2004

• ReliabilityOne Award:  We Energies received the ReliabilityOneTM National Achievement Award as America’s most reliable utility. The company also won its third consecutive Midwest ReliabilityOneTM Regional Achievement Award as the most reliable utility in the Midwest. The award is given by PA Consulting Group, the industry’s largest management consulting firm.
• Edison Award: WEC was named the 2004 winner of the electric power industry’s highest honor -- the Edison Award from the Edison Electric Institute. The award recognizes the company’s innovation and leadership in expanding the markets for coal combustion products and finding productive uses for 98 percent of these materials in 2003.
• Wall Street Journal's 2004 Technology Innovation Award: The Electric Power Research Institute's (EPRI's) Toxecon process was honored as a runner-up in the environment category of this competition. The patented process, which EPRI is employing at We Energies' Presque Isle Power Plant in Marquette, Michigan, is a promising new mercury control technology that can capture mercury emissions in flue gas. We Energies has a long history of employing technological developments in its power generating strategies to improve efficiency and reduce emissions. This first full-scale demonstration of the Toxecon process continues the company's tradition as a pioneer in improving the process of electric power generation. The Toxecon project is being conducted pursuant to a cooperative agreement with the Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory, which will fund $24.8 million of the $50 million project.
• Business Friend of the Environment: We Energies received the 2004 award from the Wisconsin Environmental Working Group (WEWG), an affiliate of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce.
• Wisconsin Association of Manufacturers and Commerce:  We Energies was one of nine award winners in the areas of pollution prevention, innovation technology and environmental stewardship from this association. Thirty-two Wisconsin organizations -- from small manufacturers to Fortune 500 companies -- were nominated for the award for leadership in environmental protection. We Energies received the award due to its employees' commitment to initiate and support numerous environmental stewardship initiatives throughout the state. We Energies has a long history of sustaining and enhancing biodiversity by using a variety of sound conservation ecology practices to manage aesthetics, forestry, recreation, water quality and wildlife on the lands it owns through such initiatives as:

• The Bald Eagle Management Plan
• The Peregrine Falcon Recovery Program
• The Raptor Nest Reward Program
• The Prairie White-fringed Orchid Plan
  
  
• Geospatial Information and Technology Association (GITA) Excellence Award: In April, We Energies received the GITA award for outstanding application of geospatial technology for its Geographical Information System (GIS), a distribution mapping system. Candidates for the Excellence Award must demonstrate dedication, insight and a high degree of initiative in implementing successful geospatial systems. The award recognizes We Energies' recent successful efforts to integrate multiple legacy systems into a single source for all GIS data. The company also successfully combined electric and natural gas facilities into the Field Access to Automated Records (FAAR) system. We Energies has been at the forefront of using GIS technology for more than 25 years.
• Tree Line USA: In April, We Energies received its sixth Tree Line USA utility designation from The National Arbor Day Foundation. The award, presented in cooperation with the National Association of State Foresters, recognizes electric utilities that:

• Maintain a quality tree care program
• Annually train employees in quality tree care practices
• Maintain tree planting and public education programs

We Energies encourages employees to support the company’s forestry efforts by reporting areas where trees are encroaching on distribution lines or if they see playhouses in trees near electric equipment.

• National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE): The University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee awarded We Energies their Employer of the Year award at their annual awards banquet. We Energies supported the UWM local student chapter of NSBE so they could send their students to the National NSBE Conference in Dallas, Texas. We Energies also was recognized as a supportive local employer by the University of Wisconsin – Madison local student chapter of NSBE at their annual awards banquet. We Energies helped support the banquet.