006, BNY Mellon created the first Voluntary Carbon Offset Registry and Custody platform, which supports the trading and settlement of Carbon Offset credits, globally, using the Voluntary Carbon Standard. Additionally, the company estimates that its portfolio of ENERGY STAR-rated commercial properties alone has resulted in a reduction of more than a 31 million kWh of greenhouse gases, which is the equivalent of 22,000 metric tons of CO2 or removing more than 4,200 "average" cars from the roads per year.

Notes to Editors:

The calculation of kWh stated in this news release is an estimate based on BNY Mellon's projected 2010 electrical utility usage, as well as its actual 2008 and 2009 usage.

About EPA's Green Power Partnership

The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages organizations to buy green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with purchased electricity use. The Partnership currently has more than 1,200 Partner organizations voluntarily purchasing billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500 companies, small- and medium-sized businesses, local, state and federal governments, and colleges and universities. For additional information, please visit http://www.epa.gov/greenpower .

About NextEra Energy Resources

NextEra Energy Resources is a clean energy leader and one of the largest competitive energy suppliers in North America. A subsidiary of Juno Beach, Fla.-based FPL Group (NYSE: FPL), NextEra Energy Resources is the largest generator in North America of renewable energy from the wind and sun. It operates clean, emissions-free nuclear power generation facilities in New Hampshire, Iowa and Wisconsin as part of the FPL Group nuclear fleet, which is the third largest in the U.S. FPL Group had 2008 revenues of more than $16 billion, approximately 39,000 megawatts of generating capacity, and more than 15,000 employees in 27 states and Canada. For more information, visit these Web sites:  www.NextEraEnergyResources.com, www.FPLGroup.com.

About BNY Mellon

BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. BNY Mellon is a global financial services company focused on helping clients manage and service their financial assets, operating in 34 countries and serving more than 100 markets. The company is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, providing superior asset management and wealth management, asset servicing, issuer services, clearing services and treasury services through a worldwide client-focused team. It has $22.1 trillion in assets under custody and administration and $966 billion in assets under management, services $11.9 trillion in outstanding debt and processes global payments averaging $1.6 trillion per day. Additional information is available at bnymellon.com.

SOURCE BNY Mellon